Birthday Season 2017: Patrick is 10!

In hindsight, it's funny really.

Baby Matthew was born on Monday. We came home from the hospital on Tuesday night. Wednesday is blurry. Real, real blurry. Thursday was prolly part of the same blur.

That's when Pete looked at me and said, "You know Patrick's birthday's on Tuesday, right?"

Ridiculous.

I don't kid with this "Birthday Season" title. Check it--

First, it's Matthew's. One week later, it's Patrick's. Two weeks later, it's James'. Three weeks later, it's Elliott's.

Did I mention that three of four birthdays occur in May, the single, most insane month to have three kids and a husband in four different schools? And I just had a baby. And my van wouldn't start while I was picking up Patrick's big gift. And after I got the van jumped and got it into the fix-it shop, they accidentally flattened the back end while towing another car. And then Patrick got sick, got sick again and then missed school on his birthday, which happened to double as the big field trip day.

As a result, I was wildly sleep-deprived, the van needed a new battery and bumper, and Patrick never got out of his PJs.

Hap-py birth-day to you, hap-py birth-day tooo yooooou...

We made the most of it.

Smile big and convincingly, Paddy--

Better. (I mean, balloons are the best medicine.)

Without further ado (and because I have no other photos), the big present was: a French horn! (I know we seem like the weirdest gift-givers, but this was his actual instrument of choice after calling it quits on a few years of piano. I daresay, we make oddly musical children. At least, so far.)

Just one quick lesson from Elliott on how to hold it...

...and he was making toots!

One moment later, he was able to achieve Optimal French Horn Face!

We had his dinner wish (Sbarro pizza--not kidding) and readied our singing voices.

So, kid, how does it feel turning a decade under such happycrappy circumstances?

Eh. Dessert's in your immediate future. And there's always next year!

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Edited to add because I just this second remembered: We did not slight Patrick THAT much. He did, in fact, have a joint b-day party with his best buddy at a mini golf place. Phew! Quite frankly, I didn't remember because his buddy's parents took the pity-lead, and we didn't even attend!

Proof from the putt-putt party place--