A Fiery Birthday Celebration

I shared here that Alison turned 16 last week. She wanted to celebrate with her friends but didn't have a definite idea for a plan. What do 16 year old girls want to do for a celebration? Well, if you don't have a limited budget, they do outrageous, extravagent parties. Since we're on a more modest budget, I suggested a Japanese Steakhouse thinking she and her girlfriends would find it entertaining to have their food prepared right in front of them. Not to mention the assortment of fire tricks they do.


She was willing to try that and called for reservations. 16 and took one of mom's suggestions seriously? Oh my. How long will this last?






It was a huge hit complete with fire, catching shrimp and a birthday peacock.

A last minute suggestion from the birthday girl was a bonfire. Um....not something one can throw together at the last minute when you live in the city, right? Well, fortunately for her she lives in a town surrounded by prairie and it's currently the season of an annual prairie tradition. Burning. Yes, burning of the prairie.

As a farm/ranch girl, I grew up participating in this each year and to this day it is still one of my all-time favorite activities. I love the smell, the sound of the fire crackling and more than anything, the look of the hills alive with fire. If you've never seen this in person, you can't fully understand what I'm talking about nor will you appreciate it. I will suggest that if you ever have an opportunity to observe this spring time ritual, jump at it. It's unbelievable.

As the birthday girl's luck would have it, her dad was helping friends burn pasture at the family farm. And, we had to drive right by it on our way home. So she called Lawman and said we were going to stop by.

We even managed to do a little muddin' on our way there. Trust me when I tell you that it wasn't planned. I, um, took the wrong dirt (more like mud) road and soon found myself stuck. Telling a car load of 16 year old girls that you're stuck??? Not a good idea. Panic ensued but I did save the day as I got us out. Thank the Lord for my 4-wheel drive vehicle! The sound of all the mud flying off my tires as I drove on down the road? Let's just say it was pretty loud and I was saying to myself, "Thank heavens I got us out of that one. I wouldn't have wanted to call Lawman!"

As soon as we arrived at the right place, Alison and one other girl popped out of the truck and parked themselves on the back-end of the mule Lawman was driving. Talk about a happy birthday girl.

You can't top a bonfire that consumes the entire hillside!