Kenaz One Year Old BBQ Birthday Party

Saturday we had a Kenaz’s 1 year old birthday party. We decided have it outside our apartment building in a nice sitting area. We invited a lot of people and they all told us they had a good time. Kenaz caught cold a day before and he had a little bit fever on his birthday. He did not have a lot of smiles but next day he loves to play his new toys and ride his wagon.

So the party went like this…

We had a simple arrival activity for getting kids on fake tattoo. I went to a whole sale market to buy cool dragon and spider tattoos for boys and flowers and butterfly for girls. Then we served Jesse’s delicious BBQ hotdogs and corns. We had devil’s eggs, spicy tuna cucumber from Martha Stewart receipt, chips and salsa, salad, and my dumpling-skin-lasagna.

[/Jesse] The Hotdogs were totally burned. The corn was OK though. We bought a BBQ set. I made a “chimney” out of a large tin formula can, with a smaller coffee can placed inside. While setting it up, about 8 security guards and janitors gathered around to investigate how the foreigner makes a BBQ (they never did it before). Unfortunately, our BBQ set is basically a cheap shallow pan without a cover. So anything in it gets burned really quick. I think the Chinese concept of BBQ (and to Chinese people, I think that concept revolves around buying shishkabab meat on the street) is to cook very small pieces of meat. Anyway, EVERYONE loved Haga’s lasagna. Chinese people, who normally say they will never like Western food, thought it was great. [/]

Our main event for kids was smashing the piñata. Instead of blind hold, kids started hitting it randomly. But our hand-made piñatas was very strong. Kids just loved to hit it. Kids did not expect what would happen (no kids from California or Mexico)…, they all went to crazy for candies. When we did the second piñata, now everyone knows what inside. Some of Chinese grandmas went to really crazy for their grandchild….

We had a birthday cake. Jesse and Kenaz blow a candle. I went to a warehouse to buy cheese cakes for hotels for 1/4 of price in hotel. It was delicious and good buy. I made soft chewy oatmeal chocochip and chocolate chocochip cookies. I actually made them from scratch instead of using Betty & Cracker.

We had these hippie/reggae kick balls [they are usually called hacky-sacks –Jesse], stickers (thank you, grandma) and various small kid’s things for favor.

Akiva had a really good time. During the party he never called me he was with his friends running around all the time. I never know where he was.

[/Jesse] Several people noted that Akiva can really drink beer. Little Japanese girls were coming up and telling Haga that Akiva was drinking. Our Chinese friend told me “Hey…Akiva can really drink!” I didn’t see him drinking, but he did bring me an opened beer can with about 1/4th of the beer missing. My little boy is growing up to be an secret alcoholic. He must get this from this from his Japanese grandmother. [/]

I had a good time too. I was running around during the party too. But I got to make piñatas. I now appreciate Kerry Morales, my former manager. She always throws the best parties for kids every summer. By then I didn’t have kids so I wasn’t paying much attention. Now I try to remember what she did.

[/Jesse] Kenaz all of a sudden is showing much more awareness about toys and people. And he is becoming much more of a complainer. He yells and hits when we take away his toys. I can tell Akiva and Kenaz will get into fights in the future. He looks really cute though on his wagon. Also, we have discovered that Akiva likes breakdancing to cheap Chinese disco music-playing toys. Its fun to watch [/]