(1) We were getting gas about two years ago when I was pregnant with my third and Henry was barely 3. We pulled up to the pump, and from the back seat, Henry says, "Look, Mama, there's Daddy!" Now, we had missed his annual opthamologist appointment because of our move and getting in as a new patient, and I was really worried because this man looked NOTHING like his Daddy. He had a long, curly mullet, and his skin was much darker than my fair skinned hubby. I turned around and looked at him with concern in my eyes not knowing quite what to say...then he hit me with, "Hahahahaha! That's not Daddy!"
That was the first time I was subject to Henry's dry humor.
(2) Henry: "Mom, do you know what the biggest number is?"
Me: "Well, Hen, there isn't really a biggest number so we just call it infinity."
Henry: "Yes there is. It's called chickenbockin."
Deadpan.
(3) Henry: "Mom, how many days until my birthday?"
Me: "I don't know Henry, but it's a lot."
Henry: "Like 25?"
Me: "No, way more than 25."
Henry: "Oh, like chickenbockin days."
Oh, right, of course.
(4) Henry: "Mom, George punched me in the stomach."
Me: "What? When?"
Henry: "When we lived in Arizona."
Um, that was over 2 years ago.
(5) Me: "Henry, what would you like for lunch?"
Henry: "Mom, do you know what the biggest animal on the planet is? The blue whale; they eat krill."
How in the world do you know what krill are?
(6) Henry: "Mom, why does a glimmer bird eat while it's flying?"
Me: "I don't know, Henry, why does a glimmer bird eat while it's flying?"
Henry: "WHY NOT? HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
What the heck is a glimmer bird anyway?
Now that you have that bit of background on my sweet boy, it should come as no surprise that his requests for birthday parties are a little outside of the box. Last year's party was a Robot Swim Party. I tried to explain to him that robots don't really go with water, and that explanation was quickly squashed. This year, he decided on another swim party, but the theme this year was dinosaurs. Again, most dinosaurs and swimming don't really fit hand in hand, but, hey, I was going with it!
I started doing some research on pinterest (because as my sister and I just discussed, I can do things that look creative by following someone else's instructions, but I do not consider myself a creative person and cannot come up with these ideas on my own)...and I found some great ideas! There were all sorts of dinosaur themed parties with cakes, cupcakes, pinatas, paper products, favors, etc. I found a few that I liked, headed to Publix, Michael's, and Party City (we were in Augusta hence Publix), and we were ready to get to work!
My mom was my right hand woman in the kitchen while my boys were at golf/tennis/swim camp and my grandmother entertained the 2-year old. My dad was the work horse getting tables and chairs set up and was my sidekick on my grocery run. I must say that I have done parties both with and without my parents, and it is far more enjoyable and efficient with their help!! They've had a few parties in their days :)
We kept the party simple with pizza, cake, watermelon, and water. My mom's best friend came over early and helped me finalize the decorations and made the executive decision that even though it had been raining all day that we should set up outside...thank you Nan for making that call because my head was in no shape to do so.
The stage was set for a great party, and a great party it was. Since we were in Augusta, we invited my best girlfriends and their kids over for the party. It is always so special to spend time with these girls, and it is even more special to have our kids run around together. We let the kids swim, eat, play, and stay up WAY too late...in full disclosure, this was because the mamas were having way too much fun catching up. It was awesome to see my boys forming friendships with these children that they only usually see a couple of times a year. One of my best girlfriends actually drove in from Greenville for the night just to come celebrate with sweet Hen. What a blessing...and not surprising at all that this friend would do this for my crazy kid.
So, here are some pictures from the Dinosaur Swim Party. I asked Henry if he knew what the cake was, and in typical Henry fashion, he replied with, "IT'S A BRONTASAURUS!!!!" not just it's a dinosaur.
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| dinosaur watermelon with blueberries toothpicks |
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| dinosaur rubber duckies |
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| dinosaur plates, cups, napkins from amazon.com on craft paper for coloring |
To see more pictures and the pins that inspired this party, please follow me on pinterest via the link on the top left of this page and check out my Dinosaur Swim Party page.
Happy Cooking!
