5th Birthday Party

I get the impression sometimes that I'm always in the midst of preparing for something. Exam, interview, debate, first date, holiday, moving house, childbirth, kids' first day at school, dinner, birthday parties...And since I do almost everything in slow motion, all events do have the tendancy to feel very spread-out and hence the recurring déjà-vu and always-at-it sensation.

I've spent days getting ready for Baby Girl's 5th Bday party. 10 guests (8 girls and 2 boys) are expected tomorrow at 2:30pm. And I do not have the impression that I'm ready at all.

The "Tree House"

From the inside

I've cleared out the spiderwebs in the tiny loft where they used to make balsamic vinegar in and transformed it into a "tree-house". I've moved all the boxes into the guest room and turned the spare room into a play cum movie room. I've made sandwiches, marinated meat for the satay etc. I've planned the outdoor games and prepared the terrace for them.

The little door leads to the loft

Then we woke up in the morning to see snow covering the fields and of course the terrace. Will have to move the games to the arcade.

I baked the cake and prepared the rest of the food. Hub set up the projector for the movie and helped to dress up the kids.

Half the guests arrived on time and the other half an hour late. In fact 2 said they would come but didn't and did not even call to say they couldn't come. That made starting the outdoor games difficult and after a few attempts to get them going, I gave up and moved everybody into the house. In Italy, most parents also tend to stay for the party so I had people to finish up the food for me :-).

They loved the loft and the tiny bouncy castle (and destroyed it) though they may have been too young for the movie Arthur and the Invisibles. Not for the chips and popcorn though, I had to keep the supply flowing, boy, could these kids snack!

At the movies

The chocolate cake I made was very good though Baby Girl was disappointed that it wasn't a Strawberry Shortcake (but sorry it's not the season for berries leh) and most of the food was actually consumed by the parents. I almost managed to avoid the real playroom being run over but of course those kids discovered it on their way out and promptly whooshed through it leaving toys everywhere before they actually left. Sigh...

I for one am just glad that this is all over - till Spring when we celebrate Baby Boy's 4th Bday. Now you know why people prefer to pay others to do the job nowadays, but Hub didn't want to do Opla again and the MacDonald's here's very tiny...So ze house it had to be.