Carson and his grandma Brudnicki share a birthday. We usually do something together as a family to celebrate for the two of them. But this year we did things a little differently. Because this year, Grandma Brudnicki turned 60, and Grandpa decided to throw her a big surprise party…at our house. We were so excited about this, but it meant we had to be careful of how we celebrated Carson's birthday. To lure her to our house for her own party I asked her to come and help me with a party for Carson. This meant that Carson needed a different time and location for his actual party and I was not going to actually be able to rely on Susan for any help with that! Fortunately, all went rather smoothly. We lined up a party for Carson at the bowling alley during the afternoon, and we were back to our house and all ready to go when it was time for the big reveal.
Carson's Real Party:
Carson spent the better part of his birthday helping to clean up the house and yard, which was kind of a bummer, but he survived. His brothers got him some fun presents (Harry Potter Legos, and a card game) which he opened in the morning. He also got a new set of golf clubs that fit his growing body much better than his old set. Jensen was excited to get his old set, and Mason was excited to inherit Jensen's old clubs! (Isn't it great they love hand-me-downs?)
Carson wanted to invite friends from school, church, his old school, and our old ward to his birthday. I was a little concerned with how to blend all those kids, but bowling was the perfect activity. They all played so well, and rooted each other on- it was great.
After bowling for a while they ate pizza and cupcakes and opened gifts. His friends were very thoughtful and Carson loved everything.
A bowling birthday party was perfect for us. We had a party hostess, who set everything up for us, helped pass out food and drinks and cleaned it all up when we were done. It was so low key and easy (which is exactly what I needed) that I actually had an enjoyable time! After we were done bowling, it was time to head home and take care of the final preparations for the big surprise party!
Carson's Fake Party A.K.A. Susan's Surprise Party:
While we had plenty of details to attend to, such as picking up food for the party, decorating, cleaning, etc, it was all made so much easier, because we had an extra helper at our house. Dustin's little sister Jennifer flew into town from Utah for her mom's birthday on Friday night. We went to pick her up and she stayed with us in order to keep the secret going. She made an impressive banner and several beautiful flower arrangements, helped me put up all the decorations, AND babysat the little boys while we went to Carson's bowling party. When Susan finally arrived at our house that evening, with all her friends packed inside our living room, Jennifer was hiding in our entry bathroom. We let Susan get over the shock of her own surprise party before Jenn came out and gave her the best surprise of all. The only picture I have from the whole evening is of the cake I made right before we sang Happy Birthday to her and made her blow out the candles!
It was a great birthday for Carson and Susan, and for our whole family!
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