Lesson learned...the hard way

Shannon's a fancy girl.

She needs the glitz, the glamour, the pizazz to accompany all her sass. I call her Ms Sassafras, mostly to avoid calling her other names that, while fitting, would not be approved under my new Love and Logic experiment.

This need for all that jazz drove me to...shall we say OVER DO...her first birthday party.

Oh, I still cringe at the thought. Can't look at pictures. Vowed to never host another one of those bleepedy bleep shenanigans again. That's right. I said bleepedy bleep. Now you know I mean business.

In case you were fortunate enough to miss that train wreck, count your blessings and enjoy this photo montage....

Yes it was that bad.

No, it was worse.

A picture's worth a 1,000 words, but those don't scratch the surface.

Ah, the horror.

But I'm not dwelling on the past.

Parties are like childbirth, time heals all wounds and erases the searing pains into oblivion.

I could only venture forth if I made one promise to myself and kept it.

Simplify. Simplify. Simplify.

Invitations from Dollar Tree. Hot tub in basement. Barbie from Redbox if one needed a break from swimming. Popcorn. Cake. Ice cream. Balloons. Done.

It was slightly painful. But I held back. Exercised some rare self restraint. No coordinating plates, napkins, cups, silverware, etc. Ends up in the trash anyways. But, none the less, I wanted it. But there in lies the root of my previous transgression. I wanted it. Me. Not Ms Sassafras. Yeah she might notice it, but in reality, details are lost on children.

Now our little girl made her entrance into the world between that chaotic time right after Thanksgiving and just before Christmas. A wonderful time, but what does your calendar look during those weeks?

A mess.

But before you feel too sorry for her ill timed birth, take note that we have scheduled parties before the Thanksgiving break, thus stretching her festivities over the course of a week. However, still not enough for Ms Sassafras. She informed me the day before the party that she wanted a surprise. Something special. I didn't give it a second thought until Steve called that day with 4 VIP tickets to the Christmas breakfast and parade.

Continuing on...Parade time during party. Darn. But, the wheels started spinning and my couponing brain turned this breakfast at a fancy hotel downtown into "Ms Sassafras' " surprise. Oh my, how fancy she felt loading her plate with breakfast delights and ordering OJ and chocolate milk. Mama kinda liked it too. Really liked it. Warm breakfast. Full belly. No dishes. Heaven.

We had a moment to check out the behind the scenes parade action. Really bummed about missing the 8 John Deere tractors pulling Santa's sleigh. I love Iowa. We'll plan better next year.

Onto the party.

My theory.

Stand back and let em' do their thang.

Apparently their "thang" involved splashing and squealing which Adam has taken a liking to.Cake from a mix. Not my standard for a birthday cake but it was fanciful, tasty, and the chicks almost never finish it anyways.

And isn't it really about the presents? That's all they care about.

In conclusion here are my new found philosophies on throwing a child's birthday party.

Simplify! I did have a moment or two of panic thinking that I might be jumping to the other extreme to defy my previous indiscretion. But in the end, they're girls. Nothing ever changes. No matter how old they get, they enjoy being together. End of story. Isn't that a part of Relief Society? Fellowship.

Fortunately for Adam, I have successfully survived a positive birthday party experience and he has a greater chance to enjoy one for himself in the future. However, little boys scare me. So maybe not in the near future.