Birthday Party!

Last weekend we celebrated my daughter's 3rd birthday! Yes, it is crazy to believe that she is 3 and to see her exhibiting new "big-girl" behaviors every day. I was so excited that my husband was here for her birthday this year, since he missed it last year and will be missing both our sons birthdays this year. So I had planned a fun backyard BBQ with a bounce house, and invited all our friends. Apparently, we have way too many friends! Because a week before the party we suddenly discovered that our guest list was over 60 people (including kids) and we had no idea how to feed them all. So... we had to start from scratch, "cancel" the party invites, and call just a few close friends to come over and celebrate. We ended up with 7 other families, which was a perfect size. Sophia was grinning all day long. She loved her 'bouncy castle,' her friends, the cupcakes, the presents, the balloons, all of it! It was wonderful to see her so happy, and I actually had a wonderful relaxing time! Most other parties I have gone to without my husband, so it was great to have his help serving food and keeping an eye on the kids.
It's also good that he keeps me in check sometimes. I think as moms we are flooded with birthday party ideas in magazines, conversations, parenting websites, etc. As we were faced with our gigantic guest list, hubby commented, "This is a 3-year-old's party. What you're talking about is what my parents did for my sister's graduation from high school!" And he was right. It is easy to get carried away inviting people, planning a "theme" and buying decorations. But at this age it is the little things that make the kids happy. She was thrilled to pick out "Tangled" plates and napkins, and her favorite colors of balloons, and that's really all it took. I went over the guest list with the birthday girl to whittle it down, and was surprised to hear her say of a few playmates, "I don't really like him/her. Danny (her brother) likes them." So she got to pick the guests, in the end. We had a wonderful day, and I was thrilled to be able to enjoy it as a family. Do you have any memorable birthday stories or tips to share?