Party planning

Deston will be four on November 4th this year. Yes, it will be his Golden Birthday! I'm not sure who's more excited about it. If you're not familiar, your golden birthday is when your age matches your birthdate. I've been brainstorming about party ideas -- a brief Google search brought up about 6 million hits, so it seems I'm not the only one who loves golden birthdays.

Andrew made my golden birthday enormously special. He took me on a surprise trip to Portland and Eugene, OR and Mount St. Helens in WA. I couldn't have asked for a better way to celebrate turning 22. It remains one of the only real vacations we've ever taken. While we won't be going anywhere, I hope to make Deston's golden birthday really special.

I've begun the planning process, which I'll detail here. Please chime in with ideas and feedback. One idea that probably won't pan out is King Midas tag. It's freeze tag, only whoever is 'It' turns everyone to gold. The only rub is that early November can be unpredictable weather-wise. It's not really cold yet, but it's also not warm. I don't feel totally comfortable having an outdoor party -- shivering guests are no good. Though spacious, our apartment could not handle a game of tag.

I am aware that I could easily fall into golden overload. I'm trying to rein in the golden menu items to avoid an unattractive monochrome menu. The dessert will most definitely be golden, however. So far, I'm considering Boston Cream Pie, sponge cake, Lemony Angel Food Cake and lemon bars or flan with blueberries.

Other ideas:

• Pin the golden egg on the goose
• Gold coins and gold stars in the gift bags
• A crown for the birthday boy

So, as I said, if you have a stroke of brilliance, let me know. Meanwhile, I'll be sifting through the internet!