Desert Boy's Eighth Birthday

 Desert Boy recently turned eight, and we were blessed to have a beautiful day so we could hold the party outside. His friends came over for a simple lunch. Then it was time for the outdoor activities. First up: zipline! We just recently installed this, and it's a lot of fun.

Although it's a little intimidating the first time!

There was plenty to eat, including some mushy frosting perfect for smearing all over a face and hands.

We brought out Desert Boy's birthday cake...

…but the wind was too strong to light the candles. So Desert Boy had to make do with blowing out a match.

 Then it was on to more activities, including playing on the swingset and hide'n seek.

Some of the girls played ship on the hammock. They were on stormy seas, with sharks circling.

They started capsizing, which made for a perilous trip.

The next game was how many kids can you fit in a hot tub. They liked that one quite a lot. Sharks may or may not have been present.

The little kiddie pool was the spacious one. Ha!

The slip'n slide had them running and cooling off, then they'd get back in the hot tub to warm up.

In the evening we had family over for a BBQ.

It was low-key fun.

Desert Boy enjoyed all the attention.

And then things got charged up with a water fight. It wasn't just any little waterfight, this was a get soaked-to-the-skin waterfight.

Desert Girl wisely chose to put on her swimsuit.

And then proceeded to chase her cousin. It was a good day!

Happy Birthday, Desert Boy! It's been a fun eight years and I'm looking forward to lots more!