Mr. TOF Celebrates with a Birthday Festival

Normally I try really hard to make sure that all of the birthday festivities in our family happen on the exact birthday for each kidlet.  This year, however, Grandma Kathy was leaving on Sunday, Dr. Peds was leaving on Monday, and Mr. TOF’s actual birthday was on Tuesday.  Mr. TOF wanted to celebrate with everyone, so we came up with a “Birthday Festival.”  Mostly this entailed spreading out our birthday traditions across multiple days, and Mr. TOF was thrilled about the idea.

On Sunday, right before Grandma headed back to North Dakota in her car, we quickly decorated the deck and had refreshments.  Several weeks ago, Mr. TOF asked if he could have both “peace pie” and “trouble cake” for his birthday celebration.  At his preschool they talk a lot about making good decisions, which is like eating peace pie, versus not so good choices, otherwise known as trouble cake.  Mr. TOF latched onto this idea very strongly, and lets anyone in the family who isn’t making good choices know that they are feasting on trouble cake.  Sometimes a person can’t but help to taste a little trouble cake, though.  We purchased a delicious pie from the Co-op made up the North Shore at the Rustic Inn restaurant.  They make the most amazing pies, second only to the pies my mother makes.  Mr. TOF wanted a cookie dough ice cream cake to go with the pie.  Done.

Since it was “Trouble Cake” after all, Dr. Peds told Mr. TOF that he could scoop up some whipped cream frosting on his finger and eat it before the cake was cut.  Yum!  Everyone wanted a chunk of that cookie dough, but the wise mother that I am, I declared early on that only those present in the operating room at the birth of Mr. TOF were allowed to have the cookie dough chunks.  (I happen to love cookie dough).   The pie was “blue goose pie.”  It had lots of blueberries and goose berries and other delicious berries.  After the birthday treats, Grandma Kathy distributed her birthday gifts.  It’s a longstanding family tradition that the siblings of the birthday child get “unbirthday” presents, just something small to make everyone feel included.  It’s the best tradition ever and makes everybody happy about birthdays.  Mr. TOF got balloons, a duck whistle, a special flashlight, and best of all, one of those cardboard writing tablets where you can lift the page up and it erases.  None of the kidlets had seen one before, and they were a childhood favorite of mine.  I remember writing on them during long car rides.  So fun!  Dr. Peds also gave the birthday boy special new soccer cleats.  He was so very excited.  He is convinced that they help him kick the ball so much better.  He wears them all the time.

On Monday morning, Dr.  Peds bought donuts for everyone to celebrate with a special breakfast.  We had some friends over for a playdate in the late afternoon, and Mr. TOF requested to go out to eat pizza, so we headed down to Canal Park to our favorite pizza place:  Vitta Pizza.  Delicious.

Tuesday was a super crazy day, sending Mr. SP off to mad scientist camp, and fitting in my cello lesson before a super long day of teaching my own students all afternoon and evening.  It was a pretty hectic birthday, so I was thankful that we had spread the festival out.

We started the actual birthday with Swedish pancakes in the bathtub, and headed downstairs to open up the rest of the birthday gifts.  Mr. TOF had misplaced his non-corrective eyeglasses in North Dakota a few weeks ago, and he was thrilled to get a new pair for his birthday.  They’ve been on his face pretty much constantly since his birthday.  His other big request was real walkie-talkies, which was fulfilled.  He was so excited.  He and The Banana, two children who love to talk all the time, have been having the best time playing and talking on them all day.  (I didn’t anticipate how the screeching and beeping of the walkie talkies would fray my nerves!  Had I known I probably wouldn’t have gotten them, but they love them so much I’m glad I did).  

Mr. TOF chose peanut butter sandwiches for his birthday lunch, and boxed macaroni and cheese for his birthday supper.  Best of all, there are no chores on birthdays.  

Here’s the birthday guy with his birthday shirt, mismatched socks, and those wonderful green soccer cleats.  He’s thrilled to be five.  At the end of the birthday festival, he lobbied hard to extend the festivities for a few extra days.  He’s definitely a determined a persuasive little person.