Best Birthday Ever
... the words every mom wants to hear at the end of their kid's annual celebration. But with the pandemic and restrictions, a lot of kids are disappointed that those big birthday bashes full of friends just aren't allowed to happen.
One of our favourite things, since the kids were old enough to talk, is to plan, dream and speculate about what to do on their birthday. For some people the birthday party is a chore and something you don't want to think about until it's absolutely necessary, and I get that. In fact, I usually have several moments of stress or worry that come along with the anticipation of my children's favourite day of the year (next to Christmas).
Sharing a long lead up and listening to my kids imaginations run wild about their birthday gives us automatic quality time that strengthens our bond and makes any hard work worth it. So I listen to them, they draw pictures, I pick up on what's important to them and I aim to hear those magic words at the end of the day "Thanks Mom, that was the best day ever." which I translate to mean that they felt significant and loved.
That being said, my kids are getting older and their imaginations are growing and I don't want this tradition getting out of hand! So when Ashlyn was turning 10, I informed the kids that their tenth birthdays would be their biggest and best bashes, to mark the end of these "the more the merrier" parties and move on to the sophisticated, invite a friend, have a sleepover and stay up all night giggling birthdays.
That was before COVID.
Like many parents, we had to make quick adjustments when everything shut down last year and Kesler had a drive-by 9th birthday. It was fun. And novel. But it wasn't going to work for the second year in a row, especially since this is his 10th birthday and the year of the promised birthday finale!!! Plus, we are living at the lake in order for Todd to GC the eh frame and no friends are allowed to visit outside their health regions!
I can honestly say that I don't think any of us would have dreamed up a hotel staycation to celebrate Kesler if it hadn't been for these unusual circumstances. Hotels seem like grown-up places, full of grown-up people, with only grown-up things to do. Funny thing is: grown-ups know how to treat kids right!
We booked a local stay at a vacation home hotel room at the Delta Grand Okanagan resort and basically experienced the joys of a weekend in Mexico- one of Kesler's favourite places in the entire world. Birthday balloons, surprise donuts, swimming pool reservations, cruiser bikes, shuffle board, ping pong and so much delicious food at every turn including a pina colada poolside that was the cherry on the cake for Kes.
The bonus with this particular best birthday ever was that it wasn't just the best for Kes. It was the best for all of us... even the older sister who was surprised with a knock at the door and a special dessert labelled, "Happy Birthday Ashlyn on October 26th!" 'cuz birthdays can be hard on siblings right?
The resort hashtag is #mygrandmoment but we think that's an understatement. Moment after moment, it was a birthday to remember. Highly recommend.