A perfect day

I could not have asked for a better day.

We had a big party for E2's 5th birthday today. Fifteen kids, plus all of the parents. It seemed like everyone had a good time. The kids all behaved well, even the doggies were well behaved. I heard numerous times "your dogs are so sweet and calm!". After everyone left, that's when the dogs returned to their normal, crazy, running circles around the yard behavior.
Everything went smoothly. I had a simple menu of hot dogs, chili, cheese, nachos, vegetable salad and fruit salad. I made a sand castle cake that was similar to a cake I made for E1's birthday a couple years ago. Soooooo easy. I took three 9x12 cakes, cut them up and arranged into the shape of a castle, placed ice cream cones on the corners, frosted everything and sprinkled sand (crushed vanilla wafers) over everything. I made some chocolate shells earlier in the week and placed them along the sides of the castle. I even found little colorful pebbles at the store that tasted like M&M's. I've made a lot of cakes in the past, and this is, by far, the easiest one. It's "sand" and does NOT need to be straight, or level. Imperfections are not a problem. It was tasty too.

I had a treasure hunt for the kids at the end. Photo clues brought them to places in the yard where the next photo clue was hidden until they found the "treasure chest" (a decorated Gorilla Box that Stuntman had shipped home). Party favors were inside for the kids. A few weeks ago, Toys R Us had all of the outdoor Crayola items on sale for half price. I bought all of the 3-D chalk packages.... cheaper than filling goodie bags with a bunch of junk.

Later, after everyone had left, Stuntman went swimming with the kids. E3 was jumping into his arms from the side of the pool. He had never done that before. It brought tears to my eyes. I'm looking forward to a wonderful summer together as a family.