There is no day more highly anticipated by my children than the annual block party. They count down the days until that one Saturday in August when the street is closed to cars. Every detail is important to them and remembered fondly from year to year. The breakfast table laden with doughnuts and danishes from Oak Park Bakery. The bouncy castles, one big one and a small one just for the tiny tots. The crafts and games. The crappy prizes. The "manicure station" manned by fourth graders and the chance to get wet in one of five baby pools right smack in the middle of the road. And best of all, there's an inflatable water slide and a white elephant silent auction where even the tiniest allowance can go a long, long way.
Z, competing in a sponge relay race
Having their cousins and grandparents in town made the block party even more exciting for Z and A this year, but all that excitement meant naps were missed and nerves seriously frayed by 5 o'clock. We had to miss dinner and the bonfire because the kids were in full-on meltdown mode, but given this year's mosquito season, that's probably a good thing.
My niece Eliza gets ready to splash down
