Christopher's 5th Birthday Party

Christopher's actual birthday is March 6th - but the celebrations lasted more than a week! The above picture was taken when we took cupcakes to his class on Thursday, March 5th. Since he doesn't have school on Fridays this year, we celebrated with his class the day before his birthday.

We had his birthday party on Saturday, March 14th at Dinosaur Playground with all his buddies. I was able to work out a barter with the wonderful couple who own the Dinosaur Playground and I volunteered for several hours helping them keep it clean in exchange for the party. The best part was I could take Christopher with me while I worked, so he got bonus play time & knew all the ins & outs of the place by the time the party arrived! Grandma Jansen, Aunt Karen & Jonathan, Jack, Hunter, Cole, and Andrew all came to Christopher's party. Jack's big sister Jessica and Hunter's little brother Nathanael also joined the party. It was a lot of fun!

These are the cupcakes that I made for Christopher's party. Since we were having it at Dinosaur Playground, I thought we should have a Dinosaur theme to the party! I also made cupcakes just like this for Chistopher's class - but Christopher requested I put the trees up when I made them for his party! It turned out pretty good!

On the way to the party, we stopped at Party City to pick up some balloons! I'm sure we looked like the three stooges trying to get these balloons in the car! We had a dozen dinosaur latex balloons and 1 milar dinosaur ballloon. Once we were in the car, it became a "Where's Christopher?" (like Where's Waldo) scene!

This is the set-up in the small private party room at Dino Playground. We borrowed dinosaurs from the sand pit to hold down the balloons. Christopher and his buddy Jack are standing in front of the table. We had cupcakes, juice boxes, & cheese crackers. When this room is not being used for a party, it's a nice lounge where parents can relax and watch their children play from closed circuit tv. The curtains open up to reveal the main play area in front of the doors - all other rooms are on the TV. These people thought of everything! :)

While we waited for all the party guests to arrive, the kids got to play! This is supposed to be the baby area...but since there were no babies there, it became a place for boys to bounce safely off each other! They had the best time with these huge foam pieces, crawling over them, under them, through them...and wearing them to bounce into each other! :)

Here's Christopher with most of his party guests. Christopher decided he just wanted to invite boys this year! By the way, this is the comfy couch where parents can relax & watch their children play when there's no party!

After we sang Happy Birthday, Christopher blew out he #5 candle on his cupcake. Then, we passed out the cupcakes to everyone who wanted one. I got a great compliment when Cole's dad told me he liked my cupcakes better than Publix cupcakes! The cake part was from a mix...but the icing was homemade!

Soon after the cupcakes were eaten and the presents were opened, it was time to burn off some of that sugar! The boys all had a great time climbing through the play sculpture (pictured above), bouncing in the bounce house, banging on the drums, and just running around having fun!

Karen burried Jonathan in the sand pit. It's not sand like you find at the beach, it's more like gravel...which meant it didn't stick together or to Jonathan very well. This is normally a good thing in an indoor playground...but when you're trying to burry someone, it makes it a little harder. Obviously, they made it work! :)

After the party, Cole & his parents went out to lunch with us at LaBamba. Cole's Mommy & I used to teach 2nd grade together. We had both struggled with infertility and became great friends. While I was on maternity leave with Christopher, Cole's mommy found out she was expecting him! Even though Cole & his family moved to Boyton Beach a few years ago, we still find times to get together during school holidays and the boys have a special bond!


When we got home, it was time to unload the gifts out of the car. Christopher couldn't wait to play with all his gifts! The picture above is Christopher with the scooter, helmet, & pads that Grandma gave him! He was doing tricks in no time! He's a natural! :)