Sunday, February 27, 2011

The Party!



Last year, due to the small fortune we paid for Collin's birthday party, I swore we would only have a big party every other year. But, Mama has a really hard time passing up an opportunity to plan a party...especially for her favorite soon to be 4 year old! So the party was on!

Originally we had planned on having the party at the Grove City Nazarene Church Play Zone. It was the perfect venue for a bunch of sugared up crazy kids and it's cheap! Unfortunately, it was booked for months. I guess my little secret is out! On to plan B.

I started calling around and the prices for kids birthday parties are outrageous! Every party package based on 6-8 kids. I don't know if we just have a lot of kids in the family or what but we always have way more than 6-8- kids. Finally, I found the perfect place for Collin's DINOmite Birthday Party! Score one for Mama!!

We ended up at Indian Village which is a part of Columbus Parks and Recs. It is very close to our house. They run summer camps and various nature based programs for kids throughout the year. We love Indian Village! It is surrounded by wooded trails, the river and you can't forget the "CAVES"!

I was on the hunt for all things dinosaur. Here's some of what we ended up with.


Dino Gift Bags

Some of the gift bag items for our friends...Dinosaur Activity Books, Dinosaur Tattoos, Dinosaur Gliders, Stampers, Dino Suckers and Candy  and Glow sticks for our cave adventure.



I made dinosaur candies and suckers-my first experience with candy molds. Definitely a learning experience. Note to self...next time by several of each mold, not just one!

What is that you ask???
Dino and #4 Chips-Yummy and super easy to make!

After our friends arrived we all learned about fossils and made our own fossils to take home.


Then when everyone was finished we got bundled up and headed out to the caves to look for fossils.

 


Everyone had a great time on our adventure. We saw lots of fossils and even some bugs.
Then we trekked back to the lodge for some hot chocolate, cake and a little more play time.




This is pretty much what Collin did for the entire party. He and Austin ran in circles around the tables non stop. Last summer on vacation Collin didn't really want anything to do with Austin but now they are "best friends" and had a blast! It's kind of hard to explain to a 4 year old that he should really play with all of his guests but I think everyone had fun.


Finally, it was time for presents! It was so funny to watch all of the kids crowd around. I had to keep moving Collin back up to the chair because he kept scooting away and the swarm of kids just followed.


At one point he was under a table trying to open his presents.
 


I think Collin really enjoyed his party and I hope he did because by the end of the night he would end up with a fever of 104.  Poor little guy!

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Guatoberfest Cruise 2009

My soapbox about the Advent Conspiracy

I came across this video on another blog. I have to admit I only looked at it for entertainment value. I assumed with a title like that, it had to be some wacko conspiracy theory and who doesn't need a good laugh. Suprisingly enough it really touched me and made me think. It didn't grab my interest because of it's religious value, because that's not really my thing. I am not the type of person that flaunts religion or believes in pushing your beliefs onto others. It touched me because of it's human value and because it shows me how quickly I forget.

When we were in Guatemala it was truly a life changing experience for a myriad of reasons, only one of which was bringing home a baby! We saw poverty that we could never imagine in this country. I remember thinking when I was there that despite all of the stress of the situation, I was more at peace than I had ever felt in my life. Among other things, there was no pressure to have more...there was nothing to have. People just lived their lives. Families worked together, lived together in cramped housing-if they had a roof over their heads at all-and they were happy! We were forced to enjoy eachother without our "creature comforts" and I loved it. I now remember hoping that once we got home, I would never lose that idea that we don't really need much at all. I realized our society makes us think we need more but we really don't. And after watching the video it makes me realize that I have failed miserably.


I had made up my mind that in order to honor my new found attitude and our sons heritage, we would sponsor a Guatemalan family every year so that they could have food and heat and their children could go to school-things we take for granted on a daily basis. For some reason I can never seem to find the money to do that- BUT- I can find the money to buy coffee every day, sometimes several times a day, Collin will see a room full of gifts on Christmas morning, I can go out to eat, I can do whatever I want for the most part. My priorities have gone right back to where they were before I experienced Guatemala and it makes me sad. That is the reason that I am posting the video in a permenant spot on the blog, so that I am constantly reminded, not only during Christmas but all year to give PRESENCE to my friends and family not PRESENTS and to give back to something that I feel very strongly about. I don't write this to push Guatemalan charity or any charity but to encourage anyone reading this to slow down and take a look at your life and see what means the most to you and see where it takes you.

Advent Conspiracy