From the time she was little, any occasion has been a good enough reason for a party. And by "party," I don't just mean cake and ice cream and maybe a song. Oh no. These parties have themes with handmade decorations. These parties have specially planned menus based on the tastes of the guest(s) of honor. Sometimes these parties have smaller, more intimate guest lists and sometimes she'd invite everyone she could think of, if we'd let her.
A couple of years ago, Bill went to Colorado for two weeks for a Hazmat training. The day he was scheduled to return, Leah got it in her head that we should have a surprise "Welcome Home Party" for him. So, a couple of hours before his plane was set to land, she had me calling and texting Bill's parents, my parents, my aunt and uncle, a cousin and her boyfriend, friends and their kids...It's hard to say, "no," to her enthusiasm.
One of her more intimate gatherings was Bill's and my 9th Anniversary Party last summer, for immediate family only. Bill and I had been out in the yard working on the landscaping in the miserable heat and we knew Leah was up to something in the house, but it was keeping everybody occupied, so we weren't complaining. When we came in from the yard, we were ushered into Grier and Fletcher's room to find this:
The decorations.
The snack buffet that I forgot to take a picture of until after we'd already snacked. It included a glass of water for each guest, a plate and fork, and I can't even remember what the snacks were. I see part of a graham cracker for sure, but I'm pretty sure there was also fruit and maybe some cookies.
She also had some activities planned, including clinking glasses and making us kiss. Seriously. I love that girl!
Sometimes, she doesn't even need a special occasion. This meal was a supper I'd made a couple of weeks ago. For some reason, she got it in her head that she wanted to make this meal "fancy." So, while I was making the lasagna, she was setting the table.
Each person got a place card like this one.
A full setting.
Supper's on! And Bill is in the background "photo bombing."
I'm not sure why Bo is crying, but I'd put quite a bit of money on it being something awesome that Leah always gets to do and Bo never does or something terrible that Bo always has to do and Leah never does.
Fletcher has decided that pictures make him too itchy, so he doesn't want to be in any. But I don't want to look back and not have any pictures of him at age 4. So, I guess I'll just have a lot pictures of him crying at age 4 because I'm such a mean mom and I take pictures even when he tells me not to.
She was absolutely in her element back in November when she got to be part of the preparations for my cousin's bridal shower (this was the same cousin who came to Bill's surprise Welcome Home Party with her boyfriend, now fiance). She was in charge of the punch with a recipe that she had from a Fancy Nancy Tea Party book. At the end of the party, she had the opportunity to ride home with the little girls and me, but she chose to stay with Grandma LouLou and help with the clean-up, as any hostess would do.
I can't wait to see the kinds of parties she comes up with as she becomes more skilled in creating the decorations and can have a little more control over menu items without having to ask me to buy it or scrounge through what's already available. I think it's safe to assume that we will always be able to count on Leah to fight for our right to PAAAAR-TAY!!
1 comment:
lol. . photos make him itchy. . .Porter went through a phase where he didn't want his pic taken either :)
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