Greg's Bowser Birthday

Look who turned four years old!  Greg has been planning his "Bowser Birthday" ever since we had the round of Mario birthday parties last summer.  If you don't already know, Bowser is the bad guy boss. His castle is surrounded by hot lava. If you've ever had a conversation with Greg, you know that "hot lava" is a central theme in his life. (If something is strong, it is stronger than hot lava. If something is scary, it's more scary than hot lava. If his soup is too hot, it's hotter than hot lava. You get the idea.)  Anyway, back to the birthday party...

 

Greg is such a fun boy to be around. He bounces. He walks on his toes. He gets excited about everything and it shows on his face. He was SOOO delighted to open this present and find a box of goldfish crackers. And of course that was just the box. Imagine his happiness when there was a toy inside.

"I got dollars!" Greg is also a big fan of dollars. He enjoyed counting his dollars: One, two, three, four. Dollars are more fun than hot lava.

A big part of Greg's plan for this year was a Bowser pinata. They're not very easy to find. But we had a cow pinata in storage already. (I know, right?) So I decided it wouldn't be a big deal to give the cow a makeover. WRONG. It was a mess! I was so close to dumping it in the garbage at one point. I would have if it wasn't covered in messy yellow paint. (You think I'm joking.) By the time it dried, I decided that for a 4-year-old, an ugly pinata is better than no pinata - barely - so I kept going and created a spikey shell.  It turned out okay, assuming you don't know anything about Bowser. His armbands were even studded with jewel spikes.

Greg LOVED his ugly  yellow cow Bowser pinata!  We had to do it indoors so the bat was replaced with a plastic trowel (good thinking, Ben!) and the kids did NOT get to wear a blindfold. But it still took quite a few hits before the candy came out.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching the kids take down Bowser. Everyone was rewarded with lots of yummy candy.  (Are you wondering why I'm standing on a chair? Hot lava.)  Indoor pinatas are actually pretty fun.

Time to blow out his candles! I can't believe this little guy is four.  He seemed to be the definition of the perfect [energetic] three year old. I'm sure he has a lot in store for four though.

Yay! Greg's birthday was a success! We sure love him.