Every Day with Eli: July 21

Exhausted.

Thank you to all of our friends and family who braved the 100-degree heat for Caleb's party! Aside from the heat and the flies, I think it was a great celebration. I'm too tired to sort through the photos today, so you'll have to wait until tomorrow. For now, here's one of our birthday boy:

(soaking wet, but delighted by the fountains!)

And one of his sleepy sister:

Daisy slept for most of the party, which was unfortunate, but much better than a fussy baby.

Thanks, everyone, for helping make Caleb's party a success!

OK, it's a day later, and I'm ready to add some info.

Party day occurred in the midst of a major heat wave. The temperature was about 100 degrees, but the heat index was around 115. Yikes! Not a great day for an outdoor party.

Caleb didn't seem to mind, though. He headed for the fountains as soon as he arrived at the park; no one even bothered to change him into his swim clothes!

Chris braved the heat to grill some hot dogs. His dad entertained him and his friend Michael.

Max really enjoyed the buckets filled with icy water and beverages. He reminded me so much of Caleb at this time, last year!

We had about 30 people brave the heat to celebrate with us. What fun!

Caleb was really excited about his cupcakes and the birthday song! It was so windy at the park, though, that we couldn't get the candle to light. Maybe next year.

Yum!

Caleb ate all of the icing on his cupcake (made of shortening, instead of butter, so that it wouldn't melt in the heat!), then just nibbled at the actual cake.

Poor Daisy. She was hot and tired. Luckily, she had her friend-since-birth, Sara, to take care of her. In case you haven't heard, Sara has the magic touch with babies. Though Daisy showed up to the party screaming, Emily got her to sleep and Sara kept her there. Except for in this photo, when Daisy is clearly awake.

Not anticipating the heat wave, we rented a pavilion at a local park. Luckily, it's super-breezy there, and the splash pad was right next to the pavilion.

My friend-for-half-of-my-life, Amber, is responsible for all of the good pictures you see. She's kind of fantastic. You can read about her awesomeness here.

Caleb had so much fun.

He marched,

and splashed in the water. He loves this park so much!

Allison held her baby, Meredith, while Sara snuggled my Daisy.

Carter and Cooper splashed in the fountains.

The funny thing about this photo? The family in the background, happily munching on our cupcakes. I have no idea who they are, but Jenny kindly offered them some of our loot.

This baseball and bat, from John, Kristen, and Grace, were the party-stoppers. After Caleb opened them, he had no desire to open any more presents. He just wanted to swing his bat and throw his ball.