The Month of Maggie Marches On

Our second event during the Month of Maggie was a birthday party for a few of her friends. This is a big change from last year, because last year she had no friends and we just invited our friends to the party. But this year, thanks to pre-school, she has several friends of her own!

Because we're Californians, we planned a pool party for our daughter's mid-October birthday. We did sweat a little Saturday morning over the fall weather, but the sun came out and it ended up being a really nice day. Maggie selected the theme to her party this year: "Hello, Kitty". The flavor of her cake: Chocolate. The activity: A pinata. And the food: Pizza.

The party was a big success. Maggie and La Nina swam for 3 hours straight. Maggie only left the pool to eat, blow out a candle and pull a pinata string. Otherwise, Maggie was in the pool as were almost all of her guests.

A few highlights:
One of the guests so exhausted herself, the life guard got wet. Yep, we had a real life rescue. Not nearly as dramatic as it sounds. Several adults saw the child in the water, the life guard was closest and in a swim suit, so she hopped in and pulled the little girl to shallow water. It's always scary when the life guard gets in the pool. But the child was absolutely fine and stayed at the party--just in shallower water.

Another guest threw up from the combination of pizza, cake and chlorinated water in the pool. You know, it's just not a party 'til someone pukes....oh wait, that was from college and Maggie's only 3.

Another fun discovery at the party, Maggie's best friend from pre-school came to the party and it turns out she lives within walking distance of us. YEAH! Neighborhood playdates!

Anyway, the party went great. The kids were exhausted after leaving the pool. One parenting tip: Never plan a birthday party 4 days after you return from Disneyland, when you have to work three of those days. Whew! I'm glad it's behind me.