Birthday Bash

It was a wonderful party.



We were blessed with a gift of a day. We'd anticipated rain and had spent the morning rearranging the public rooms to maximize space so that we could fit upwards of 30 people in the house. But when the sun was holding at 11:30 (indeed nary a cloud in sight) we went ahead and hung the garland and lanterns outside.

All the details came together, from the butterfly nets to the flower cupcakes, and the yard was green and idyllic in the dappled midday sun. I think the moment that made all the prep worthwhile had to be the parade of preschoolers running along the trail through our "woods" chasing each other with butterfly nets. Can you imagine? Perfect.

Our little birthday girl seemed occasionally overwhelmed but more often simply oblivious to all of the excitement and decor that had been arranged in her honor. She was pleasant and sweet the whole time and enjoyed simple pleasures like standing next to the rocking horse and smiling. The preschool crew were the ones to really take full advantage of the party atmosphere, as well they should.

The full party lasted til about 2:30, capped off by singing to the girl and offering her a lovely little cake which she wanted absolutely nothing to do with. In fact, she spent most of her cake experience trying to wipe the frosting off of her fingers. Present opening was done mostly for the benefit of Claire and Elizabeth, the two preschool girls in attendance-- they were really the only people paying much attention. Ivy's very favorite gift? A large cardboard box, after the gift was removed. She spent the second half of the present-opening extravaganza sitting in said box, playing with a piece of ribbon. (The morning after the party she found the box in the dining room and immediately climbed inside...)

As seems to be the case with our children's parties, this one turned into an all-day affair, as our kid-free friends arrived around 3, along with Melinda and Will and their little ladies who'd been napping earlier. Our little girl decided napping is for the birds when there is a party going on, so we spent the next few hours sitting outside while 3 babies toddled and crawled and climbed in the woodchips and fought over rights to try climbing up the slide. They were pretty awesome. And absolutely filthy by the end of it.

Kate and Zach stayed late and we actually had a campfire after the kids went to bed. It was a tiny little bit like old times and that fire, plus the fact that we've hit this milestone of surviving the first year, reminds me that we'd best not "sell the boat"; these baby years are flying by and we'll have more and more time for campfires with friends, all too soon...