On a happy note…
April 7, 2013 Leave a comment
as we are trying not to think about Peter leaving tomorrow. The good news? He will return in 6 short weeks for good. The bad news? He's going back over there. Considering the week friends and colleagues in the Foreign Service have had over there, we really don't want to send him back.
If you haven't read, one of Peter's colleagues in Kabul was killed yesterday. We were actually shopping separately at the farmers market when he found out. As I located him (having obtained a sample of sausage I thought he'd love), I couldn't understand at the time why he blew me off and shouted, "No!" as he was hurriedly scrolling through an email. Despite their jobs being quite different, Peter and Anne frequently interacted and to say he was in shock was an understatement. This event occurred just days after another friend's husband had a rather scary day at work in Afghanistan, so now we are that much more shaken.
Despite everything and knowing he has to go back, today had been set aside way in advance for a happy time: Kelsey's 11th birthday. I was stumped a few months ago trying to figure out what we might do for her birthday. We try to make parties into fun adventures, but I was running low on ideas, until a friend mentioned her daughter's rock climbing birthday party…and, Sportrock, the company they used, has a location not 15 minutes from our house! Sold!
One might say we went all out again, whether from the invites (totally cool) to the party favors (bandanas that doubled as napkins and water bottles with the guests' names emblazoned on them.). I was stymied at first for a good post climbing snack (pizza was the only offering we could order via Sportrock), when we thought of wraps. Kelsey took it a step further and decided the girls should do "make your own" wraps. We took all of the "fixins" and the girls were all over that idea.
The best part? Peter was able to attend the first party for any of our kids since early 2012 and I have to say it was yet another basically stress-less party. The girls showed up ready to go and the instructors were awesome. Encouraging to those who hadn't really done much climbing in the past (like Kelsey) and super calm. While Kels was a bit nervous at first, by her third climb, she hit the ceiling and had a round of applause from her friends (a rather high ceiling, too!).
After an exhausting, yet energizing 90 minutes of climbing, the girls return to a table laden with sandwich making ingredients. They gobbled up their snacks and then it was cake time. No, I had nothing to do with this outstanding design. My friend, Anat, made this amazing cake, as cake baking and designing is her business. You can check out more of her works of art on her Facebook page, A Special Cake. And if you are wondering how the cake tasted? Nearly every girl requested a second helping and I can't say I'm not staring at the leftovers, thinking, "Maybe just one more piece."
After an unexpectedly sad week, it was a lift we all needed. We aren't thrilled that Peter is returning tomorrow, but it will mark the beginning of the end of his tour of duty. Once he returns home in May, he is ours for good…