Shelton's Birthdays

I was looking at pictures from last Summer, and I stumbled upon these ones from Shelton's 6th birthday party. I forgot my good camera so we only got a few with my cell phone. He had a Lightnng McQueen party at Devil's Kitchen, and we were lucky to have it just days before the mosquito invasion of the Summer. The irrigation water was just getting to the point in which we would not be able to hang out at Devil's Kitchen any longer, so we had everyone park by the gate, and drove them to the fire pit on a 4-wheeler with an attached trailor. This went over extremely well with all the little boys. We had hot dogs, s'mores, and two cakes to choose from, as it was my birthday, too. (Shelton was born 1 day before my 29th birthday).



Putting on an awesomely amazing birthday party for him has ben a challenge for me over the years. First of all, I am better at girl stuff. Emma's parties are first-rate and over-the-top. Always. Sasha's have been just what she wants, so I count them as successful, even though I would like them to be a little bit more incredible. Shelton's parties have had to beat the odds every year.

1- Just days after the horrible "passing-out after falling out of a hgh chair and hitting his head on tile floor" incident in California. We were just thankful he was alive that year. Low-key birthday.
2- I planned a big, double birthday party with his cousin, Rye, who was born 1 day before him, but he was running a high fever, and ended  having 2 ear infections. Super low-key party with ibuprofen as his "treat". He didn't like the rice-crispy treats I made. I don't blame him, they were made with fruity pebbles and were hard as a rock.
3- Pretty good party. Lots of family and friends at our house for a Lightning McQueen Cars party. He had a great time, but I didn't do any games and my party favors were kinda lame.
4- Weak. My Mom was there for Emma's baptism, and we had a small family party with just Grandpa Shelton, Jim & Mary-Ann, and his frind Tyson. I made cupcakes, and the frosting was gross. I couldn't afford very many gifts, but he got a Lighning McQueen bike.
5- I tried pretty hard on this one. We did another double-birthday party with Rye, and had a Lightning McQueen Cars party theme. (Do you sense a pattern here?) The cake was awesome, and we served hot dogs to friends and family. I made a big, Lightning McQueen car out of a cardboard box, and the boys put it on and raced around Jack Dempsey Park. I gave out cans of Mountain Dew as a party favor, and we pretended it was their fuel. The downer was the insane amount of mosquitos. This is fairly normal for June, but the town hadn't sprayed the mosquito pesticide around in several days, so they were particularly awful. The truck did come by and spray towards the end of the party, so it smelled horrible while we ate cake.

My plans for his 7th birthday party are in the works, and I can assure you that the theme will not have anything to do with Lighning McQueen. There will be an amazing cake, awesome party favors, and his best friends and cousins will celebrate with him.