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This is Four

By Julie
Kid birthday parties always make me feel a bit as if I've been hit by a dump truck. It's two days later and I think I have now regained full consciousness. Of our two kids' collective nine birthdays so far, this is only our second real birthday party—the full deal with other peoples' kids, invitations, favors, etc, etc, etc. Mostly because they are highly stressful and demand lots of small talk with other people, something this ISTJ and INFP avoid wherever possible.

But our baby turned four and the prospect of a birthday party she could invite her friends to put a huge smile on her face. So we rented our local indoor inflatable playground for two hours and had us a party. Pros: The "play" portion of the party was dead easy. Everybody loved it. Somebody else had to clean up. Cons: I couldn't go crazy with the crafty decorations, treats and doodads I originally planned because it was a package deal with little room for customization. (OH, WAIT. I think that was a "pro" in disguise and saved me from myself.)

Four is sparkly and twirly and excited, grinning from ear to ear with delight as almost 40 people sing Happy Birthday to you. It's full-speed fun (NO naps, thank you) for three straight days with pumpkin picking, bouncing, birthday partying, donut- and cupcake-eating, present-opening and balloon-bouncing.

Goes to show we will do anything to make this sweet kid happy. Two introverts can successfully throw a birthday party for 18 preschoolers with the help of a professional bounce house party hostess and 20,000 square feet of inflatables. We've cracked the code.


I did make homemade invitations, because I couldn't help myself.
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