Celebrating Mark

Party day commenced with Lily throwing up in her bed around 6am. 

Oh yes, really!

The little cherub spent pretty much the whole day sleeping and lying on the couch. Poor darling! Lily-Pie insisted she would be putting on her party shoes that night, and with the hordes about to arrive, we proceeded with party prep while she slept the day away. Once again I was reminded of what really matters, as much of the busy-ness of the day went out the window in order to spend time caring for, sitting with and snuggling my poor girl. Life as a parent has its way of bringing home these realities, huh!?

Strange... it's the 3rd recent 'big event' (like our Melbourne trip) that she has been soooo excited about.... then woken up sick,  throwing up, sleeping all day etc then been totally fine by the evening (with no one else getting sick, I might add). A wise mother who I was sharing this with later that night suggested it could be she is just getting so excited she makes herself sick!?! I've never heard of this but now I think about it, it certainly seems to fit and this little girl takes excitement off the scale, so if anyone could be sick with excitement, I guess it would be her! Anyone else's kid done this?? Something for me to watch out for in future at any rate... Anyway she was fine by the time festivities kicked off after her very quiet day and she got to wear the party dress and shoes she was so very excited about! So thankful for that, I don't know what we would have done if she had gotten worse and not better.

Freshly painted walls and ceilings nixed the idea of some Pinterest-inspired balloon decorations, so I simplified and stuck to making some cute fringey streamers for the door frames! Also Pinterest-inspired, but don't worry - no pressure, just several relaxed snipping sessions while watching The Voice!! ;)

Somehow we managed to cram 60+ people into the house (well, including the patio on thankfully a not-too-chilly evening) and had one heck of a BBQ!!! It was crazily chaotic and even though I didn't really get a chance to eat much or properly chat to like... anyone, it did my heart good to see Mark enjoying himself, being surprised and spoilt by lovely gifts and spending time with dear friends. He is not the kind of guy who makes himself the centre of attention so it was wonderful to have a big night all about HIM! I also enjoyed, (in the midst of bustling around refilling dip bowls and drinks), looking around and seeing people at home in our home, relaxing, chatting, laughing, eating, playing ping pong, and so on... it really warms my heart and I just get such a kick out of it - seeing friends meet friends and helping friends have a good time (well, at least I hope so!). *contented sigh* Love it!

Of course I made a speech (which I fumbled through, teary eyed). Lily held my hand throughout and whilst I'm in the midst of reciting all the many things I love about Mark, Lily would tug my hand and chime in '.. and he really loves me'... 'and he really loves Eli' ... 'and he really loves Horsey Wrestles'. I think next year I will just ask her to do the speech and save myself the stress!!! :)

Baked Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

Mark requested a berry cheesecake for his birthday and so I nervously made two, having to experiment on a new recipe as I couldn't find quite the one I wanted. I was terrrrrified it was going to be a disaster as I ran into a few... er... issues.... while making it (which is what happens when you try to make a new recipe with 'adjustments' at midnight - not the best idea!). Thankfully it must have been edible as both of them disappeared pretty quickly and Mark loved it which is kinda the point, right! Phew...

I hardly had the time or brain space to remember to take photos on the night (plus I don't post pictures of people on here without asking permission and don't really have time to make inquiries of all 60+ attendees!) so not many of the actual party to share.... but I did somehow manage to whip my camera out in the nick of time to capture this gorgeous moment....

The second Baked Raspberry Cheesecake (different version) and a platter of Fairy Bread for the kids - which most of the adults couldn't resist either! Who doesn't love fairy bread?!

Lily digging into dessert

Eli scavenging some Cheesecake from Bel

The Fairy Bread was so good, Eli was trying to
insert it directly into his stomach?!!

We remembered to snap a pic together at the end of the
night - both very, very tired but very, very happy!

When all the guests had gone home, the Birthday Boy and I sat outside by our newly purchase brazier, enjoying the fire, a glass of red, the starry sky, some quiet time together and the celebration of a Very Good Night...

Happy 30th Birthday, Markinhos xx