It was nice to see a happy Tom. It was also great to see him interacting with Jacob (a lot) and the other kids. They really don't get a lot of quality time with their Dad or with our family as a family, which is one of the reasons I really wanted to make sure we did a party, regardless of financial and other concerns. It's a much needed chance for the kids and Tom to relax and have fun with family.
Ideally, I wouldn't have combined a holiday with their birthday party. But it was a way to save on costs and I didn't want to put off having a big celebration too long, it was already two weeks after Leanna's birthday!
I think it's important to make a big deal out of every one's birthdays, you should have at least one day a year to feel special and know that people are glad you were born! I'm not saying you need to spend tons of money or do all sorts of things (but I'm sure it's nice if you are able to comfortably do that), just find a way to make the birthday person happy and celebrated. And while they're young, their birthday celebration is also a celebration for the Mom also (all she went through in order to give this person life!)
Tom told me not to bother with streamers or balloons this year. I did anyway because they're an inexpensive way to make the day different. Kids always love balloons and we only have them at birthdays. Streamers make the house look different and special. It was very worth it because this year I finally managed to put all the streamers up the night before so that when they came down in the morning the whole place was decorated and they loved it! They came down the steps yelling "WOW!" and pointing and laughing, it really made me smile. This year I found poppers for about 1.50, this was the first time I'd seen them. Leanna didn't like them but the boys did. It was cheap entertainment.
I've been putting the most effort into the cakes. It's a way for me to express creativity and my love for my children. I try to find something that reflects their current interests or personality. It is time-consuming, I know I could easily just buy a cake and save myself a lot of time and stress. I'm always finishing up last minute. It's just something I want to do for them. It's a way I choose to show my love for them. It makes me happy to think that one day they can look back at pictures of their parties and see all the different cakes I made just for each one of them.
I'm sure this has it's roots in my grandmother's cakes. She made the best cakes! Hers were professional looking, not like mine! And she didn't have the advantage of the internet to use for help. I"m not sure how many cakes she made for me, I think it was mainly when I was younger. I still remember some of them. I actually asked her to make Leanna's first birthday cake. I wanted Leanna to have what I had-have a loved one make a cake special for her. She was going to but then she got sick right before the party and wasn't able to. I guess cake-making is a small way that my grandmother lives on.
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