5 is a Big Number to Celebrate!

I think having a five year-old running around the house is harder to think about than turning 30... or 40 (okay, I'm 11 years away from 40, so maybe things will change as we get closer!).

Andrew has been looking forward to turning 5 since he was 3 years-old.  It is a B.I.G. deal!  It has meant so much to him for so long, I felt like I had to blow his birthday celebration out of the water while keeping that very family feel.  I never want to loose that family aspect of birthdays which is why it will be a rare occasion that we will have a birthday party anywhere other than our home.

We had his birthday celebration yesterday and it was great!  I am reminded just how blessed we are to have all of the wonderful family and friends God has given us to make this life wonderful. 

We had a train-themed party and I used a lot of great ideas that I found on pinterest.com.  Andrew had a great time helping me make a train track along our sidewalk up to the door on the front porch.  We had everyone wear their costumes, so we also put out some Halloween decorations and games.

Andrew and I had a lot of fun putting together the food for the party.  (With the help of super Aunts, Melissa and Megan!)

I made dirt cups (chocolate pudding and crushed Oreo cookies and gummy worms) for the construction area of the train track. I put together a finger food train of ranch dip (tender), big pretzels (log car), carrots and celery sticks (produce car), and black olives (coal car).  I made pb&j sandwiches and corn dog nuggets.  With the corn dog nuggets, we placed two together using a toothpick and then placed two cheese squares on the top for a smokestack.  They turned out really cute.  We had cupcakes that kept growing and growing in the oven!  I used self standing cupcake liners, so no muffin pan needed.  Because of this, they kept expanding out larger and larger.  But they sure were good with a nice cream filling!

However, the biggest hit was the yummy poppy seed sandwiches that I made the day before and baked just before the party started.  They were absolutely wonderful!  Here's the link: Delicious-baked-sandwiches.  The recipe is below.

It was a wonderful evening from the Great Pumpkin Pop (orange balloons I filled with colorful rings, plastic insects, and train tattoos) to Andrew's celebrity wave and sincere thanks to everyone as he opened their gifts to his clear excitement about every aspect of his party.

Can't wait to see where he chooses to eat dinner on his birthday day, Wednesday!  I am very curious since his all-time favorite choice has always been Chili's!

Delicious Baked Sandwiches

Sandwiches:
1 pkg. brown and serve rolls (I used the Hawaiian brand - yum!)
1/2 to 3/4 lb. deli meat
sliced cheese - enough to fit on each sandwich

Sauce:
1/2 cup butter
2 T. brown sugar
1 T. mustard
1. T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. poppy seeds

Directions:
-Put sandwiches together and place in 9X13 baking dish
-Boil sauce until bubbly and pour over sandwiches.
-You can bake immediately or refrigerate for several hours or overnight. (I let sit overnight.)
-Bake in 350F preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, or until tops are brown and crispy.
-Enjoy!