¡Feliz Cumpleaños a Lukas!

Thursday was the little guy's big day, and we celebrated with lots of Mexican style. ¡Lukas tiene cinco años hoy! (Lukas is five years old today!)

We started the day with breakfast at 'Old McDonalds' so Lukas could have the hot cakes he was asking for all week. Then we treated him with a visit to Happy Toys so he could pick out a couple of birthday presents all for himself.

He got a bucket of dinosaurs AND a Spanish-speaking Buzz Lightyear: "¡A infinito... y más allá!"

In the afternoon, we met up with Cherie, Greenwood, and Aliza to throw a birthday fiesta at the park in Cholul. The children we had videotaped for the EducaTE project came out to celebrate with Lukas, plus there were plenty of other kids in the park as well, all curious about the gringo parade in the center of town. When white people show up in a Mexican park with sandwiches, cake, and a piñata, it's bound to attract attention!

The kids played tag and enjoyed the playground as well. Lukas was invited into a fútbol game that was going on (using some kind of tropical fruit for a ball!) and being the soccer all-star that he is back home, he fit right in.

After some sandwiches and refreshments, it was time to string up the piñata, which of course gathered a huge crowd of onlookers. Lukas got a few good hits in, and so did Emma, but the Mexican kids clearly have more experience when it comes to thrashing a piñata!

It wasn't long before it was torn to shreds and kids were on the ground scrambling for goodies. We had extras, so Jenn handed candy out to the other kids in the crowd.

Aliza gave Lukas some Spanish activity books, while Cherie & Greenwood gave Yucatan shirts to both Emma & Lukas. Such a nice surprise!

They put them on immediately and wore them for the rest of the party, because nothing says Mexican more than wearing double layers of clothing in 90 degree weather.

When it was time for cake, the crowd was so densely packed, you could hardly get through. Word about the gringo birthday party must have spread through the town like wildfire, because every child in the village must have been there.

The crowd sang Happy Birthday to Lukas (in Spanish of course, check out the video link below) and then Jennifer & Cherie managed to cut the cake into about 80 pieces or more, so that everyone could enjoy a taste of the cake.

No exaggeration...the crowd was unbelievable! Mexicans do NOT miss a fiesta.

The party was lots of fun, and it was great for Lukas to have so many people join him to celebrate. This was certainly a birthday party he's not likely to forget!

We left Cholul to head back to the house for some recovery time, and to get cleaned up for dinner out. Lukas opened a few small presents, then we headed out to Friday's to eat, since we let him choose the restaurant for his special day. We wouldn't want to disappoint the birthday boy, ya know!