We have generally been a very low-key birthday family. All prior children's birthday parties have been simple family affairs, with little fanfare and excitement. This year, the advent of kindergarten plus the guilt of scheduling a tonsil surgery for the day before her birthday combined into a sort of perfect birthday storm. So there we were, Sunday afternoon, with yet more inflatables in our front yard. Because it wouldn't be a party without inflatables in the front yard and snacks in the garage.
Kids and adults eventually streamed in, and all seemed to enjoy the bounce house and obstacle course. Jonas enjoyed the obstacle course more than anyone, and he tackled it constantly from approximately 11 am - 5 pm (delivery to pickup). We considered ourselves lucky to avoid any serious injuries from all the frenzied roughhousing.
It wouldn't be a party without Kyle and I trying to ruin it, so once again we prohibited gifts. But no one, including Scotlen, seemed to notice their absence.
The theme was Scooby Doo. Scooby Doo decor, Scooby Doo bounce house, Scooby Doo snacks, Scooby Doo favors, Scooby Doo cake . . . you get the picture. But by far the biggest hit of the party was the surprise appearance of Scooby Doo himself. Never underestimate the time it will take for a group of children to flock to a man in a Scooby Doo costume. It was basically instantaneous. Scotlen was particularly thrilled. Asking Scooby Doo all sorts of questions, requesting him to come see her room, asking how long he was going to stay. And it was all awesome until Scooby got too hot and sweaty in the costume to continue on. She trailed him back into the house only to discover that it was just Daddy in a costume! And Scotlen spent the next 15 minutes sadly letting everyone know that Scooby wasn't real, it was just her Daddy. Oh well.
We discovered that real birthday parties are approximately 26 hours of work for 2 hours of fun. But even with that ratio, well worth the effort. There's nothing more fun than watching your kids have a blast.
Some activity in the bounce house. I somehow managed to go the whole day without getting a picture of the 40 foot long obstacle course. Fail.
Kelly and Alvaro. Adult cuteness.
Badminton. A game we own, but not a game well-suited for children.
Scooby greets Scotlen.
Scooby greets Jonas
I see a Christmas card . . .
The obligatory candle shot
Scooby shrinks
Scrappy Doo
No comments:
Post a Comment