Rhys' Fourth Year Party

Rhys' Fourth birthday party was yesterday afternoon, and for me it was a whirlwind of activity that lasted the whole week before and then some. This was somewhat ironic considering I had planned it to be extra small this year. Once everything was in place I was able to breathe a sigh of relief and relax enough to have some fun. It turned out very well despite Henry's bee sting.


He decided to run around barefoot and was unlucky enough to step on a bee! Luckily Kenny was able to pull the stinger out and my Uncle Patrick was on hand to impart some sage advice on helping with the pain of the bee sting: get a black teabag, soak it in hot water, squeeze the excess water out until you are left with a damp teabag, take the bag and place it on the sting as a compress. It worked wonders!


Just as I took this picture, my brother Ben instructed Henry to smile 'cause Mommy's blogging this for sure!

The theme of the party was Harry Potter mainly because Rhys has taken a shine to all the movies. We were unable to find any Harry Potter decorations at any of our local stores and because I got on the project so late I was unable to order them online.

So... Kenny took charge of decor and you can see the results for yourselves. Hilary outdid herself with these adorable cupcakes in the shape of wizard hats! Also on the menu was Chinese Chicken Salad from Feast of the East courtesy of Angele and then there was Muni's Famous Baked Beans! Mom very generously made her mouth watering salsa, extra yummy tri-tip and brought a bagfull of bagettes. We also had a variety of pizzas from Abbot's Pizza Co. and we tried a new punch suggested by Hilary. It was a concoction of lemon lime soda and raspberry sherbet topped off with ice. What could be simpler or more refreshing. It was a huge hit with both adults and kids! Everyone kept asking for the recipe and couldn't believe how simple it was to make.



For this entry I've ventured into the realm of video. I shot a very short clip of us all singing the birthday song, and decided since blogger has included a new device for posting video I'd give it a try. Just click on the play arrow at the bottom left hand corner of the above clip. I've also posted photos from Rhys' 4th Birthday Party click here.

My high school friend Ann arrived with daughter Ashly, her sister Jennifer and Jennifer's daughters Catherine and Rebecca. It was so nice of them to make the long trek out for Rhys' party. And since Velvet was on hand with Gus and Nicolette, the three of us were able to have a mini-reunion!


I woke up completely regretting Rhys not opening his presents in front of all the party goers, but both Kenny and I were so darn exhausted towards the end of the party that the thought of sitting and opening an endless array of presents seemed too much. So in lieu of viewing it live I took a bunch of pictures of Rhys opening them up this morning. You can find it at the link I posted above.

I want to send out massive thanks to everyone who was able to make it, and also to those who were unable to join us but were there in spirit. It was a very nice way to kick off the start of what will hopefully be another incredible year full of momentous milestones for Rhys. Thanks again!