Memorial Day Fun

It was our immediate neighborhood's 52nd Annual Memorial Day Block Party, and as always, we had a great -- albeit very hot -- time. First, the pinata. Thanks to Nana, we manufactured, yet again, the marvel of the neighborhood -- a strong, homemade pinata. As luck would have it, our neighbor across the street, Daniel, grew up in Mexico and is an expert in all things pinata-related. Using a full-sized ladder, he hung the pinata, which he attached to a pulley, from a high tree branch. He was then able to control the height of the pinata, and for older kids, the pinata was a moving (rising) target.
No one managed to split the pinata wide open, but once it was cracked enough, Daniel shook the pinata so candy rained from it. We had nearly 40 kids participate, and all of them got candy from the pinata. So with an improved system for playing pinata with a group of kids with a wide age range, we've committed to making another pinata for next year. Next, the egg toss. The piece de la resistance of the annual party. Luke participated for the first time this year, and I'm afraid that in the 6 and under category -- our best chance of winning -- I dropped in the very first round the eggs that Bryn and Luke had tossed to me. But they got participation ribbons for their efforts -- Luke's very first ribbon of any kind. Last year Bryn got a third-place ribbon in this round, and not realizing that this was her best chance of placing, she gladly accepted a participatory ribbon. So after two more rounds of the egg toss for older kids, the final round was open to anyone who wanted to participate. This time Ken was the kids' partner, and unlike me, he managed to catch both kids' eggs.

Unfortunately, Ken's toss to Bryn was over her head, and she wasn't able to catch it. She promptly she burst into tears, confiding that she had been hoping to improve upon her third-place ribbon from last year. This last round is intense; the eventual winners catch the egg from 50 feet and are rumored to practice during the year. Luke, on the other hand, surprised all of us when it was his turn to receive:

He and Ken were out the next round (and were far from placing), but the excitement of catching an egg was satisfaction enough for Luke.