Serendipity Strikes

45

Shawn

Em was putting the finishing touches on Jax's 3rd birthday cake in our kitchen a couple hours before the party while I put the food she'd made out on platters. Jordyn sat at the counter with Mikayla on her lap watching as my talented girlfriend carefully decorated the caterpillar that was formed into a 3. Jax was currently obsessed with the Eric Carle books and The Very Hungry Caterpillar was his favorite, so the theme of his party was bugs and other creepy crawlies.

"Remember when you couldn't even make a grilled cheese sandwich?" Jordy asked Em. "Now you've made a cake that looks better than anything a bakery sells."

"I kind of like the challenge," she said as she placed strips of candy across the caterpillar.

This year, all the party food was made by Em. She'd created ants on a log, which were celery sticks stuffed with hummus with black sesame seeds on top. There were also butterfly shaped soft pretzels, ladybug cherry tomato bites, deviled eggs with spiders made out of black olives in the middle, and snails made out of ham, cheese, and crescent rolls. In addition to the themed food we also had a fruit and veggie tray, mini sandwiches, chicken wings, and cocktail meatballs. To drink, we had 'bug juice,' which was a bright green punch, and assorted beverages for the adults.

I was super proud of Emmaline for how well she'd planned everything out and for how she'd executed it all perfectly. I'd lent a hand when needed, like sprinkling the ants on the log, but she'd done 95% of it on her own.

While we were in the kitchen, Brian and my dad were outside setting up the games. They were scattering some plastic insects around the patio that the children would search for on a bug hunt. They'd also put out two tunnels for the kids to crawl through for a cocoon escape race. Another game involved the children sitting in a circle on the grass to play 'buzz, buzz, sting,' which was a variation on duck, duck, goose. Inside they'd be making bug headbands with big eyes and antennae. Each child would get a set of colorful butterfly wings as their party favor.

Em's parents and my mom were busy putting bug themed decorations in the dining room. We had too much to do with the food to oversee this task, so Em gave them creative control. I could tell they were having fun from the bursts of laughter I kept hearing.

Throughout all the activity, our sweet boy napped in his room, though getting him to go down had been a struggle since he was so excited about his party. His actual birthday had been the day before and we'd celebrated at The Old Spaghetti Factory, which was his favorite restaurant. Afterwards we'd opened gifts, and I was pleased with how much he loved one of the gifts I'd picked out. This year Em and I gave Jaxon his gifts jointly since we now did things as a family, but we'd done some of our shopping separately. I bought him a beginner's hockey net and stick to use out on the driveway, and it was crazy how he was a natural at scoring with the plastic puck. Genetics can be pretty powerful, apparently.

"Will you help me with Mikayla's first birthday party in August? It's right after you get home from tour, but if you tell me what to buy, I'll have everything ready," Jordyn said to Em.

"Of course! Do you have a theme in mind?"

"No. I stink at this kind of thing. Can you help with that, too?"

"You can't go wrong with karaoke," I teased.

"You joke, but it's not like she'll remember anyway. I don't know if anyone needs to witness you two making love to each other via song again, though."

Em laughed. "Let me think of some themes and then I'll run them by you."

"Isn't Auntie Emma the best?" Jordyn asked her daughter.

Mikayla bounced on her mama's lap in response.

"I'm done here. Can I hold her?" I asked.

"Considering how much she loves her Uncle Shawn, that won't be a problem," Jordy said as she handed me the baby.