It's a Pirate's Life for Me

Today was Harrison's birthday party. It's not officially his birthday yet but since I will be out of town on his real birthday, we held the party today. I said lots of prayers this morning as I watched the sky get darker and darker. With 13 kids coming to the party, there was no way I wanted to hold the party inside my house.

Thankfully, the rain held off. Our neighbor who loves to decorate his house during the holidays was gracious enough to come and help us decorate our house. We had plastic skeletons hanging from trees and a large pirate boat in our front yard. He even supplied the pirate music.

The kids all got bandannas and foam swords upon arrival. We let them play in the jump castle, slide down the "water" slide and sword fight on the plank above the kiddie pool.

We also had a treasure hunt and after they had solved all the clues, they found the treasure chest full of prizes. One of the clues was:

For clue number three you won’t need a car
Because it isn’t hidden very far
If you were real pirates, you'd sail the seven seas
and for your transportation you'd need one of these

They were having a hard time figuring out this one (I think by this point they weren't listening, they were just wound up) so I prompted them by saying "What does a pirate need to go on a trip?" One of the little boys yelled "Rum".

My mother made the adorable birthday cake. It was a hit because not only did it look good but everyone said it tasted wonderful as well.

The kids all had a good time but by the end of the party all of the adults were wiped out. It's a good thing birthday's only happen once a year. Here are some of the rowdy pirates in training:

Here's Harrison with his Grandma and Grandpa: