Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Philip's Fifth Birthday: Lord Of The Flies Edition.


Philip turned five this past Monday. The Sunday before, we had his birthday party. I like throwing parties at home. We had an old school sprinkler party. Well, we didn't have a sprinkler going, but we had a kiddie pool and a slip-n-slide.

The Big Birthday Man.

We had, roughly, thirty people. Aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors, friends, grandparents. Pizza and hot dogs were served and washed down with plenty of pop.


Water balloon fight.

You'd be amazed at how fast you can pop one hundred water balloons. It turns into a feeding frenzy pretty quick.

Those who choose not to water balloon.

Here you got Grandma, Great Grandma (Nana), Uncles Mort and Mike, plus Megan on the right. She is the creator/baker/fabricator of the SpongeBob cake.

Reverse. Those who choose not to water balloon.

All the redheads are on my wife's side. She's got five sisters. The cousins all love to get together.

Pinata time.

This was an interesting exercise, aside from me catching one tailor made for America's Funniest home Videos, this pinata wasn't meant to be beaten open. There are some fifteen ribbons hanging from the back of the pinata. You are supposed to have each kid pull one, and eventually you yank open a door and the candy comes spilling out. I figured, what the hell, we can beat it open anyway. Not so much. Remember that scene in Parenthood when Steve Martin has to saw a pinata open? Yeah, it was kinda like that. After each kid got about four attempts at it, we switched to pulling the ribbons. That did it. The sugar hit their bloodstream and the party really started rockin'.

More sugar.

Tarzan boy.

Time to open gifts.

Being that Philip is five, he is on the outer edge of the first memories he will have. Those vague images that float around your head from before you can even say. I'm never sure if I actually had the memory, or if some old picture has burned into my brain, fooling me into thinking I was there and remember it. Either way, I think we showed him a good time. I hope he remembers being surrounded by family and friends who love him. People who came to share an important moment with him and a time when all you needed was an inflatable pool, a back yard and some water balloons for a good time.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

I like to pretend that in the picture labeled "Pinata Time" there is a very large Sponge Bob in the corner of the neighbors yard and you and Philip are armed with bats about to engage in battle.

Valerie said...

Happy Birthday Philip! Looks like everyone had lots of fun.

Michele said...

Happy birthday lil' Phil! I cannot believe he's already 5. How is that possible? Looks like it was a great party. My favorite is the placement of the candle on his cake.

Jenny Jenny Flannery said...

I'm with Dave...I thought you had a life-sized Sponge Bob lurking. Accidental forced perception.

Happy Birthday, lil Phil!

Moderator said...

Happy birthday, to the big guy.

I will send him an eCard asap.

Unknown said...

I was at this party and let me sasy I was witness to Phil taking a home run swing to the crotch. Very funny.
Here's what I learned about little kids: the second you put that blindfold on them they start swinging. There is no time to guide them towards the pinata.

Phil said...

Dave - We are gonna get a life size one next time to battle.

Valerie - Thanks! I think they did. I hope they did...

Michele - Yes, it's hard to believe. everyone, Michele, was one of the first to meet Philip after he was born at Glendale Memorial. Time, she flies.

Flan - Thanks!

Grant - Philip wanted me to tell you thanks, but you don't have to. He has a ton of emails in his inbox to get to.

Dave - Excellent observation, and one I will remember.

Jenny Jenny Flannery said...

I showed these pictures to the girls and when Lucy saw the picture of the big guy, she said, "I love that guy!"

Phil said...

That's so cute, I'm gonna cry.

Anonymous said...

Phil...I meant to email you earlier to see how the day went....but it looks like it was a blast! Glad the weather finally got better! Wish I could have been there to witness the "AFV moment"

Jenny Jenny Flannery said...

So, is your next post going to be about Philip's sixth birthday?