purple elephants corner: If there’s no rest for the wicked, then forgive me Lord for I have committed murder or something

June 20, 2006

If there’s no rest for the wicked, then forgive me Lord for I have committed murder or something

So tell me all ye parents who have BIG birthday parties in church halls and things, how do you do it? I mean how do you find the time and how do you find the money?
I only fed four kids and I doubled my budget and the whole preparation, shopping, cooking and general fiddling took me TWO days. Yes TWO days and anyone who read my last post (all 1.5 of you) will know I do not have TWO days. I do not have TWO days at all.
Here is the point where I’m supposed to come in and say something along the lines of it being worth the threat of bankruptcy and the disintegration of the final year of my degree just to see the expression of pure joy on their little cherub cheeks, but with kids the ever wavering line between ecstasy and despair is as impossible to read as Henri Bergson’s Matter and Memory. (This is a translation? Into English? Surely you jest?)
Let’s just say if I went out of an evening and witnessed that much back stabbing, (‘Purple El-la-phaaaaant she’s not eating her foooood’); theft (‘Purple El-la-phaaaaant he stole that toy off me’); and violence (‘Purple El-la-phaaaaant she whacked me with a balloooooon’); then I’d probably never leave the house again... But then again these are kids and who knows.
The homemade snake cake went down reasonably well, (just call me Jane Asher) as did the create-your-own balloon face kit I picked up from Tesco’s. The organic star shaped vegetable nuggets I discovered in the health food shop (ah! there went my budget!) will not be top of the list for next year as they got a verdict of ‘yuck!’ from all four kids, including my own daughter. But they are shaped like stars and they are full of goodness... does that mean nothing these days?
I just demolished some of the leftovers and I can kind of see where they are coming from.
Now that’s that over for another year. Where was I again? Oh yes the essay...
Is it time for bed yet?

Posted by purple elephant at June 20, 2006 10:36 PM