I don't know about you, but I remember most of my childhood birthdays with fondness. There was the American Girls party, the princess party, the scavenger hunt party, the Chucky Cheese party... I could go on. Birthday parties are special to us for a reason. They make the birthday girl or boy feel loved in a unique way. This past weekend, we had the opportunity to throw a birthday bash for the kiddos at the orphanage. Many of them don't even know their own birthday, let alone have ever had a birthday celebration. With nearly 50 kids between the ages of 1 and 20 in the place they call home, we figured it was about time they all experienced a birthday party for the first time. We went all out. That morning, with the help of some volunteers from a nearby university, we did all the kids favorite activities: coloring, parachute games, and balloons. No birthday party would be complete without a piñata... but those aren't easy to come by on this side of the world. So we made our own. The kids caught on quickly when we explained that there was candy inside and that they would have to hit it until it burst open. Some of the kids surprised us with their strength. Jackson and Eli, who are both deaf, were especially excited to participate. They didn't need any further explanation beyond seeing their buddies take a turn hitting it. Everyone got a turn to whack it with the plastic baseball bat, before we had to help out a bit and cut some holes in it. Finally, it broke and the candy fell and the chaos ensued. Shaylee and Ezra were especially smart, stuffing candy in their shirt or pockets for later. Another big part of birthday parties is the gifts. We couldn't pass up this opportunity. Erin and I had so much fun picking out special gifts for each of the kids individually. We wrapped each one, so that everyone would have a chance to unwrap their own gift. To be honest, we weren't quite sure how this portion of the party was going to go down. Everything we've ever brought to the orphanage has been for all the kids to share, or we've had enough of the same thing to go around to every child. So to give each child a unique gift of their own had the potential to be really meaningful or major chaos. In the end, I think it was both. After what seemed like an eternity handing out wrapped items to kids who were crowding around the big bag of gifts saying, "Where's mine? I want one too!" we reached the bottom. Some of the kids were really excited about their own gifts. Others kept prodding, "But I want what he has!" We did our best to trade things around so everyone was eventually happy.
Our crazy boys Ezra, Jackson, Eli, and Avery all got matching transformer guns. At first they thought they were just guns... which apparently wasn't cool enough. But when we showed them how they could transform into transformer guys, they were ecstatic. After that, they could be found huddled together in a corner or running as a pack through the halls with their transformers in the air. I can only imagine the conspiracy they were dreaming up to take over the world. It was a chaotic day, for sure. But aren't all birthday parties? I look back on my own with fondness, but I can only imagine the planning and coordination that my parents put into the celebrations. I'm sure they felt the chaos of so many children at once doing this or that activity. We know we made the kids happy during the Hope Station Birthday Bash. And that's what matters.
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A note from Rebekah...If you've ever wondered what it would be like to start a nonprofit from the ground up, to open a home for ORPHANS with special needs in Asia, you've come to the right place. Archives
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