Phree at last...

Saturday was Sophia's third (or "phird" as she pronounces it) birthday. We celebrated with a little shindig at the ranch with our ever-evolving Brazilian crew. As Murphy would have it, Friday night she woke up with an earache. After a couple of trips to a clinic that stays open on weekends, we got her the antibiotics she needed to really get her party on.
Her party was a blast although not quite as exaggerated as many of the ones B threw in the States. The heavy weighting of the Latin demographic was unmistakable in the decibel level generated by both kids and adults. In attendance were:

• Thomas & Luciana and their kids João and Joana (we went to Joana's birthday party last week). Lúcio, Luciana's brother, also made the trip over from Wiesloch.
• Patricia, whom we met through Luciana (her boyfriend missed the party because he was studying).
• Horst & Denuza and their kids André and Felix. I know Horst from work.
• Soraia & Bernard, and their kids Leo and Vivi
• Luciana ("Lu2") and Chris (it's hardly a Brazilian affair unless there is some name overloading)

For those scoring along at home, that's 9 pre-adolescent Brazilian kids in a single apartment (we ignored the limit of 5 Brazilian kids posted on the entrance to our building). By the end of the night (the party started at around 16:00 and broke up by 22:30 or so), the apartment had the unmistakable"Animal House" look. The playroom looked like a toy bomb had set off a Disney costume grenade. We're still trying to whip the joint into shape.

The girls had a blast playing with Lu2. I think they've adopted her as their crazy aunt (crazy in a good way!).
One of the many highlights of the evening was this group of slightly toasted adults (for the most part) inhaling helium from the balloons and wishing Sophia a happy birthday in prose and song. Call me easily amused, but it was hilarious.
Sophia's present was a little bike with no pedals. We're hoping it will develop her balance so that learning to ride a real bike will be easier. Most German kids have them and whiz by at impressive speeds. We took it for a test ride this afternoon and Sophia is a natural.

One final note: It may have escaped you, but in one of the photos above it is clear that during the party Emily began to turn invisible (see detail below). It started with her right hand, worked its way up her arm and had consumed her completely by 20:30 or so. Luckily for us, the crumbs and chocolate on her face made it easy to spot her. Last I checked, she had "filled in" again beautifully.