As cliché as it always sounds, every year when my oldest son’s birthday rolls around, it simply amazes me at how quickly time goes by. This Friday marks his seventh birthday, and the weekend is looking to be filled with fun, cake, and plenty of super heroes.
Following a few rough and emotional months of this same nearly-seven-year-old boy not wanting to go to school, we seem to be in the clear and although it’s sad to watch him grow up and mature, it’s also a very relieving feeling.
In seven years, a lot of things have changed. But, a lot of things haven’t.
I still find myself staying up late at night designing birthday invitations (that I’m sure usually just get thrown in the garbage), and scanning the Internet for fun birthday cake ideas (that an amazing friend will turn into reality for us).
I do have a weakness for my sons’ birthdays. I feel like it’s a time to reflect on the years before, and a time to celebrate who they are as individuals. Since they’ve been old enough to speak, I’ve asked them to choose a theme for their birthdays.
This year, my son is choosing The Avengers as his theme. Thankfully, it’s much easier to find coordinating superhero party supplies compared to last year’s Minecraft video game theme.
It probably is a bit ridiculous to coordinate a child’s birthday party. I doubt if he will really remember in 10 years that he had an Avengers birthday party when he turned seven. But I do hope that he will remember the friends he invited to his birthdays in elementary school, and the memories of playing and enjoying the day, and being free to be himself.
I will admit though, I do remember having to share a few Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cakes with my oldest brother, given that our birthdays fall one day after the other. My husband laughs at the fact that I am still slightly bitter about having to share my birthday when I was a kid. And in my mom’s defence, I do remember some rather pink and frilly birthdays also.
With the popularity of Pinterest in the last couple of years continually growing, I certainly find myself with way more ideas than I have time for. And usually just getting the food bought and prepared, along with filling some goody bags, is about all I have time for.
Kids’ birthdays can be expensive and time consuming. And as much as I love celebrating with my babies, I do have to remind myself to keep a level head and keep things simple (which is why I refuse to do more than one party. Friends and family get to celebrate all together, even if that means having to rent a hall in town to accommodate everyone).
At the end of the day, I guess the only things that matter are that the right people are there to celebrate, and that they don’t complain about being hungry.
Happy early birthday to my own little super hero.
