Post-Party Wrap-Up

Let me just start by saying, it was a fabulous party with no regrets.

She loved it. Every minute, every detail, every guest, every gift, she loved every bit of it.

I try to make birthday magic happen for each of my kids on each of their birthdays. I stay up late the night before the big day doing the work of the Birthday Fairy: wrapping gifts, hanging streamers, and making Dale blow up balloons.

The next morning, I make breakfast in bed for the late-sleepers and a feast for the early birds. But when it comes to parties, I will pull out all the stops to avoid a party with anyone outside the bloodlines.

I'm not trying to be a drag, I really want each year to be a landmark event. It's just that I get so revved up that it takes it all out of me.

I have so many kids that I can't keep track of all of them while I'm doing the legwork for the party. This one kept escaping out into the breezy evening while no one was looking. She also grabbed every cup she could reach off the table and poured it down the front of her dress.

We had pizza, and make-up, hair-braiding, and a girls-only fashion show. Leila was the first to hit the catwalk... She was a big hit!! This kid loves the spotlight; we had a difficult time getting her out of it, actually. She's accustomed to having a full song on stage. A lap up and down the aisle was a new concept.

The stage lights made photographing the event difficult, but here's a shot of most of the girls onstage.

It was the weirdest thing to see all these little girls after the make-up was on. I'm glad it's not something normal for all of them yet.

Jordan came late. I think she was a little unsettled at the prospect of a bunch of girlie-girls dressing up in make-up and parading around, but she and Kennedy are such good friends that she showed up anyway.

All in all it was a great party. I can't promise that next I year I'll facilitate this big of a bash, because I might still be tired from this one. But we'll see. Anyway, happy birthday, Sweet Sis! And many, many more to come.