Great, hot day

Today was great. Hotter than I like, but a great day none the less. Ruth and Ray had invited some of their friends over to our house to celebrate Josette's first birthday and Mikayla's fourth. With the temperatures climbing to an eventual 100 degrees, this was a day spent in the shade. As the guests arrived, we had a mixture of generations. Some guests were family (Ray's parents and grandparents made it), some guests were parents bringing their children to the party and others were friends of Ruth and Ray. Hot dogs and hamburgers cooked on two grills were the foundation to a filling meal. The guests supplied salads, chips and all the other goodies to make for more than anyone would want.

The children played at first and then joined in with the meal. After lunch, the children donned adult sized t-shirts and "painted" an LARGE drawing of a rocking horse that Esther had done. Then it was time for water balloons! I had taped some pictures of hippos on the porch wall and they began lobbing balloons at them. Some hit and broke and others bounced off and were grabbed up again... all accompanied with giggles. You could tell we were hosting pre-school children as not one took aim at anything but the targets!
The cupcakes were then brought out and the kids had fun icing them. All enjoyed little ice cream cups. Finally, all poured into the air conditioned living room to open presents. All were so generous and the birthdays girls seemed to have a lot of fun. So... a party on a hot day. Four hours of fun, beginning at 11 am. Wow...
I am worn out! And I hardly did anything.
While I certainly was not the oldest attending this party, I did reflect on a time... not so long ago, it seems, when Diane and I were these parents ages. The reminder that we should redeemed the time was forcefully thrust home today!