Happy 7th Birthday to my Davey!

AT THE ZOO

BIRTHDAY PARTY AT MCDONALDS

The much-anticipated day finally arrived.... May 21st... Davey's 7th birthday! He had been counting down to this day for at least two months, and I began to worry.... I mean, it's just one day on the calendar, right?, and he had so many expectations that turning seven was going to be the greatest day of his life. Would I be able to make this day what he hoped it would be?

We started out the morning with presents and birthday cards. In one of his birthday e-mails, Davey found out that his Mimi was sending $20 to his Daddy's bank account. So, we loaded into the car and headed straight to a toy store. Now, my Davey is a very sentimental guy (as you could probably guess from the counting down of days), so choosing the best toy in the store for his money was no easy business. From the toy store, we headed to the zoo, which in Ukraine is a zoopark. We actually got there a little early, so we let the kids choose a ride (set up kind of like the fairgrounds) while we waited for their friends to arrive. They chose bungee-jumping for kids (about $1.25 per kid for 3 minutes), and Davey actually got to do a flip in mid-air, and I got it on video!

When the Hess family (missionary family we work with) arrived with their four kids, we entered the zoo (entrance fee was about 70 cents per child). The kids looked at the animals really quickly and then just enjoyed playing on the playground toys that were located in the middle. They've all been to this miniature zoo many times, so we didn't mind. (And the lions - the main attraction - were sleeping).

After the zoo, we headed to the one and only McDonalds that we have in our city. We had rented the "birthday room," and for an entire hour and a half, the kids had their own room plus a McDonald's worker to entertain them with songs, games, balloons, etc... Now, where else can you get a birthday party (full meal plus entertainment and clean-up) for just $5 per child?! Well, I don't know about Davey, but this was the greatest birthday party I have experienced yet! And, no kool-aid spills and popped balloons to clean up! What a fun day it was for all of us!