Mayday

I feel so sad that I didn't take the time to write about last week's festivities (A's 4th birthday) until now. This blog would not exist as it does without her. And I'm now at that point where reconstructing the events simply does not have that just-popped-the-top fizz.

What's more--it wasn't as if I hadn't been planning this for MONTHS. Since Christmas, I had been squirreling away spare change and the five dollar checks I get from answering product surveys on the internet every now and then (I'm probably about to lose that "job" since I've been way too busy to spend the time checking "almost always" and "never" after looking at products we all know we need).

I had saved up almost a hundred bucks. I'd scouted out Walmart and Target, picked up Dora party hats, Dora napkins, Dora plates and cups. My plan: to have a small celebration at the preschool. Then a week before the party, S.O. casually suggests that we have it at McDonalds. Unbeknownst to him--this is no casual affair. Said party involves (1) a 60 dollar upfront fee to reserve cheeseburgers, drinks, ice cream and cake and most importantly, the (trumpet salute) BIRTHDAY Table in the play area. I'm thinking that S.O. imagined that we'd just saunter in, plunk ourselves down at the BIRTHDAY table, sing happy birthday, and yell, "a round of happy meals for everrrybody!!"

Unbeknownst to me, the McDonald's party also includes goody bags. Yes, ladies and gentlemen--that key birthday party ingredient that separates the haves from the have nots, the delinquent mothers from the PTA queens. One simply must have goody bags for all of the munchkins. Sooo...I spent HOURS finding little goodies for little Dora goody bags. Plastic slinkys. Styrofoam gliders in separate plastic envelopes. Fruit-scented bubbles (don't ask). Whistles in the shape of baseballs, footballs and soccer balls. Toy cars and plastic farm animals. And of course, stickers.

Alas, I spent even more hours figuring out complicated logic problems: If there are 18 kids coming to the party and I only have 16 goody bags, and I have 10 styrofoam gliders and 12 bubbles, and 15 whistles (one was broken dammit) how many more goodies will I have to purchase in order to make sure that every kid has the same number of goodies--but no duplicates? Trust me, diagrams and charts were involved here.

I finally solved this equation, gotten A's outfit laid out and everything situated in the car. Cue the Thunderclouds of Death. A torrential downpour of biblical proportions erupts from the sky. A is crushed--but magically, no tears!

Thankfully, the power is out at McDonalds, so we get to reschedule for Thursday. Some crazy parents did show up, but I have enough neuroses in my own life to deal with. Later, we have KFC and empanadas. I put Asia to bed. Before I do, I sing Happy Birthday and tell her a special birthday story. I'll save that one for my next post.

Now back to the chapter that was due Monday. I mean, April 10th. No, no, I remember-- it was February 28th, yeah. Now I remember. *Sigh.*