Jay's birthday was right before our move--hence the late blog post. Since age 8 is a big deal, I allowed a birthday party this year. We planned the party following Jay's instructions. He requested: the party to be at Dykstra Park in Grandview, a donut cake, a specific guest list, and a pinata. I texted around to the top friends' moms to ask which date their kids would be able to come, and that's how we chose Thursday, May 18th after school for the party. I find birthday parties very stressful, even when they're simple. People. Coming. Food. Decorations. It's a lot to deal with. It was so nice that Jay wanted such a simple party. I got party plates, pinata, snacks, and three dozen donuts beforehand, and we set up on a picnic table near the playground. The kids came, they played, busted the pinata, ate donuts, opened presents, played some more, and left. It was good, and Jay was happy. Here are the pictures:
I got the idea for a donut tower-cake from my sister, and it was perfect. No baking, frosting, decorating, knives, or forks needed. Simplicity is my friend. So are $4 per dozen Walmart donuts.
Pinata!
Pinatas are seriously dangerous. The minute a piece of candy slips out, everyone runs straight for the pinata, whether the hitter has stopped swinging or not. I'm all about kids experiencing life and not being overly protective, but...getting your head knocked off by a bat during a pinata ought to be avoidable. Thankfully nobody got a concussion, although there were some close calls.
After a certain point, the pinata's holder got beaten off, so Jeff ripped it further open and then flung it high in the air. It was a grand finale, with candy raining far and wide.
Our friends put their baby into the busted pinata. He fit perfectly.
Presents!
I love how kids cluster around so close to each other when they're interested.
Jay felt rather wealthy after opening a few birthday cards.
Talking with Cecilia and Grama Meri.
Party kids!
Hugging Grama Meri goodbye. She drove nearly 3 hours from her house to be at Jay's 90 minute birthday party. And she brought us Cafe Rio food for dinner! My mom is a genius. After the rigors of "hosting" a birthday party, cooking dinner was the last thing I wanted to do! The kids were all too full of donuts and fruit snacks to want dinner that night, so after they were in bed, Jeff and I had a Cafe Rio dinner date at our kitchen table.
Birthday celebrations, part II.
Sunday, May 21, 2017 was the big birthday itself. My first baby turned 8. He gleefully informed me "only ten more years till my mission!" whereupon I burned the calendar in denial (metaphorically of course, since we use Google Calendar and it is not flammable). Jeff and I blew up some balloons and hung some streamers the night before Jay's day, and per tradition, we did presents first thing in the morning.
Amber immediately claimed as many of the balloons as she could manage.
Jay's gifts included: sunglasses, a bike speedometer, an army vest and hat, a Minecraft Lego set, and a new bike.
I was proud of the way I "wrapped" Jay's bike.
Taking his new wheels for a test drive. I researched kids' bikes endlessly online before going to Walmart. It's a great little bike! You don't have to bust the bank to make a kid happy. Up until now, we've gotten the kids Goodwill bikes, but this was a special brand-new birthday bike.
CAKE! I made the exact same cake for Jay as I made for Rose, because we all liked it so much. A regular chocolate cake mix with sour cream added, and a tub of funfetti chocolate frosting. I'm not good with frosting, so thank you Pillsbury for the help! It was delicious.
Nom nom, cake.
The famous birthday interview. This picture looks blurry, so if you can't read it, the highlights are:
What is scary? Rose (and spiders)
What makes you happy? my family and missing school
Favorite clothes: plain underwear.
We love our Jay!
No comments:
Post a Comment