DO: Engage, don't entertain

Bella, day of her fourth birthday party

This spring, my daughter turned four. We were kind of busy around our house and I was very tempted to do a birthday party, one where someone else does all the work (sounds good to me!! :)  I looked and looked for just the right thing for a group of 4 year old girls, and while I did find some pretty cute things, it just wasn't a good fit for us. My husband and I are "do it yourselfers" down to our core, so having someone else perform a birthday party for us, where we sit back and watch... just wasn't gonna happen! (not there is anything wrong with paying for a birthday...that's not the point! stick with me here... :)

my husband should have props for wearing this outfit! :)

Instead, we invited all her friends over for a princess party. My husband and I found great outfits at Thriftique. I made a castle cake out of Rice Krispies - ok, maybe I should have had someone else make the cake...but, perfection isn't what is important, is it?

the castle cake

The reason we wanted to do the birthday party at our home and be the entertainers, was because we didn't want to WATCH our daughter's birthday party...we wanted to be IN it...to engage the kids, to laugh with them, to party with them. It was an absolute blast, I wouldn't trade the memories, the laughter, the fun for anything - no matter how entertaining - I want to be the one laughing with her.

laughing with my girl

And not just on special days, but every day... I stop and think..."have I played with my kids today?" Most of the time, I am cleaning, cooking, running errands, paying bills, folding laundry, sweeping the floor, etc... the list of my to-do's could go on forever. If I haven't purposefully set aside a half an hour to play, it just doesn't happen. I know when I look back on my life, I will think...I wish I would have cleaned less and played more. They are only little once. Take the time, each and every day to play!

Look how relaxed and happy these kids look! Simple pleasures...

For a few ideas on simple play, the ABC's by Jill Rigby:
(hint: these are ideas for YOU to do with your kids)
A - Always smile
B - Blow bubbles
C - Color in a coloring book
D - Draw a self-portrait
E - Eat a PB & J
F - Finger paint
G - Goofy faces
H - Hide and seek (surprise your kids by asking them first!)
I - Ice cream cones
J - Jump rope
K- Kick the can (down the street)
L - Look up and watch the stars or the clouds
M - Musical chairs after supper
N - NO TV - please.
O - Old-fashioned hopscotch
P - Paper airplanes
Q - Questions - ask silly, silly ones
R - Race around the block
S - Scissors, paper, rock
T - Take your family for a walk (no phones allowed!)
U - Uncontrollable laughter
V - Ventriloquism
W - Walk barefoot in the grass
X - Xylophone
Y - Yodel
Z - Zoo animal sounds

Enjoy some play time...it'll do YOU good too!
Kristen