3rd quarter Superhero Spree

Asher's birthday was a walk in the park! Ahahaha I crack myself up. Ya, and that's why it's taken me one month to post it :) It was certainly "in the park"....but a walk in the park...well....

I had literally just flown in from being gone for a week (alone....by myself...!!!) on the East Coast the day before...and done "no planning whatsoever". I told myself it was my job to plan it on the plane. I failed miserably. After some late LATE night chats ;) I had more important things like sleep to catch up on before walking back onto the ranch (which was still massively under construction, so this party needed to be held at a park - where clean up could be a cinch)! One might think that after planning about 25 birthdays now, combining all the other kids'...that honestly I could whip up another one ...but with sleep deprivation, and a slew of things to plan and get (what??? stores actually need cake orders 2 days in advance?? who knew). It was only with the dedication of a loving {sacrificial} husband that I could do all I did in that 24-48 hrs! This folks is sacrifice. My husband with scissors and tape and a can of black spray paint in the wee hours of the morning making a backdrop for park pictures the next day! Stuff we don't see organically around here {and honestly after watching the kids for the whole week...I keep telling myself, I am one lucky gal}.

 Our 3 year old was insistent on a repeat of Spiderman! Aaaaahhhh!!!! This mom could barely stand silly Spiderman last year for his 2nd birthday. But c'mon, who's it all about right ...I can't coax him (well actually I did try...pretty hard) to like something else. Spiderman just seemed so....evil for a 2 year old's party. But he was pretty determined. So last year we dressed the part, and made the cake and did Spiderman the whole nine yards (so that mom could finally move on and start planning other fun boy parties). Luckily I still had some Spiderman stuff around ;) And he still had the wardrobe for it! And by golly off and running we were with another round of Spiderman this year. However he's been kindly warned twice is it. Next year...No Spidey! I have to admit...now that I am begged to read Spidey books, I guess I like that he's the Super "Hero". And that is how I tactfully themed this year's party. It was after all not just Spidey (phew!)...but calling all Superhero's far and wide...to come in costume to the park. Finally it could rest well with mom.

We had fabulous weather...again...we lucked out with all the birthday-weather this year...I have a feeling, the November weather just might not cooperate! 

Anyhow...I found a last minute quick idea (trust me we pulled out all the stops to do just that, only last minute and quick) to decorate a cake with towering cupcakes...and wala, you have your design in no-time without a whole lot of effort (after breaking my beaters on last year's fondant of Spidey's face - that took hours not minutes - we weren't doing elaborate...after all I can't stand Spidey ;) Furthermore I went a year without beaters because that's how lazy I am at beater shopping and was really enjoying my new nice set. So here was this year's easy to do cake with frosting from a jar (and a clip of Spiderman off the dollar store fruit snacks box...really simple. Stupid simple!)

Finally found a use for that font Comic Sans ...lol!

We had super "hero" sub sandwiches (I cheated big time and ordered from WinCo) "x-ray vision" carrots...nobody was complaining those didn't work "strength" cheese cubes, "power" blueberries, and "refueling" water. All ideas I tweaked from the www! Pretty simple lunch idea though...esp when it all had to be trucked in to the park. Yes, we're making sure he looks back on this fondly, and remembers just how much his parents loved him ;)

Red is by far the best bang for your buck with party supplies, it can be used for everything!

Krypotonite Punch, or Blue Razzle-berry Lemonade Kool-Aid. It's all in the perspective.

Dollar store finds I had lying around.

Grandma has this thing for lunchboxes...(or travel boxes) and the kids love it.

Super Hero Heart-breakers in a few years!!

Even the smallest of size came in cousin costume lovin'.

Can you see what went down after Asher demanded to wear Batman & Andrew was given Superman? Ha!

Following that tirade was mad Batman wanting the entire stage to himself. He wouldn't smile until nobody was looking...ha!

These three crack me up! 

His birthday has permanent memories etched in our minds....it may be how late we stayed up attaching clouds to cardboard ...or how sloppy the ice cream was in a cooler 2 hours into the party...but none the less he was on cloud nine, and loved every minute of it....and I have to admit he made a pretty cute Clark Kent during our photo shoot too :) ya never know...the hair color could darken by the time he's older!

Asher - you're 3 going on 6, literally everyone thinks you're older. You talk like it. You walk like it. This mama has no doubt you are going to be big, and I'm praying that you will do big things for Jesus when you grow up. I love your spirit, your singing, and your sensitivity, especially to reconcile..if there's one thing to be stubborn about...I will let you be stubborn about that! You create noise from your inner most being, and sometimes it's mistaken for multiple children...but you were just born with determination and pipes. You are the fiercest 3 yr old ATV driver there is! You will have no problems learning how to drive. You are ahead of the learning curve, which doesn't make it easy on mom since you're my baby. Slow down, and quit growing up so fast! We love you Asher-man.