Birthday Party Reality Check

I'm really late in writing today's post because tomorrow is the big birthday party. It's not really that big as far as guests go. I was ridiculously late in getting invites out, and it's spring break, so not a lot of people are available. The bigness is derived from the fact that it's Ella's first birthday party, and it may be our last stateside party for a while.

As I was thinking through all of the preparations, I sat down and turned on the t.v. for a minute. The news was on, and after a few moments, a story segment came on about, of all things, birthday parties. There are more and more kids living in homeless shelters due to the recession, and many of them go through their birthdays without any celebration at all. There is an organization that goes to homeless shelters and throws birthday parties, complete with cake, goodie bags, crafts, games, and gifts, for the children whose birthdays were in that month. It's doesn't seem like that big of a deal when faced with homelessness, does it? But being young means celebrating each and every year. Having that day come and go without any recognition is a low-blow for a kid.

As my girls celebrate tomorrow, it's going to be easier to be thankful that God has provided us with a home, the money to throw an enjoyable birthday party, and two healthy little girls whose births we can celebrate. We could be in one of those homeless shelters. We could go to bed hungry. We could struggle with the decision to pay our power bill or our water bill. Instead, I struggle with eating too much, and Edwin struggles with waking up to the screams of a preschooler with excessively healthy lungs. Those struggles aren't struggles at all.

All of this philosophy has gotten me worked up. I think I'm ready to party!