i'll let you in on a secret.

birthday parties are way more fun without the grown-ups.

why?

1. kids are a lot easier to impress than adults. to kids, knocking toys over is cool. blanket forts are cool. food is cool. to kids, fancy plates, matching decorations, and meticulously embellished cupcakes are not that cool. whew, pass.

2. kids entertain each other, while adults need to be entertained by other adults. upstairs may be a jungle, but downstairs there is time to read a book. crazy, right? best kept play-date secret.

3. kids don't operate under a schedule of events. if they all storm the kitchen yelling, "cake cake CAKE" and we haven't opened presents or eaten pizza first, who cares?? let them eat cake. let them take their time opening presents and demolishing the boxes to try to get the things out the moment they see them! with no adults, opening presents could last all evening, easy. zero stress.

there are more reasons, but i think i've made my point.

did you see how awesome the top picture was?? look at their expressions and you'll just know that kid parties are the raddest.

parenting is like playing super mario brothers 3. you go along the best you can, improving little by little. you learn to avoid the hazards and collect the hidden treasures, and you sometimes happen upon the most exciting secrets. the playing field changes constantly and every triumph is followed by another challenge. some parts are really fun and exciting (like the coins in the clouds) some parts are more stressful (flying fish). eventually you're an old pro and you can play the parenting game in your sleep, right? maybe? okay, this metaphor is stretched to its limit.

anyway, i mean to say that sparky's 5th birthday party was a beanstalk to the sky.

so good.

Comments

Laura said…
i have fond memories of playing video games in the middle of the night with you in that sweet rec room/garage. but now that we have our own nes and smb 3 game, i can actually play a level without dying.

happy birthday to the sweetest boy!
Mrs N said…
I LOVE your youngest boy's pose & facial expression in that top pic! So hilarious.

It's true that little kid parties really not need be that deluxe to wow the kids. My cake is always less-than-impressive (no cake decorating skills) - my kids don't care! It's a CAKE! We leave things pretty unstructured and the kids have a great time running around like maniacs.
Carlito86 said…
That first photograph is fantastic, it reminds me of a film or something, with a group of young boys searching for adventure!!

Carla x