When I was growing up the rule in our house was that we could have a "friend" party on our even birthdays and "family" parties on the odd birthdays. I didn't mind this as a kid, and now as a mom I totally understand why my parents came up with this rule...parties are a LOT of work.
So as I started having children and those children starting having birthdays I threw my first "friend" party. It was for my first son's 3rd birthday...now it wasn't a disaster, but after all was said and done I thought, "it was fun, but I don't think he even cared whether his friends were there or not...and really he has friends, but mostly they are my friends kids.." Then I remembered the rule from my childhood and decided that we would adopt it into our family with their first "friend" party starting when they turn 6.
So far this has worked fantastically! By the time they turn 6 they have a fun cluster of their own friends to invite and they are old enough to really enjoy having them all over to celebrate.
I have also noticed that my kids enjoy our "family" parties too. I enjoy the more cozy nature that a family party creates, and because the friend parties are less often when they do come around it is funner to plan and do them.
Why the "friend" parties on the even birthdays?...well all the really important age milestones seem to fall on even birthdays...8...12...16...18...
Having this rule in place since my kids have been young means that they don't really even question or throw a fit about wanting a friend party...(so far)!
Showing posts with label birthdays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthdays. Show all posts
Friday, November 5, 2010
homemade birthday cake...
When I was growing up my mom always made a homemade cake. Not the homemade from scratch kind, but the pick your mix and frosting kind. It was the choice of the birthday child to pick what they wanted mom to make. Chocolate with vanilla frosting, rainbow chip with rainbow chip frosting etc... My ALL time favorite is Lemon cake with Chocolate frosting! (Hey...don't knock it till you rock it!! It is seriously amazing!) I looked forward to this choice every year! I loved the idea that I could pick ANYTHING I wanted and she would make it just for me!
Now that I have kids of my own I have continued with this tradition. I am an anti "leave it in the pan" cake maker. So I started out always making a two layered round cake. As my kids got older they started wanting a theme for their birthdays. I have discovered you can do some amazing fun things with sprinkles! I also LOVE the Family Fun website. It has some great ideas for cakes. That is where I got the idea for some of my more elaborate cakes. I have done tiger stripes, spider man, batman, a princess castle, a snake, a moon, a Lego, and a dot cake! Probably the funnest was the snake cake. It was super easy and the boys loved that it was made with red velvet cake so when you cut into the cake it looked like blood!
A very wise man recently said:
"In my office is a beautiful painting of a wheat field. The painting is a vast collection of individual brushstrokes—none of which in isolation is very interesting or impressive. In fact, if you stand close to the canvas, all you can see is a mass of seemingly unrelated and unattractive streaks of yellow and gold and brown paint. However, as you gradually move away from the canvas, all of the individual brushstrokes combine together and produce a magnificent landscape of a wheat field. Many ordinary, individual brushstrokes work together to create a captivating and beautiful painting."
I like to think that every tradition that my husband and I bring into our family is like a single brush stroke. I hope that someday each of my children will look back at their childhood and remember times filled with happiness. Here and there a "stroke" or event will stand out, but for the most part it will be the traditions that they remember most. The things that we always did!
Now that I have kids of my own I have continued with this tradition. I am an anti "leave it in the pan" cake maker. So I started out always making a two layered round cake. As my kids got older they started wanting a theme for their birthdays. I have discovered you can do some amazing fun things with sprinkles! I also LOVE the Family Fun website. It has some great ideas for cakes. That is where I got the idea for some of my more elaborate cakes. I have done tiger stripes, spider man, batman, a princess castle, a snake, a moon, a Lego, and a dot cake! Probably the funnest was the snake cake. It was super easy and the boys loved that it was made with red velvet cake so when you cut into the cake it looked like blood!
A very wise man recently said:
"In my office is a beautiful painting of a wheat field. The painting is a vast collection of individual brushstrokes—none of which in isolation is very interesting or impressive. In fact, if you stand close to the canvas, all you can see is a mass of seemingly unrelated and unattractive streaks of yellow and gold and brown paint. However, as you gradually move away from the canvas, all of the individual brushstrokes combine together and produce a magnificent landscape of a wheat field. Many ordinary, individual brushstrokes work together to create a captivating and beautiful painting."
I like to think that every tradition that my husband and I bring into our family is like a single brush stroke. I hope that someday each of my children will look back at their childhood and remember times filled with happiness. Here and there a "stroke" or event will stand out, but for the most part it will be the traditions that they remember most. The things that we always did!
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