Kapow - Zapp - Bash - Josh - Uaaaah

You know it's going to be a super party when you see this...

INVITE

...and it is followed by a comic book mission strip with all the details.

Kapow...it's Joshua's 4th birthday party.

Now Bea had been ill all week and since she had battled so bravely against the fever and finally conquered it, she was allowed to go.  It had been touch and go for a bit!

Bea arrived at the party sporting her cape.  I know Edna Mode would be aghast. Initially she had demanded requested that I put a "B" on the back, but after much discussion with Daddy, she came to realise that superheros did not put their REAL name on their cape....Clarke Kent aka Superman, Bob Parr aka Mr Incredible.  Thus a new superhero was created.  Can you work out who she is?

No, it is neither a bizarre question mark, nor an ear, or even a squiggle, it is the letter 'd' in cursive hebrew script.  D is for Ditzagirl.  Ditza is hebrew for joyful, ecstatic  dancing.  PERFECT.

No sooner had we arrived, than the first "superhero mission" was revealed.  

Divided into two teams, the supers in training had to leap through the hula hoop, slalom through the cones, traverse the balance bridge and match the logo to the superhero....

Caleb - cone slalomer

Bea - bridge jumper

Super speed - the birthday boy is a blur

Matching the logos

Even Emily had a go

Just for the record and speaking from experience - a big brother will always be a little sister's superhero

Then it was time to chase some bad guys.  Obviously you don't go inviting bad guys to a birthday party, so we had pretend bad guys to catch.....(aka tag rugby)

After all that rushing about, it was time to refuel....with hot dogs!

But after a boquet of fruit kebabs, Bea couldn't wait to get stuck into the cake pops.

As she munched on her party food Bea, with concerned eyes, turned to me and said, "Mummy Beth has missed the missions and now the party food...what will she do?"  Thankfully, at that moment Beth arrived!  Bea was quite adamant that they should be informed IMMEDIATELY any future missions were announced.

They listened carefully as "Superdad" told them of the final mission...to hunt down and return the kryptonite

Kryptoniet aka GIANT GLOW STICK

Then it was just time to save a city....

And sing "Happy Birthday"

To see all the super action...click HERE

John Keats - To Autumn

A weekend bimble on the Cave Hill affords a Keat's like opportunity for observation and appreciation.  There is nothing like a tramp in the slightly damp leaves to remind one that "thou has thy music too"

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, 

  Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless 
  With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;

To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees, 
  And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core; 
    To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells 
  With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees, 
Until they think warm days will never cease,
    For summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store? 
  Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor, 
  Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;

Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep, 
  Drowsed with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
    Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep 
  Steady thy laden head across a brook; 
  Or by a cider-press, with patient look,
    Thou watchest the last oozings, hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?    

Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,--

While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day, 
  And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;

Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn 
  Among the river sallows, borne aloft
    Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies; 
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn; 
  Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
  The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft, 
    And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

Poetry and fresh air are good for the soul, so ignore all barriers and venture out.

Pumpkin Party

We didn't have a Monster Mash Bash this year, instead Bea decreed it was to be a Mash Bash Pumpkin Party.

So we sent out pumpkin invitations with a BYOP instruction.

Bea got busy scooping out her pumpkin and then drawing on a "spooky face"

Daddy got a bit busy with his too...so much so that as our guests arrived he was still carving Walter's face...

And our guests obliged bringing pumpkins galore...

We did call on the services of David to judge the pumpkins for the pumpkin prizes.  Most creative was Beth's carrousel carving, cutest was little Emily's Minnie Mouse, Scariest was Heisenberg and best traditional was Caleb's.  Team Scarlett were delighted to win best overall for their jolly giant.  If I were judging, Hello Kitty would have been the cutest and Spiderman the scariest...but there you go...can't argue with a judge, especially when he is dressed in a Hulk onesie.

We had bangers and mash for tea.

With pumpkin oranges and ghostly bananas...

...plus some obese skeletons.

Then we dunked for apples

Two of our four kittens (which Dilly and Beanz thankfully didn't chase)

Being healthy sorts, they also ate their apples and then instead of apple bobbing, we donut bobbed.

Young Caleb Sparrow was very keen to play this game.

Time for a photo.

This photo has almost all of the kids, except Phoebe the blur, Baby Joshua and Miss Molly....

So here is a photo of Phoebe...the little girl who is totally disinterested in dressing up, particularly if it is a princess dress, but became rather enamoured with Seth's Mike the Knight costume.

Then the girlies made Hallowe'en bracelets, the big boys made keyrings and the little folk made spider windmills.  Obviously Marty did not enjoy helping them out.

Then it was time for sparklers in the garden.