Party Hardy

I really need a t-shirt that says "I Survived - Sadie's Party 2012". We had 8 girls over to the house for two hours of dedicated birthday celebration. I prepped, cleaned, came up with activities, strategically placed toys around - everything I could think of to get ready for sheer madness.

To help with some of the crowd control, we made it a princess theme and invited only the ladies. There were a few girls from class, one of my close friends and a pal from work. Dresses were optional to wear, knowing that the girls could indulge in Sadie's vast collection. Sadie chose Cinderella to welcome everyone.

When I let Sadie know we were going to be having a party for her a few weeks ago, she was awestruck. She honestly couldn't believe it was her turn - kids were actually coming to her house...with presents. When today arrived, the kids couldn't come fast enough. She waited at the window for about 15 minutes, shouting whenever she possibly heard a car in the distance.

Kids arrived. Sadie graciously welcomed them, showing them around her house. There's the 5 minutes of uncertainty - then chaos erupts. Toys were everywhere. Shelves and baskets were ransacked. There was a fight over a stroller. Dresses came on and off and on again. Shoes were being shared. We decorated cookies (in the shape of dresses, crowns and glass slippers, courtesy of my lovely friend Sarah). We colored party hats. We snacked, sipped juice boxes, we went nuts.

Then there's the pinnacle of the day - cake time. The beautiful princess themed cake that I got from a local bakery (that's actually affiliated with the famous Mike's Pastry in the North End) was enormous. After going through slices for the kids and parents, it still looked barely touched. At least it was pretty and delicious. If anyone's looking for a sweet treat, we have the mother load.