I remember the first birthday party the girls were invited
to…M&C’s first birthday, when the girls were about 21 months old.
For Hubby and me, it was all hands on deck.
We played with the girls while we were there, and then got
them set up for pizza and veggies – the first meal they ever ate
picnic-style, sitting on the floor.
Birthday parties were a family affair until the girls were
three. I took them to K&S’s birthday
party by myself, and I remember being SO proud of that “mommy milestone”.
Over the past year, I’ve mostly allowed Hubby to bow out of
the birthday party activities, but I’ve still been really involved during the
course of the party…doing crafts, fixing plates, and keeping my eyes steadily
trained on playtime.
Yesterday I experienced my first party where I was purely a
bystander.
We were invited to J’s fifth birthday party yesterday, at a
tae kwon do studio. I had no idea what
to expect…I didn’t know if there would be a tae kwon do component, or if they
were just renting that as a party space.
As it turns out, the party was all about tae kwon do! It started with the TKD master (I guess you
call him???) introducing himself, and he began to lead the party. He had all the kids go to the bathroom and
wash their hands [we just wet-wiped…hee-hee], and then he passed out pizza on
plates. I sat with the girls and
orchestrated the sharing of a bottle of water…but it wasn’t too taxing. (HA!)
Then all the kids went into the TKD room for almost two
hours (save for a cake-and-presents break) of physical activities.
I watched from the waiting room area, but the girls were
fully engaged by themselves. I got to
drink a bottle of water – by myself – and eat an entire piece of cake. And I talked with some of the other parents, in mostly complete sentences.
I have to say, it felt pretty weird!
But it gave me time to step back and think about the evolution
of birthday parties over the past three years…and how much my BABIES are
growing up! I have to think about that in small doses...otherwise it feels like a karate chop to the midsection.
3 comments:
The neighbor girl had her first "drop-off" party last month and as we chatted about I was flabbergasted! You leave your child?! What is this nonsense!?
Tell me more about this freedom! I don't think I'm ready for this. I can't handle it, and I'm not sure I could handle the chit-chat with other parents. Especially ones I might not know.
The first drop off is REALLY a kick to the midsection! Glad you could sit back and enjoy yourself though...I think that's huge!
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