... and then they were seven

The nice thing about seven-year-olds, is that streamers and balloons magically transform an ordinarily boring kitchen in to PARTY CENTRAL...

Small tote umbrellas carefully wrapped with ribbons and bows, are the BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENTS EVER...

And a "7" candle in a breakfast bagel ... is BEYOND AWESOME.

Perhaps our kids are just easy going, but once we fastened pins to their chests that were approximately the circumference of their heads...

And pointed out the Happy Birthday flag flapping in the breeze, the children skipped off to school happier than I've seen them in their seven full years on the planet.

Henry joined me on Friday afternoon to shop for little pumpkins.

Which we brought to the children's classroom.

Where, along with Charlie, Uncle Steve and Aunt Kathy, we sang Happy Birthday with their entire first grade class ... THREE SEPARATE TIMES.

The children came home from school and opened a few small presents which included Razor Scooters (I never could find bikes that we liked, hopefully Santa can whip something up in his shop between now and Christmas) and Lego sets. And while they certainly appreciated their new toys...

What they appreciated most of all were the musical cards that they received from Aunt Grace.

(The best part of this almost five minute clip are the, "Oops, I messed up! Can I start again?!")

This year, there wasn't an abundance of activities or presents or friends in attendance at some HUGE party. But there was an abundance of balloons and candle-lighting ceremonies and people who love our children and celebrate their presence here on earth. They were happy, so I was happy. Or perhaps, I was happy - so they were happy.

Whatever the case, I'm more convinced than ever: the things that bring us the most joy are usually the most simple.