Tayson's Bday... at last

Okay, I got lectured last night during a facebook chat on updating my blog, and it's true. I am very behind. The longer I wait to catch up, the more I have to post about, so the more daunting the task becomes.

Well, I have to start somewhere, and what better event to begin with, than Tayson's birthday party... or should I say unparty?

We celebrated Tayson's 5th birthday the weekend after his actual birthday, because all of Clint's family was planning on being in town for that weekend. Normally, Tayson's spring birthday allows us to have a fun barbecue outside in pleasant temperatures. However, this year, the Saturday of the party was forecasted to have heavy rains all day, which meant that I would have between 16-22 McKeachnies crammed into my tiny living room (including Great-Grandma Ruth, who was staying with us at the time anyway).

So, the inside barbecue/party was planned for early evening, and I put myself to work early that morning. I purchased and prepared about $100 in food, baked and decorated a cake (more on that in a bit), and kept myself in a constant sweat by scrubbing my home clean. Unfortunately, due to a series of unfortunate events, none of the members of the scattered clan McKeachnie were able to make it to the party after all, so we celebrated with Great-Grandma Ruth. The circumstances were unfortunate and frustrating, but understandable.

For any of you who have been following my blog even sporadically, you should be aware by now of the obsession my son has had with anything Star Wars for many moons now. So, for such an important birthday, I figured I could pretend to be supermom for one day and surprise Tayson with a Star Wars themed cake, in which a blue light saber was fighting a green light saber.

I used 2 boxes of cake mix and 3 tubs of frosting, along with half a bag of black licorice and a couple life savers. A culinary artist I am not, but as I made the finishing touches and placed a #5 candle in the finished product, I felt the job was acceptable, and I was sure that it would make Tayson's day. (If I read any comments about the blue light saber being slightly crooked, I will privatize my blog and not invite you.) Too excited to wait for the party to begin, I gathered my little family together to reveal my masterpiece to Tayson. When Tayson first laid eyes on his cake, his face lit up, just as I imagined it would. His eyes sparked and his face split into a huge grin as he enthusiastically exclaimed, "Cool! It's an X-cake with a number-5!!!" Needless to say, I felt slightly deflated, not to mention a little sulky. I think that next year, the little twit will get plain, simple cupcakes.

So, we had a quiet evening at home, making a small dent in our meal, eating some cake and ice cream, and opening presents. Tayson received a couple small Star Wars action figures to add to his collection, a razor scooter, and a completely bizarre game called Bakugan that nobody but Tayson understands, but for which he begged and pleaded.

Thanks Grandma Ruth for coming to celebrate with us! To express my gratitude, I will bestow upon you the dubious honor of posting the only picture I took of you over the weekend. :) Would anybody else care to be so honored?