Garden party and a birthday

Oh it’s been a busy week and more! Where to start?

The lovely Leah reached the grand old age of 4 this week so last weekend we had a little garden party for her. What’s a garden party? An excuse for not having people in the house as far as I’m aware! Having a June birthday means that there is a chance of sunshine, Friday was very hot and caused me real concern that it might be too hot to be outside for long, but Saturday was cooler but still warm enough to be outside.

Tobi was away during the week so I planned the creation of the birthday cake and worked on it (sugar syrup, buttercream etc) while he was away and we decorated it together on Friday night (although he did what he could and then went and cut the grass – one less job for Saturday morning!).

Before the party we ‘decorated’ that garden with bunting and the girls had made some paper butterfly bunting during the week, we put up the play tent, drew some chalk signs, Bethan and Tobi wrote on our ‘beautiful’ garage door

Bethan had asked if she could do a performance so that is what the writing on the right hand side is, ‘Tricks on the bar clever bonsing high bousing very high bousing’.

What actually happens is that we invite friends and neighbours over for birthday cake and a cuppa, nothing complicated or fancy, the less hassle the better. We don’t even play games – my thought is that all that will come in time, but at 4 years old she’s really not too bothered and happy to play in the garden with her friends so that’s what we do. And yes at 3pm Bethan performed on the trampoline!

The most scary/exciting part of the afternoon for me may well have been our youngest child learning to use the slide all on his own! It’s a slide that is suitable from 3 years but I think he thinks that if his big sisters can do then so can he! He’s fallen off a couple of times but that doesn’t seem to put him off.

This photo doesn’t really show the true height of the slide but it is high for such a little boy. (This photo also reminds me that he has his first haircut booked for the end of the month!)

We thought that the birthday girl had a fantastic time until her actual birthday and she asked who was coming and I said that she had already hadher party and she told me ‘it was not much fun’! There is no way of pleasing a 4 year old all of the time – I’m not going to try!

The birthday cake was finished before we got to the birthday so I made some fairy cakes to have with the birthday tea which at her request was ‘hot dogs and crisps’ (we did add some fresh veg too).