Andy's Jumpin' Birthday Party

This kid just turned seven:

In case you don't recognize him--you know, because he's in disguise and all--here he is front and center, posing with his friends in front of the bounce house we rented for his party:
Andy typically gets a much simpler party than Jonah just because it falls around the holidays. This year we were determined to give him a great party, because he's such a great kid. We surprised him with a bounce house in the front yard.

It was a big hit. Everyone was fighting to get in:

Just how long will kids jump before they get bored, you might ask? We may never know. After six hours of jump time, we shut the party down while they were still springing along... in the dark... and the rain.

Other opportunities for fun included the ever-popular piñata, which we had to hang from our neighbor's tree because we don't have anything but palms in ours:
Ben thoroughly enjoyed whacking it with the same bat we always tell him not to hit with:
Here we are walking back to our house after the kids filled up their goody bags with candy:

And here's Ben after being busted for stealing some other kid's bag:

Good thing he wasn't still carrying the bat.

Then there were presents:

And cake:
And, of course, face painting:
Which also drew a crowd:
Andy said he had a great time. When I asked him what his favorite part was, he said he loved the bounce house, and the cake and presents were great, but he mostly liked hanging out with his friends.

Happy birthday, big boy!