Dylan Stafford

Quick notes before it fades.

Yesterday.

Christian’s 11th birthday party.

Harry Potter theme.

Sunday, 11am – 3pm. 16 friends. All either 10- or 11-years old. Lot of energy.

My wife: preparation. Six weeks before. Email invitations. Right addresses. Wrong addresses. Late RSVPs.

The cake: Doby the house-elf. Modeling chocolate. Sculpting all week. Hiding Doby in the closet.

The pinata: A golden snitch. Paper mache. In the window sill all week. One more layer. How to attach the hanger?

Wands: Marisa has a method. Build in advance. Do 11-year-olds still respond to arts and crafts? Yes, if we set the stage well.

Scavenger hunt: In the park. Placing the clues. Big brother helping in advance.

Quidditch: Really? Yes. We can do this. Brooms. Blue team. Red team. Quaffles. Bludgers. Skip the snitch. Hula hoops hanging from trees.

Bernie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans: Marisa created a trivia game. You guessed the Harry Potter question, then you got a cup with 4 beans, and you had to guess the flavors. Lots of gross outs and gags and laughs. Perfect.

Memories: Prior Harry Potter party. May 2, 2015. Older brother Jackson was 8-years old then. That worked. This will work.

Our team: My mom flew from Texas. Our best friends: Aunt Jen, Aunt Nat, Uncle Eric. It takes a village.

Best part? Debriefing at dinner afterwards. Hearing Christian’s favorite memories. Seeing my mom smile. Watching my older son feel satisfaction from helping with the scavenger hunt. Seeing the accomplishment in my wife’s eyes. Grateful for family, for celebration, for life.

Amen.