E for effort

Oops... I'm only a week late sharing the fun we had on Jeff's birthday. (Which is only slightly less organized that I was in planning his big day.) 

Considering I had no idea what to get him for a gift and waited until the last minute to pull it all together, it turned out pretty nicely. Thus proving that creative efforts can make up for a total lack of effort.

We started with a cake, which I snuck into his work to be presented during an afternoon meeting.

Sydney, meanwhile, made Jeff a birthday crown. Crowns are hugely popular among her peers, so why wouldn't Daddy want to wear one, too? (As I joked on Facebook, behold the power of a five year old. I think it's a safe bet that had the crown come from me, there's no way Jeff would have worn it.)

So back to the problem of not having a clue what to get Jeff for his birthday. I knew he wanted a metal detector, but I also know that this is the kind of item he should pick out himself. And so I needed to come up with a creative way to make that happen.

Jeff likes to lead the kids on treasure hunts at their birthday parties, so we decided to do something like that for him. We sent him from the living room, into our room and then onto AJ's, with cheesy rhyming clues such as:

You've made it this far, but it wouldn't be fun
if with one clue this game was won.
So now to your boy's room you must go
To a place where awards hang by his window. 

Get it? Attached to a bunch of hockey medals was the next note that read:

You found the next clue, but there's still more
On to the next... through Sydney's door.
You'll find a soccer ball, but not one you boot.
For inside, you might find some loot.

And so, attached to Sydney's soccer ball-shaped piggy bank, which is full of coins, we came upon the next note.

And so it continued... each note was attached to some kind of metal. At last we directed him to the office where the final note was propped on the computer keyboard directing him to go online and buy his choice of metal detectors.

All worked out great. Jeff was happy, and I didn't look like a totally lame wife who made no effort to get him anything. Best of all - the new metal detector just arrived. Jeff has tested it out in the house, but apparently has decided to wait until the snow melts and ground thaws to take it outdoors. (And it came in a big box, so the kids are happy, too.)

I hope Jeff is patient, we're back in a deep freeze again, so it could take awhile.

*****

On an unrelated note, today is national Go Red for Women Day. Take a moment - through the food or exercise choices you make - to do something heart healthy for yourself.