Baby Birthday Party

Then The Kid went on to nearly molest a garden ornament - he stumbled upon a semi-clad stone woman next to a shrub and screamed "Norks! Booobies!!" before making a grab for them. 'That'll teach me for breastfeeding past 18 months' I thought as I hauled him off and tried to ply him with a salmon sandwich, all the time hoping none of the other parents were thinking that he's a cave-man in the making.

It seemed the day brought out a Neanderthal streak in me too; an Iggle Piggle birthday cake was produced from the kitchen amidst many 'oohs' and 'ahs' of approval - yet all I wanted to do was watch his leg get cut off!

In all honesty it was a fantastic day. It was nice to be able to let The Kid and friends run riot around the garden while me and fellow Brummie Mums sat down for a natter. We were so engrossed in our chat we didn't notice that a stray toddler had tipped the tiny bouncy castle over while he was inside it.

It wasn't until someone said "Is it supposed to do that?" that we looked over and saw the base of the castle instead of the front - before anyone could do anything it had righted itself and: Ta da! The toddler had disappeared having being tipped over the side!

I don't think that we should be judged for the fact that our first thought was to launch the rest of the children onto it to see if the same thing happened to them. Not that we got chance to test out the idea as the little boy in question came wandering happily out from around the back.

Aside from (and even including) inflatable mishaps a good time was had by all. It was great to see toddlers who are new to the game of walking try to perfect their craft. It seems their head, body and limbs are still working independently of each other almost like a marionette puppet. I watched birthday boy Phoenix jogging along the patio. His mom called him and his head stopped and turned round while the rest of him kept going. His body hoiked round and he ended up in a heap on the floor, with the head still smiling on the top.

I'm never quite sure what (if anything) to buy for children, especially one year olds. I opted for bubbles in the end, but even I with my frugal nature stopped myself short of purchasing one lonely bottle. Instead I upgraded to a machine that blew bubbles for the child.

Actually, as I'm writing this I'm wondering if perhaps by supplying the child with a bubble blower I've reduced the enjoyment factor as now he can't actually blow them for himself.

Oh well. He's an only child so maybe his parents haven't found out (as we all do) what happens when you blow bubbles in the kitchen. Perhaps little Phoenix will find enjoyment in getting to see mom and dad go arse-over-tip when they fall foul of a bubble soaked, linoleum floor.

I'm going to do a blog about gifts for one year olds - if you've got any ideas, recommendations or comments please mail me at fromheretomaternity@live.co.uk