December 10, 2005 - 8:06 PM.

First-birthday party

First-birthday party today (combined with auntie's 36th). Seventeen gifts that little sweetie received! A little pushcar that he cannot BELIEVE how fun it is; green overalls; a nice BIG snowsuit; a stuffed harp seal; a touch-&-feel book picturing real farm animals; a signing video (now we can really find out if Baby Einstein is the devil or if Marlee Matlin turned him down at the crossroads). Also a pusharound fire truck (from our firefighter friends); the "Little Red Robot" cloth book from Mommy and Daddy (or as he calls us, MimMay and d'DAY); the classic Fisher-Price pulltoy phone, 2 different dogs that sing/beep electronically/annoyingly, some counting & straining fish for the bathtub, a god-damn LeapPad that I didn't try hard enough to avoid, a twist-&-pop farmsounds thingy, twenty bucks, and some sort of weird Wiggles-themed light saber, I guess, for lack of any better term.

I'm obsessed with wanting to take the fucking LeapPad back, but I don't think we can gracefully do it. All I want to get him is a cloth doll anyway, and I'm pretty sure the one I want to get him is unavailable at Toys 'R' Us or a PX.

But really it was a lovely party. Sandwich platters for all and a boughten cake. A 5-year-old guest who was thrilled to be the gift-opening assistant. A look of confusion from son when the singing started, but he chimed in with "Ee yiy yiy" which is sort of "E-i-e-i-o" and means "I am singing, yes I am!" A pretty little baby cake made by my cake-makin' sister, stacked stars cut out of a pan of gluten-free brownies & drizzled & speckled to resemble a tiny Christmas tree. (She was so moved to be asked to make his cake as she has done this professionally, and as she has a bad gluten intolerance herself many people have avoided asking her, for dumb reasons.) And Punie knew what to do with his cake! He of so few finger foods went slowly but inexorably for the top layer; after picking a few crumbs he lifted it off, and then did the same with the next, bigger layer; then, with both hands successfully full, began to slowly & determinedly munch them alternately, occasionally stopping to lift them both in a triumphant "Touchdown!" with a beaming smile.

Sister was touched again when she opened our gift of Adopt-A-Manatee -- I'm telling you, my husband is a GENIUS gift shopper.

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