Ya Queremos Pastel!

My counterpart's daughter had her 1-year birthday last Saturday, and Holly and I went to her piñata, which turned out to be really fun. Romel and his family have become pretty close friends to us in Masaya, so it was nice to be there. While a piñata is the general name for a kid's birthday party, it's also the beloved candy-filled punching bag. We had both. The theme was Strawberry Shortcake and as soon as Rosita Fresita hit the ground, it was total madness.

I tried everything to turn this video around, but I failed. So, if you want to watch it, please tilt your head 90 degrees clockwise or your computer 90 degrees counterclockwise.

There were also many failed attempts to get Natalia to smile while the photographer was there:

But finally after the paid photographer left, we got a good shot of her being cute:

The Nicaraguan birthday song ends with a verse of people singing, "ya queremos pastel," or "we want cake already!" over and over, so of course there was cake:
And dancing: And balloon fights:
Here Natalia is looking a little afraid again, but I don't think it was our fault. Here we are with Romel, Natalia, his wife Azalia, and their nephew in the bottom left. Also in the family but not pictured here is Jeycob (see balloon fights):
Romel and Azalia definitely know how to throw a birthday party... I can't wait for Natalia to turn two.