Yesterday morning I woke up feeling like I ran a marathon. My body ached from my shoulders down to my toes. Despite having slept a good eight-hour spell, I was still exhausted. And don’t even get me started on the dehydration issues.

Except I didn’t run a 26-mile race. I didn’t run a half one. And I definitely didn’t complete the 10k. So what else could possibly put my body in such a state of exhaustion (sans alcohol of course)?

I planned an outdoor party for my son’s third birthday.

And then I got rained on. 

At 6am on Saturday morning, months, and I mean months, of prep work and preparation, literally came crashing down. Hello rain. What’s that? I can’t hear you over the droplets of water lashing against my bedroom window.

Farm you, rain. Farm you to hay and beyond. 

I’m an organised person. In graduate school, I made it a point of finishing my essays weeks before they were due. It’s just the way I function. But even within the comfort of my Type A personality, I was stressed. Fifteen kids PLUS adults all in my basement?

You have to be farming kidding me.

And so began a day of absolute chaos. Relocate cabinets and overly large toys from basement playroom, and replace with monstrous cardboard barnyard and tractor. Remove computer and breakable items from adjoining office space and use for food and beverages. And of course, decorate the crap out of both rooms.

Several hours later, thanks to the help of my hot glue gun and exacto knife (you try trimming a cardboard barnyard to half its size without ruining all the details!), we did it.

Party room. Done. I was relieved the kids would have a space to call their own for a few hours. And extra relieved that the office next door worked perfectly as a picnic table for all the nibbles I had put together…

Slap a checker-patterned tablecloth on any table and you have yourself a picnic. Rice Krispy treats shaped like hay, not to mention my carrot cupcakes and fruit pies…

Of course, given the unexpected rain, corners had to be cut. My original plan was to put together egg-chick appetisers like these…

But with all the time we spent on getting the playroom together, I ditched the idea and stuck with egg salad, with a slight nest variation thanks to these adorable puff pastries I found at the store…

And finally, we brought the cake out. My mother and I had spent nearly all of the previous day decorating this for Aidan. It was my first attempt using fondant in such a large capacity. And it was hard. But we got it done. Wheels and all…

Granted, I think the cake looked more like a monster truck than a tractor. But I’m not going to be too picky here.

And that, my friends, was a wrap. Barnyard birthday, rained in, but certainly not rained on. I wish y’all could see me doing my happy dance right now.
Tonight, I’m starring at these pictures, and I’m smiling. Aidan had an amazing time. His friends spent so much time in the tractor that they nearly tore it apart. They chased each other around and up and down the slide as if it were a giant bean stalk. And best of all, they all fit in one room and managed to stay entertained for three straight hours!

At the end of the day, Aidan was exhausted, but so very content. He said goodbye to each and every one of his friends, handing them their own egg-carton gift bags while managing to say “thank you for coming to my party…”

I was so proud of him. My little baby, all toddlered up.

This last weekend was particularly special for us in that brought to a temporary end my time as a stay-at-home mom.

This morning I began my first full-day of work for the summer. I’ll be working in the communications department for the same bank my husband works in.  While I’m excited to get back into the grind of things, I’m also apprehensive about not having the day-to-day interaction with Aidan that I am so used to – especially now that we are nearing the end of the terrible twos and starting to get along again:)

In any case, over the course of the next two months I’ll continue to blog, albeit not as often. But don’t worry. I’ve saved up recipes and projects, particularly from this barnyard birthday, that I’m looking forward to sharing with you all.

Till then, wish me luck.

Nine to Five here I come!