We met JoAnne and Eric almost 2 years ago when my daughter, Amber, who was then 14, answered an ad in the paper for babysitting. JoAnne and Eric have a 3 year old austitistic son, and they were very impressed with how mature and responsible Amber was. When school started again, JoAnne asked my wife, Cindy, if she would babysit for her, and she agreed. Friendship blossomed, yada yada, and then followed dinner parties and couples’ nights with the four of us.

Yesterday, we threw JoAnne, who we call “Jo-Jo” — and sometimes “Mojo Jo-Jo” — a birthday party at our house. It was nicer than any party we would throw for ourselves, because JoAnne and Eric don’t have a lot of money, and Eric is. . . well, I never thought I would meet a guy who was less romantic than me, but Eric is it. So Jo-Jo had never gotten a really nice birthday party. Cindy cooked a chicken dinner and baked a cake. After dinner, Jo-Jo got to go on a birthday “scavenger hunt”, where she got a clue, and then she had to find a present. Attached to a present was a clue that would lead her to her next present. There were a total of 10 presents (most of them inexpensive, fun, presents – candybars and assorted knick-knacks, and such).

The climax came when she reached the last present. We bought her a locket that said “mom” and had a pink rose on it. Inside we had put a small picture of her son. When Jo-Jo started crying after opening this gift, we knew we had done well.

Joanne getting choked up over her present

Afterwards, we had cake and ice cream. It was a lot of fun, and a good time was had by all.