I went to my friend's son’s birthday party the other day and it was fantastic. Billy's favourite superhero is Superman, so Susan celebrated his birthday with this theme.

Susan sent out Superman invitations from a local party supply shop to eight of Billy’s friends, including my son.

Sally asked me to help her set up, so I arrived a little earlier at around 10:00am. Sally had already covered the dining room table with a Superman themed table cloth with matching, plates, cups, and napkins that she had also bought at the party shop.

We decorated the jungle gym Susan's husband Tim had rented with red, yellow and blue ribbon bows and a few balloons - although we realistically didn't think they would last very long. The ribbons were all sagging at the bottom after the kids had been climbing for only ten minutes and the balloons were popped almost immediately. The gym itself though was a great hit with the kids. It had climbing walls, scramble nets, a monkey bridge, gangplanks and a wavy slide.

The photographer took pictures of Billy and his friends playing Superman as they swung around on the gym.

We went inside for lunch as soon as the kids started complaining that they were hungry. The kids entered the dining room at the very same time that Tim returned with bags full of cheeseburgers and fries from McDonald’s. Only seven year olds could get so excited over fast food.

After lunch Tim brought out the cake. Tim was very proud of it as he had decorated it himself. He created a flying Superman out of frosting with the words, "Happy Flying Billy" at the top.

After the meal, Tim and Susan gathered the boys in the back garden. Bill handed each boy an envelope to be kept secret from the others. Inside each envelope was a piece of paper describing their mission and a list of allies. The boys loved playing out their missions losing themselves completely in their roles as spies and heroes. Billy, of course, was Superman. The teams were looking for clues to find a very valuable item hidden in the garden. If they couldn't find it before Lex Luthor's team did it could mean an end to all civilization as we know it !!! Lex Luthor's team also had clues and Kryptonite to try and stop Superman's mission. The kids played the game for hours without getting bored or giving up. Superman saved the planet in the end, and we were all relieved that he did.

When it was time to go home Billy handed out party bags to his friends full of little Superman goodies that Susan had picked up at the party shop.

I've never seen Billy have so much fun. I can't wait until next year to see what Susan will do for his next birthday. Some of the pictures I took of the game turned out so good I sent some to the parents of the other guests.