by Monica Palmer
I think I have a problem.
It all started innocently enough. I bought a few Wizard of Oz plates and napkins from a party store. Then, it snowballed. I made poppy centerpieces, cut out clouds and taped a rainbow of streamers to them, crafted a gym size yellow brick road out of poster board. I even made my husband and son build Dorothy’s house out of cardboard to use as a prop for the actors I hired to come perform a scene from the movie. All this just to get my fix.
What is it I crave, you ask? I want what any mother would want to see on her kiddo’s birthday: a birthday smile.
My three year-old’s birthday party this past weekend was a wonderful experience for all that attended, and she was certainly over the rainbow with excitement. Now, will she remember this day in ten years? Probably not. That’s ok with me, though, because I will cherish the memory of that big cupcake smile until the day I leave this world!
The fact that my husband has banned me from looking at Pinterest or going to the craft store for a while are pretty good indicators that I went a little overboard for my daughter’s birthday party, but I think my defense of temporary insanity would hold up in any court of law. Mothers suffer from an intense, biological need to make their kiddos happy.
I realize that I am very fortunate, because a lot of mothers do not have the time or the resources to create a day for their children like I was able to do for my daughter. In fact, as my daughter’s cake was being cut up and plated, I was reminded of another cake and another mom.
While working a volunteer shift at a food pantry in town, I overheard a mom asking one of the other volunteers if we happened to have any birthday cakes. That volunteer went back to the refrigerator and brought out a lovely cake donated by one of the local grocery stores and handed it to the woman.
She was almost tearful with her gratitude, and she claimed that we had all just made her son’s day. I know exactly what that mom was seeing in her mind’s eye. She was imagining a birthday smile on her son’s face.
Now, a birthday cake is hardly even worth mentioning when you consider the millions of pounds of nutritious food the Feeding Missouri food banks distributes to our neighbors in need. That said, on that particular day, to that particular mom, it was the difference between disappointing her child and making him smile.
To me, a self-described birthday smile addict, that feels pretty significant indeed.
