The Weekend Abby Turned Seven

Abby wanted a 'plain' cake this year.  Kris was totally okay with this.

Hey folks.

In the midst of the swirling craziness that is our lives these days - the end of the school year, our impending move, and all the ridiculous social obligations that come along with the warming weather (does everyone have kids in May?) - we realized that lil' baby Abby was turning f***ing seven.  Totally almost missed it this year.

Whoops.

Yes, that's a vintage Han Solo in Jello.

Not having the time to reserve a venue or anything too crazy, we decided to host a party at our house this year.  We'd invite a bunch of Abby's closest friends over, decorate the place, whip up a bunch of party food, and let the kids run amok.  Later in the evening, after the party, some of the kids would stay the night for Abby's first sleepover.

As it turns out, we're pretty damn good at last-minute birthday shin-digs.  They arguably turn out better than our months-in-advance, venue-based operations.  Kids had a blast, Abby scored some plunder, and we checked one more calendar obligation off the ol' checklist.

Behold:

Some of the presents we bought for Abby this year, including a lamp for Abby's new Star Wars-themed bedroom.  Not sure if I told you guys this already, but the girls have been fighting so much lately that Kris and I decided it was high time for them to have their own bedrooms in the new house.  The room that was to be their playroom will now be Abby's bedroom, and Kris plans on painting the walls grey and purple to match her existing Star Wars bed set (as well as this new lamp.)

Abby's birthday party was a Pinterest-inspired, Star Wars-themed event.  Kris spent a few days researching on Pinterest and making multiple runs to the grocery store in order to create several snacks for the party, all of which were a big hit with the kids.

Han Solo, 'frozen' in 'carbonite' (or, 'Jello,' as it's commonly referred to.)

Ya see the running theme, here?

Pretty pumped for her party

While Kris had sent out invites to a few kids - we had wanted to keep this relatively small in number - several uninvited neighborhood kids showed up anyway.  In hindsight, we probably should have seen this coming, but it worked out in the end.

Time for another go-'round with Abby's own personal camera. . . here's Giovanna.

Sophie

Scarlett

Katie, Jackson, and Kane (who's always a pleasure to have over.)

Partygoers

Abby craps her pants

Kris wanted to do a craft activity with the kids for the party, before the cake and presents.  She landed on tie-dying t-shirts, which was a messy but ultimately rewarding activity the kids seemed to enjoy.

Watson

Havin' a blast.

Mom was on hand to help us out with some of the child management, which was much appreciated.

This shit stained everything it touched.  You can imagine how nerve-racking this was for parents.

Abby's requested Star Wars-themed, plain, purple cake.

Singing Happy Birthday to Abby

Presents Time

Cake and ice cream makes its rounds among the gathered amasses

A lot of this crap Kris and I had never heard about, but they were big hits among the party goers

Opening some presents from Grandma and Papa John

She needed an alarm clock for her new bedroom - this is the same one the girls have had in their bedroom for the last few years, since Alayna received one for her birthday when she turned five.

Gossiping on the couch with Ella and Giovanna

Sleepover with Sophie and Reba

The next morning, eating some breakfast and discussing current global events

Abby's new go-to pose.  We decided to hold off on opening some of the presents we got Abby during her party, since she was distracted and all over the place with her friends.  You dump money into crap for your kid, you kinda want them to appreciate it.

Abby wanted this Our Generation doll (Shannon) more than anything this year, so she was super excited opening this one.  They're the same size and quality as American Girl dolls, only $50 cheaper - knowing how flighty our kids can be with toys, we didn't want to drop $100 on a doll only to have it neglected in a drawer somewhere after a few weeks of play.

I spent about 20 minutes slowly cutting and snipping out Abby's new doll and all her frickin' accessories, while she busied herself with opening other gifts.

For dinner, we let Abby between two nicer restaurants Kris and I had some coupons for (Logan's Roadhouse and Genji's Japanese Hibachi Grill.)  Abby went with steak over sushi, and ultimately ended up bringing Shannon along for the ride.  And so ended Abby's thrown-together, last-minute birthday weekend.  Back to work tomorrow. . .

- Brian