It was time to prepare. There was church to attend, floors to clean, dishes to wash, frosting to make, napkins to fold, and all manner of mess to clear from the floors before guests arrived. There was no time for squandering time. Things had to be done. And so it was that our son was enlisted into the army of cleaners. There was no ceremony or badges (no time for any of that of course), but there was drill sergeant-like orders barked from all sides. “Move, Private!” “Does that look clean to you?” “What do you mean you can’t see that lego in the middle of the carpet?” It must have been very confusing for him, but the orders were clear and the feeling of the day had been set; It was his sister’s birthday and that meant he would be working so she would have a special day.

Even after the relatives arrived there were instructions: “Does grandma want tea?” “Go ask your aunt if she has had a cupcake or not — she likes cupcakes.” “Be careful when carrying that to your Grandpa.” “Give your sister her doll back, please. That is her present.” Needless to say, it was a busy day for our little guy. When all was said and done, he dealt with it all like a good big brother would and should. Before the party itself was even done, he had fallen asleep on the floor, surrounded by family (mostly aunts) and covered by a warm blanket. He was dubbed “the sleeping boy” because of his very public nap. It did not take long, however, before some “sleeping girls” joined the party in nap land.

After that the boring adults took over talking about their boring jobs and boring concerns. It was not until “the sleeping boy” woke up again that the party really started back up. Soon enough there was dancing and jumping and laughing and playing… he just needed a nap.