The Most Memorable Birthday Party I Never Attended

The most memorable birthday party I ever threw for one of my daughters was one I never even got to attend. It was a princess party for my second daughter's fourth birthday. I had invited all the girls from her class to come to our house for a tea party. The girls were supposed to come to the party dressed as princesses.

As a good parent, I had spent numerous hours planning, shopping and preparing for the birthday party. I had bought a treasure chest full of play jewelry so the girls could add some glitz to their costumes when they arrived. I also had planned a tiara craft. I wanted to make my daughter and her friends feel as special as princesses for the day.

Unfortunately the night before the birthday party, as my husband was trying to put our excited princess to bed, he slipped off the top step of our stairs. He was holding our four month old at the time. As he fell down the stairs his arm hit one of the wooden steps and he loss hold of the baby. She fell a few more stairs before my husband was able to catch her.

My husband was bruised but not seriously hurt. However our infant daughter needed to be rushed to the local emergency room. At the hospital we learned that she had a skull fracture and needed to be transferred to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). By the time she had been transferred and admitted to CHOP it was 4am.

Guests were expected to arrive at our house at 11am. I debated postponing the birthday party, but my husband said he would handle everything. (I needed to stay at CHOP since I was nursing.)

My husband went home, finished cleaning the house, set up for the party and finished making the refreshments. He then put on a black suit, complete with a white dish towel over his arm, so he could be their waiter. He did all this while still in some pain and with no sleep.

The birthday party was a success. My daughter and her friends had a wonderful time. (And in true fairytale style, our infant daughter eventually made a complete recovery without any complications.)

My brother took pictures of the birthday party for me. I treasure those pictures and the knowledge that my husband is a truly devoted father. My daughter was not just a princess for a day, but in her father's eyes she and her sisters will always be princesses. He will always be their knight in shining armor!