... and finally, Xavier's birthday was once again celebrated in the same time zone he celebrated his birthday. It was very exciting (and very reminiscent). Poor little Xavi had only been in school for 4 days when his birthday arrived, so a party with long-time friends was certainly out of the question. So we came to a compromise--a cookie and milk bash for friends in class followed by a small family dinner (at home, since it's Ramadan and we can't eat out before sunset), and then ice cream with a few new friends. But when I brought the idea to the mom of one of his friends (she and her husband have been here for a year in their second tour to Kuwait) she wasn't having any of it! The party would be at her house and she wouldn't take no for an answer.
Before departure, Xavier received happy birthday calls from multiple continents with kisses and hugs from grandparents and friends. Then, at 6.30 on Thursday night, we made our way through the 87% humidity to their overly air conditioned house with ice cream and sundae fixings. By the end of the night, Xavier had accrued a slew of new toys for his room, had heard "the birthday song" 6 times in 3 different languages, and was happy that he was 5 and could start learning to read.
Though it wasn't the typical Angela-created birthday party--it was wonderful to see his joy.
1 comment:
Wow - it's so amazing that you arrive and can start having such normal events for the kids. It almost seems to cover up the v. non-normal-ness of moving to a completely different country, huh?
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