Partaaaaay!

Today we threw Eli a birthday party. He doesn't actually turn 4 until the beginning of July, but we threw the party today because most of his close friends are leaving next week for summer break in their respective home countries. 

We spent the day at Mavi Göl (Blue Lake) with four other families. Being a large group of foreigners automatically made us a spectacle, but we really got peoples' attention with this: 

That's the pinata that Eli and I made together. We had great fun making it and stuffing it with goodies and Eli was super excited to break it open. I mean, really, is there anything more exciting to a four-year-old boy than using a stick to beat and destroy something until candy falls out?

As soon as we started hitting the pinata we attracted a crowd of kids and adults (crowd not pictured). Women asked us "What is that?" And kids watched with amusement and wonder as I honestly don't think they knew what it was and why we were beating it. 

After all 10 kids had their turn hitting it it still hadn't broken completely so Eli finished the job. 

As Eli and Co. scrambled to get their share of the candy, we also handed out candy to the Turkish kids that had gathered.

 

He opened presents and we all ate cake as people continued to stop and watch us. 

 

This guitar cake was my first shot at decorating a cake with a somewhat complicated icing design. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Unfortunately, the breeze prevented Eli from blowing out his candles. 

 

(insert picture of random cotton candy vendor)

Eli is blessed to have some great friends in Turkey and we were happy that they were able to celebrate his birthday with us.