All Out

Surely you must understand that I simply cannot keep myself from going all out for Austin’s birthdays. Which means, by default, that I go all out for Braedan’s birthdays too. We’ve had a lot of years of elaborate parties around here!

Last spring at an auction, Mark and I purchased an hour on the Euclid Beach Rocket Car. We never mentioned it to the kids, knowing that the moment when it pulled up to the house with all its bells and whistles was best left a surprise. So Thursday afternoon, Austin had a slew of friends over on a thankfully sunny day when lo and behold, the Rocket Car appeared in our driveway.

The kids first looked at us in confusion and then asked in breathless and hopeful voices, “Can we ride?” “Of course, you can ride! Hop on!” What happened next can only be described as preschool mayhem. The little critters climbed aboard, jostling for a seat, three kids per row. And next thing you know, the guy takes off. Zooms backward down the driveway and away down the street.

Without a single grown-up on board.

There were at least eighteen kids riding, including several as young as three. And one very mature nine-year-old. And they were gone! My sister-in-law looked at me and said, “Krissy, is this part of your whole free-range parenting thing?”

Of course, they were back within ten minutes for another load (parents included this time) — all kids accounted for and no one screaming for their mommies. The next hour was spent zooming around the neighborhood, with Austin riding every single time, sporting an enormous grin and windblown hair.

Then it was time for the secret cake, which I had decorated while the kids were at school and then hidden at the neighbors’ house. A full-blown Rocket Car with photos of every child riding.