Colin Birthday Celebration

Colin wanted to have a couple families over for cake to celebrate his birthday. (Because he has a summer birthday, he kind of forgets that he could invite lots of friends over for a party. I neglect to remind of this.) It was not a Harry Potter-themed event. Many of the kids just consider costumes a prerequisite to fun. He does not acknowledge that he has aged or that he has officially had a birthday until he has a chocolate cake with chocolate frostings with M&Ms in the shape of whatever age he is turning. This has been the case now for at least 4 birthdays. This year, I made a cake from scratch. It was deliciousness itself. We had a fun evening, until Colin got stung by a bee. They were playing in the backyard and suddenly there was screaming. Some burrowing bees had enjoyed building a home in the drains in the brick retaining wall in the backyard. The British pest people were reluctant to fumigate them (they are very into animal welfare--of all kinds) until I explained that my children refused to play in the backyard until the bees were gone, and this was seriously cramping my style. The bees are gone.