Nathan's Birthday

We celebrated a "Pirate" themed birthday for Nathan this year. I was very proud of the pirate cake that I made. It looked perfect the night before his birthday:


Aargh...
Unfortunately, by the end of his birthday, it looked like this:


We joked that it was hit by enemy fire.

Nathan had 4 of his friends over for his first birthday party. I read the kids "How I Became a Pirate". Then, they became pirates. They made eye patches out of felt and ribbon and hook hands out of paper cups, cardboard, and aluminum foil. We sent them on a treasure hunt around the house for hidden treasure.

Elbert and I had fun making up the clues. Here is a sampling:

"Batten down the hatches...you know what to do. Head below deck to find your next clue."
"Blimey...you're grimy. Even pirates need to get clean here."
"Shiver me timbers, treasure is near. Where the littlest slumbers, you'll find the chest here."

They had fun running around the house finding the clues. Elbert had drawn a giant pirate, and they finished the games by playing "Pin the Eye Patch on the Pirate."

Here are a few pictures of the party and the rest of Nathan's 5th birthday:

The birthday party (7 boys in all) eating lunch.



Nathan and his cake (before it completely fell apart)


The birthday menu consisted of ribs, beans, and sweet potatoes (all on the grill).



Even Evan loved the ribs.



We got Nathan a pirate ship for his present. It was a big hit.