Beware! Pirates Ahead!

For Zachary's 4th birthday, he requested balloons, lots of friends, pirates and cupcakes--6 months in advance. He reminded us almost daily. We came through for him, and his long-awaited party finally came.I LOVED the party planning. It's one of those things I didn't expect to like. I loved looking up ideas and games, prepping the activities, and even spending three hours on the treasure box. I even created a word doc with the party typed up like my official lesson plans. So, yes, I'm thrilled that there are so many birthday parties coming my way in my mommy future.

Brady gets credit for the treasure map.

Brady also gets credit for hosting 13...yes, 13 children and a baby at our house for the party. You would think with all the preschool experience, I would know better, but I figured we could hack it between the two of us and avoid leaving people out. Truth be told, it was great. Everything was fine and no one got hurt. But we were wasted at the end of it all! Next time around, the max is 5 plus Zachary. More turns for the kids and less chaos overall.

You try taking pictures with that kind of action. Nope, we don't have any of "Peg Leg Pete" or "Pass the Parrot," but we did get a couple of "The Crook with a Hook." Kids took turns hooking prizes using their Captain Hook hand.



A big hit was "Pop the Cannonball":


Of course the big hurrah was the treasure hunt. The kids used their decorated spyglasses to hunt for backyard clues.
They finally found the treasure box, filled with candy necklaces, gold dabloons, and other party favors.
Lunch was a production, and we ran out of time before parents got there, but hey, live and learn. We'll get it right next year. Zac loves all his new toys, and he pulled in quite a loot.

That night, we took him for pizza and finally let him open the gifts from us. I love the Zac-reactions during presents.
I was so sad when it was all over, almost like the day after Christmas. I'm excited to do it all again next year, but thinking about my little boy as a 5 year old is too much to handle right now. I'm glad it goes one year at a time. Zac has made so many strides this year, and he continues to be such a sincere, tender-hearted child. He is still my go-go-go kiddo, but it's perfect for us. We love you, little matey.