BIRTHDAY FESTIVITES for a three year old

While we had a very good third birthday party, it was at the end of a really tough week (with time running around crazy at work, lack of sleep, teenager attitude,  etc), so I was really tired Friday...  HowEVER, my husband and Valerie did not help me with the specific things I had asked them too, sooooooooo, I was up till 2 am, then again at 7 am to clean and prepare for the party.  I am not talking food prep either, all I made was salsa.  I finished at 2:45 and then our first three families arrived at 3 on the DOT.

I ordered this cake, but the lady cancelled on me Thursday night.  I KNEW she would because she had been complaining on her Facebook page for 2 weeks about how tired, overwhelmed and exhausted she was.  Sure enough, she canceled- and called from a "blocked" number so I did not answer, she did it by voicemail.

I was stressing it, but a local lady was suggested to me, so I looked up her webpage and seriously- THESE CUPCAKES ARE TO DIE FOR, GOOD.  They are not a treasure chest (which I was so psyched about!!), but they were incredibly delicious.

So for the party, I had things to do other than run around and jump on the trampoline.  I made gold nuggets and buried them in the sand box (that we had used for a "swimming pool" all summer).  Finding sand was fun.

Got supplies and painted card stock gold for these hook-hand crafts

Found a "Pin the Eye Patch on the Pirate" game

And I set out homemade salsa, chips, hummus and spinach-artichoke dip and called it a party ;-) Oh! I also made peppermint sweet iced tea.

I put stencils on the lawn

I used the toybox we found for Asher at IKEA to put the goodie bags and cannonballs (black ballons) inside

It was SUPER fun keeping Asher occupied and the house clean until 3.  I did what I could to distract him.  The pirate jammies I ordered for him (they are really cute!) did not arrive in time, so he just wore a polo and jeans.

He LOVED us singing to him, his smile was so big and then he blew out the candle (with some coaching from daddy at the side), then the cupcake feast was ON.

The train table was a BIG hit.

As was the trampoline

AND the parachute

there were pirate-themed goodies in the goody bags

Girls make beautiful pirates!

And this year, I put "No presents please!" on the webpage, but forgot to do so on the invitations, so he did get gifts.  Of course, he loved them!  I know he would have been absolutely thrilled just having his friends over as well.  

It was a great birthday parrrrrty and we are so, incredibly grateful for our friends and Asher's friends that came and supported my party efforts and made Asher feel like the most-loved three year old ever.  At 2:45, I was thinking this would be the last party I threw because of all the work and the fact that it is impossible to do much during the week with my work schedule and Matt's, but it was soooo worth having my friends here and seeing Asher so happy.  

My friends came all the way from Maryland again and that was just incredible.  We went to an amazing BBQ spot down the road- Asher was a mess (which is normal, he does not like to sit still), but we had a lovely dinner and it was so yummy!

When we got home, Asher realized for the first time that his friends from Maryland did not follow us home, and he really, really cried, "Where my fwenns?"  It was sad and sweet!  

Thennnnn, we watched the Relief Society broadcast.  It was an amazing day from 3pm till midnight.

 

I know in the future, there will be more help, as Sunday, I could not even walk upright... It was rough.