Today I had a little birthday party for Ben...and in trying to keep it as simple as possible without skipping it altogether (sheer guilt is all that kept me from choosing that option), we pared it down to a playdate at the park with three friends, cake and presents.
Jacob and Mary Kate came, but poor Adam had a tummyache and had to go to the doctor. We missed him, but the three kids still had fun. There really isn't much to say...they played, we ate cake, we opened presents...voila! Instant birthday.
Everything started out well. I totally pulled it off in tricking Ben into thinking this was a real party. He was so psyched to have his two best buddies at the park with him.
Minor mishap with the cake...I spent the whole morning looking after that thing...making sure it didn't melt in the car while I was grocery shopping, etc...only to have it slip off the wagon and land upside down (in its packaging) once we reached the park. Whatever. 
Ben's been paying attention to Daddy, I think. He was so apprehensive of the flame on the candles he couldn't even get close enough to blow them out. Mary Kate did the honors instead.
After cake came presents. There were only three of them, but after that experience, I'm not exactly looking forward to Christmas morning. He opened Mary Kate's first--it was a Thomas set and he was super excited and ready to open it right then. I had to convince him to open Jacob's present first and then we would get Thomas out straight away.
But Jacob's present was an equally awesome monster truck that also needed to be removed pronto, and thus the drama began. Because that monster truck packaging holds all our national security secrets or something, removing the toy was no small feat. In the end, it required a screwdriver, which I did not have and that led to a major meltdown and Ben sitting at the table crying (effectively reiterating that he is now a three-year-old) while everyone else went back to play. So that's how we ended his birthday party. And Lord knows I love that boy more than life itself, but it made me glad I didn't do more for him! Luckily, Jenny saved the day with a Leatherman-like tool in her car, so at least he was able to ride home all smiles again. Thank you Jenny!
And we never even got to the gift from Mommy and Daddy...I put it back on the shelf in my closet when we got home. We'll get to it sometime between now and the 13th.
