The best birthdays are those shared with friends
Our day started about two weeks ago, with Wendy slowly but surely squirrelling away of all manner of bits and bobs to enable a 6th birthday party to take place. We have already had a discussion with the children about "big" parties; that they may one get one or two, so they have to choose which year to have them wisely. This was the big one for the child formerly known as Little Miss 5.
The entire day has been something of a blur. Knowing that the party wasn't until the afternoon lulled me into a false sense of apathy; I hadn't contended with a 9am walk into town (accompanied by the birthday girl) to buy everything you might expect for a 1970s party. Cheese, pineapple, sausage rolls, various fruit juices, peppers, cucumber, various brightly coloured e-number filled biscuits. You might say we are instilling somewhat traditionalist values into our children, and those around them.
The venue for the party was a local kids play facility with all manner of "safe" climbing frames, ball pools, ramps, slides, and crash mats. It all seemed like a great idea until I was stranded at the front desk (Wendy had a banquet table filled with previously described junk food to arrange). Not knowing any of the children, and only one or two of the parents who were entrusting their children to us for the afternoon, I will admit to being scared stiff. Luckily no limbs, noses or eyes were broken, bent or lost.
The food was tucked into in the same manner as a herd of hipporhinostrocows might be imagined to. We cranked up the iPod while the kids ate, and the remaining mums compared notes on what was working, and what was not in preparation for the next party they might have to throw.
Kids love party games, and truth be told, so do the grown-ups. Pass the parcel caused disbelief in the children when they discovered that there were more prizes than children in the "parcel". A technical hitch with the iPod remote control meant that any planned process of making sure all the children had a present went out of the window, and various parents started assisting with whispered pointy fingers.
Musical bumps turned into a crazed jack in the box dance for the two remaining professional party gamers. I had to award a draw for fear of them injuring themselves. I've never seen children repeatedly get up and fall to the floor as quickly, or as perfectly timed – and all for a lolly.
Musical statues produced the first casualty of the afternoon, when a certain four year old boy couldn't handle not winning <em>something</em>, and fell apart in the corner of the room. A lollipop cured all of his ills.
Tomorrow we will task Little Miss 6 with writing very careful thankyou notes to all of her friends for the wonderful presents they gave her. While unwrapping them this evening, her little sister piped up "when is it my birthday Mum?"… "Not for a long time"… "Why?"
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