Isabelle had only one wish for her 8th birthday: she wanted to have a good ole'
fashioned slumber party and invite all of the girls in her second grade class. She didn't
want anyone to feel left out which meant we would play hosts to NINE little girls. Sweet
baby Jesus. Shawn and I agreed and got to work planning this special party. Slumber
parties are a rite of passage, an event little girls remember into their adulthood. I
remember having slumber parties when I was younger, my mom allowing me to have
as many friends over as I wanted, staying up late into the night, giggling until we lost
our voices. I was pretty excited for Isabelle to experience her first sleepover.
I borrowed my aunt's minivan and picked the whole crew up from school on Friday
afternoon. The looks on the other moms' faces as I marched through the parking lot with
9 little girls in tow was priceless: they ranged from humor to sheer horror!! We arrived
home in one piece and Isabelle excitedly showed her girlfriends around the house. After
they changed out of their school uniforms and had a snack, we decided to let the
games begin!
First of all, thank you God for Pinterest and all of its infinite wisdom! I got so many ideas
for this party through this amazing website. Our whole night revolved around a bunch
of balloons: in each balloon was a piece of paper that revealed what we would be doing
next. Each girl got to take a turn popping a balloon and reading what the next activity
would be. I had a color coded list in my pocket that I used to remind myself of which
balloon to pop next. The girls thought this was the most exciting thing ever: "When can
we pop the next balloon?!".
First, we had a scavenger hunt outside. Shawn and I had written up a bunch of clues that
led the girls to different areas around the property: "Run quickly to the tire hanging from
the tree. After each girl takes a turn to swing, there your next clue will be!". They had
a blast running from one station to the next, completing the different challenges and
searching for their clues. At the end of the scavenger hunt, they found a treasure chest
filled with tiaras and glow in the dark bracelets, which they so proudly modeled for us!
Next, they beat down a candy filled pinata. This group of girls included a couple of
athletes with some pretty heavy swings and Shawn had to do a little mending to make
sure the pinata lasted long enough for each girl to get a turn!
Then it was time for crafting! Thank you all so much for your very helpful suggestions
on crafting ideas! We decided to decorate pillowcases, as suggested by Jessica and
Deanna. We set the girls up outside so that they could be as messy as they wanted to,
gave them each a colorful array of fabric paints and brushes, and let them have at it! I
helped them trace their hand prints onto their pillowcases in the shape of a heart, a nice
way to remember their 8 year old hands later. We sprayed the pillows down with glitter
and added glow in the dark polka dots. This was the most quiet part of the night as the
girls got REALLY into their projects, helping each other and complimenting their
handiwork. For someone who does not particularly care for such projects, I had a
really amazing time helping them make special pieces to take home.
After a pizza party for dinner, it was time for cake and ice cream. Isabelle's smile was as
big as the sky as her best friends sang to her in the glow of her 8 candles. She
opened presents as each girl read their card aloud to her. Shawn and I stood back and
giggled at the heart felt sentiments they each expressed. There was a lot of love in the
room that night.
With the girls now high on sugar, it was time to burn off some energy and have a full
blown dance party!! Shawn blasted the Katy Perry station on Pandora and we all got
funky, myself included.
Once the sun went down, we gave them each a glow in the dark necklace and enjoyed
a firework show in the front yard! We sat in the grass and oohed and aahed over the
colorful display, the girls glowing in their festive neon gear. This was by far my favorite
part of the night as one little girl screamed, "This is the best night of my LIFE!!!!!".
We all went inside where I proceeded to bathe each and every girl, WHEW! They
spread their sleeping bags out in the living room and played a few quiet games before it
was time for popcorn and a movie. They took turns braiding my hair, telling funny
stories, and doing Mad Libs. They requested that I sleep in the living room with them
since most of them had never been away from home before and I happily obliged. At
1am, with the giggling still in full force and no end in site, we finally turned the lights out
and wished everyone good night. We got about 3 hours of sleep before they were all up
again and for that I was actually grateful.
The next morning, as their mothers arrived to pick them up, each and every girl hugged
us and thanked us for "the best night ever". We spent the remainder of the weekend
relaxing and enjoying our birthday girl all to ourselves. The night was a complete success
and we all had a great time. This was one of those nights I have dreamed about ever since
I found out I was going to be the mother of a little girl. It was exhausting, hilarious, and
soul fulfilling all at the same time. We had a blast getting to know each of the girls
Isabelle talks about so often and witnessing the dynamics between them.
Call me crazy, but I can't wait to do it again!
****You may be wondering where Brees was in the midst of all this excitement. Well, I am happy to report that Brees further solidified her angel baby status by going to bed at her normal 6:30 pm bedtime and SLEEPING THROUGH THE ENTIRE PARTY!! I have no idea how she slept through all of that talking, giggling, music blaring, fireworks display, etc. but she did. She woke up at 6:30 am all bright eyed and bushy tailed and I gave her a million kisses for making my life that much easier!!!!****
