August Birthday Blowout

As I've mentioned before, we are lucky to know a number of families in Sunnyside whose kids are all about the same age as Elisa. I'm not sure what was in the water that fall of '07, but by August of '08, there seemed to have been a birthday explosion--at least 9 of our playgroup kids were born that month. Watching them grow up together has truly made this journey of parenthood all the more enjoyable. With my pregnancy this summer, we knew we would be staying put in August and foregoing the usual trip to visit Nacho's family in Madrid. And as it turned out, a number of our friends here were also bypassing their usual summer holidays this month. The idea of a joint August birthday party at Sunnyside Gardens Park quickly took hold and this momma to a newborn was eager to celebrate together and share the party planning duties. Nothing like showing up with just a couple of hours of sleep under your belt and being able to commiserate with my fellow moms who likewise slept poorly the night before. Did I mention three of us have new babes as of this summer? Fortunately, there is power in numbers so on Saturday we teamed up to throw one heck of a bash...

From the food to the decor to the crafts, it was a great party all around. Plenty to eat and drink and good conversation. Everyone brought their A-game and no child made it home without a good deal of cake and fun. All told we feted 7 of the August babes: Birdie, Elisa, Antonella, Francesca, Maya, Juliet (in absentia), and Leonardo. Elisa managed to run wild through the park like she always does and required a wardrobe change half way through the festivities after I spied her splashing with wild abandon in a mud puddle on the field. Oh joy. Good thing that new dress is wash and wear. With mud splatters all the way up her back (and in her ear!), our birthday girl was having a blast and I wouldn't want it any other way. Getting to share the party with both grandmothers and my father who served as Grill Master was an added bonus. The weather held out with no rain til later that night and Carolina finally succumbed to the sleep she'd been resisting all night and gave me a rather easy time at the park. Being able to just hang out and relax and catch up with some friends I hadn't seen in a while was exactly the kind of day I'd hoped for. And I think all of the kids felt they got something special out of the party too. It might not work for every year, but this year, the sight of all of those kids singing and celebrating together was a beautiful thing. Hard to believe they are already preschoolers with so much independence and personality to boot. Three years of friendships have blossomed and no matter who moves away or how often we get together, there is something very special about this group. And if the kids don't know it yet, we moms definitely do. So thanks to everyone for sharing in our fabulous day. We will always remember the big 3!