birthday season commences

we had a big birthday event here at the end of august and somehow the time has just slipped by.
the wee boy has turned the magic number ( 3!!!) and is not seeming so wee anymore. big ideas, big words, big conversations, big questions, big laughs, big toys (which mean tiny parts) and big fun are what it is all about lately. he's into pirates and popeye, han solo and indiana jones, costumes and singing, puzzles and board games, hide and seek and playing tag, kipper and caillou. he's cracking us up and driving us crazy. often within the same 2 minutes.


we had a quiet family celebration the day of his birthday with a papa home from work early, a few little gifts, and some mini cupcakes. what the boy really wanted was a pirate party (with a robot) and that day came the next saturday. many of our friends came to celebrate and play with henry. i had originally planned on making a pinata and then decided i would either make the cake or the pinata, not both. i opted for the cake. whether or not that was the best choice is still up in the air. all the kids had fun taking turns whacking the pinata with henry's sword but i do believe if i had made it not everyone may have had a turn. i didn't put much candy in there, mainly little toys. i did put some mints in there with pirate wrappers and those are what henry went for when it finally burst. he was focused! and i noticed many of the other kids were too. one went for all the super bouncy balls, one went for the rings, and one went for the smarties. i realized after everyone went home that i had left an entire bag of goodies(toys) on top of the refrigerator that i had meant on putting in goody bags because they wouldn't fit in the pinata. guess what we're handing out this halloween?


i learned a few things about myself while getting this party going and ending it.
i am not a good planner. i have grand ideas and tend to get carried away. luckily, i know this and was able to get realistic with myself the closer it got to the party. hence, the store bought pinata.

i think i really may be a hermit. i avoided leaving the house and buying things for this party as much as possible. part of this is because i really don't enjoy shopping and partly because of where i live. i avoid atlanta area traffic as much as possible.

i am not a cake maker. at all. of course, i went a little crazy with the cake, but i have no patience for this stuff. i want to slap it all together and have it done. AND have it look cute. henry's cake was a structural nightmare (okay, it could have been worse). and i used the frosting like it was spackle. not good with a crumbly cake. fortunately, i have a sweet husband who happens to be a sculptor who came in and rescued the cake. he did an awesome job! and that boy loved the cake so much. he wanted to swipe frosting from it all day long and resisted. he also opened the refrigerator to show everyone when they got to the party saying, "look at my new pirate cake!". his love for the cake made it so worth the late night making it!


i am not the hostess with the mostess. and to be honest, i have no desire to be. this is something that used to bother me but i have come to accept that i just lack certain social skills. i do my best, what can i say? and kids parties? not my forte (and i have no desire for them to be). this party made me ready for the days of sleep-overs where we can just make some pizza and rent some movies. and i have a feeling this party was nothing compared to what i have coming to me (because truly it wasn't that bad - i am just a wuss).

i am, however, a cape maker (more on that later). i have been waiting so long to make this boy a cape and this just seemed like the perfect timing. i took him with me to the fabric shop and without knowing i was making anything for him, i had him pick out fabrics. i think he did a great job.


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i'd say all in all the boy had a great birthday week (he still thinks its his birthday). we are so thankful to our friends and family who helped make this a great birthday for him. he got many thoughtful gifts and he has enjoyed all of them. he's even sharing with bea! (except the legos). i can't wait to see what this year brings for him, it being the year of the magic number and all!