5 - Party Preview

You may remember that I was fretting here earlier about first birthday parties and all the hoopla surrounding them. Let me be clear that if it were up to Richard and me alone, we would have a small cake, invite the neighbors, sing, and voila - first birthday. However, much as we might like to think so, it is not all up to us.

Peanut is very much a child of the community here, and as early as six months Doris was asking me what I was planning for Peanut's cumpleaños. At the time, I laughed (choked?) and said that I had not even considered it given that it was double her lifetime away, but Doris was in earnest. She began making suggestions and contacting others so they would be ready when the time came.

Well it has come.

The 5 for today are photos of the 5 different hand-made (not by me) invitations that each child (all 30ish of them!) will receive. We have either a zoo theme, or a farm theme, depending on your point of view. Whatever we have, we do not have a Disney theme which, in this context, I consider to be a rousing victory.

Each part individually cut from foam and pasted together. Oh yes friends, this is an EVENT.

Along with these animals will be an balloon archway consisting of animal faces as well as stand-alone balloon animals. There will be a banner with Nora's photo, a styrofoam fence (farm-leaning...) plus, of course, palm trees. I believe I heard something about face-painting, a sing-along, individually made foam animal visors as party favors, and I am sure I am missing something. If you can think of it, it is probably happening. 

The thing is, I am doing fairly little all in all. This party is much like the gift of my wedding. After a week of rain and last minute changes to make an outdoor, backyard gathering into an indoor, fellowship hall celebration, my family and friends transformed a concrete slab room into a sacred space. It was the greatest gift one could receive - all that work with no one even really telling you how much work it was. Peanut's birthday has been a cause taken on by a variety of people that jumped in and said, "You know, I would love to do invitations." "I have a decorating business and I want to do this, this, and this for Peanut if that is okay." "Of course you can use the church, it will be such fun." So while I am sure that next week will be a little more stressful than normal, it may only be as hard as getting a little cake, inviting the neighbors and singing a song. And I can do that. 

Now tell me, you can't wait to see the photos next week can you? :)

Oh, and in case you didn't see the announcement for Peanut's baptism and birthday, here it is. You are all invited!