(started this on Monday and I’m just getting back to finish it)

We got quite a round of storms yesterday (actually Sunday) which left 4 inches of rain in about 7 hours (and caused the girls to miss dancing in a scheduled performance.)  But  storms are gone now, but still no sun and lots of flooding.  Marty’s going to have to mow every other day once this all dries out.  We were going to get the garden planted this weekend in our new space.  However, it’s a good thing we didn’t get it in because the entire garden was under a foot of water.

It’s been a few years since Delaney had a friend party for her birthday.  We are always out of town with family for Easter or she chooses something else.  For the time of year, we often take a little family trip around this time too.  But this year, we made plans to be home so she could have a traditional birthday party.  Lots of fun planning it.  She knew just what she wanted from a dinner on the back porch with cloth napkins and frozen drinks with umbrellas to music and a scavenger hunt that ended in the dark.   

We almost cancelled because we thought the weather wasn’t going to cooperate, but we actually got the best day possible.  The wind was still (which is pretty uncommon here) and the temperature felt like almost 75 degrees.

The party theme was a backyard luau.  We got the party supplies from Oriental Trading and our local Party Store.   We downloaded some great beach party tunes from ITunes (made a cd for each Delaney and McK.)  We’ve heard a lot of Beach Boys and tropical tunes in the house ever since.

Party invites were very similar to these with sand and a little lei inside.  We didn’t mail them even though you can, but Delaney enjoyed delivering them to each of the girls’ house.

Delaney greeted all the guests as they arrived giving them their lei and flower for their hair.  

Games included:

Design a Bikini (with toilet paper rolls) 

Go Fish style Card Game with Candy 

This game was a HUGE hit.  I didn’t take pictures because I was part of the game, but I did run my video camera the whole time.  Lots of squealing, screaming and cheers.  I got the idea for this from this site which I have used quite a bit in the past for any type of party.

You take 2 decks of cards that are the same no trick decks…You buy enough candy for each person or maybe extras are necessary and put them in a pile… Next you have an adult keep one deck and the other deck is dealt to the kids evenly….Now the adult reads the top card of the deck and the kid with that card gets to pick a candy from the pile and then hides it…It keeps going like this until the whole deck is done…but the second, third and so on people who match the card either get to pick a new candy or pick a candy from someone else guessing they have the candy they want. This way its a fun way for everyone to get a candy.

The key here was to buy unique types of candy that the kids would want to stockpile in their lap.  We used some assorted candy bags with a variety, but then bought gum, tic tacs, and unique candy items.  Surprisingly the funny items were the most coveted.   After the party, Delaney said this was her FAVORITE part.  All the girls wanted this game to never end, they got really giddy with this one.  Will be fun to watch that back on video.

While we prepped the dinner, I think there was some dancing and hula hooping and more…

the menu:

frozen beverage:  Sensational Slush (made ahead from recipe and frozen for quick serve)

appetizer:  pineapple fruit plate

main course:  chicken and shrimp fettucine alfredo with garlic bread

dessert:  brownie sundaes (eaten at the end of the party after last game)

In the middle of dinner, Marty came to mention we had a few visitors just around the corner of the porch.  2 very LARGE turkeys were about 15 feet away from this photo.  The girls jumped up to see them and a chase ensued.  Imagine 6 girls chasing 2 very large turkeys across the yard with flowers and lei’s in their hair.  Pretty funny (the mental image and the fact that this is the first time we’ve seen turkeys in the yard (add them to the list of wild animals we’ve had in the yard)

After dinner, they opened presents with a couple extra helpers (thank goodness their recent love for skunks wasn’t until AFTER the party.)

Just before dark, the girls paired in teams for the final Scavenger Hunt (Amazing Race style.)  We had 12 numbered envelopes for each team each with a separate task to accomplish.  After each task was completed, they returned to get their next envelope and clue.   We had a basket of tools to  use for  tasks, including notebooks, jump ropes, pencils, gum, tape, flash lights, etc.  

Some of the tasks included:  collect a sample of cat hair on a piece of tape, jump rope and blow 10 bubbles with gum, draw a 3D picture of the barn, count the number of windows on the house (by this time it was getting dark and they needed the flashlights.)   Even more squeals and screams in this game.  I nearly wet my pants I was laughing so hard watching this.

The final clue led them to a rose bush with these LOVELY prize glasses.   

They didn’t think they were too special, but they did like the party favors which were a beach bag with monogrammed beach towel for each one.   I didn’t get a photo of the towels but they were fun.  Bought the monogram towels off of ebay and the bags from Oriental Trading, which were less than .50 each.

On a different note, I have been waiting and wondering when new stamps are arriving (many of you have asked and I just wasn’t sure.)  BUt, the good news is that stamps are now shipping to stores everywhere.  If you are looking for something special, check with your favorite retailer.  If you don’t have one, watch here for the stamps to go on sale.

and I am thinking in honor of National Scrapbook Day this weekend, it will be fun to give away some brand new products.  So check back for more details to come.  

I’m off to do a sun dance…that is or talk to God and pray for a little sunshine to appear and a little less rain.

It will take me a bit to catch up.  

Remember the snow storm?  Thank goodness I think we can safely say that will be our last this Spring.  However, my in-laws are snowed in right now and got over 30 inches of snow in one day this past weekend.  ick.  

Just wanted to share a few of the pics from the day after the snow stopped.  

We were going to go sledding, but because this was a spring snow storm and the ground was so warm from our 85 degree weather we’d been enjoying pre-snow storm, it was almost impossible to get  to our sledding spot.  So instead, the girls spent their time trying to get to the top of the pile of snow from Dad plowing circle drive.

Getting everyone to the top was not easy and staying there even harder.  I have to laugh at Delaney because it’s a common thing to see her hat down over her eyes.  I have a pile of snow photos from many years and each one her hat is down over the eyes.  Poor kid.   I suppose maybe a kid that hasn’t always ’seen well’ would be the kid who doesn’t really notice that?

and a little body sledding.   

The little girls decided to make a snowman.

and the big girls decided to lay in the snow and eat it.   They were trying to get me to go inside and get them the snow cone flavoring, but I wouldn’t.  So instead they opted for some pop from the garage (since I wouldn’t let them walk through the house in their snow boots either.)  Honestly I find eating the snow quite unappealing, but I decided I would let them figure that out and yet knowing Delaney, she would think it was the best thing ever.  

A few minutes later, they were joined by the dogs and i couldn’t resist hollering at Delaney to be careful to make sure she gets the right pile of slush and not the one that the dogs left behind.   Marty overheard and heard the girls screaming because the dogs came to join them.   We both laughed pretty hard and the girls did NOT find any humor in our laughing one bit.  

This photo still cracks me up.    

more catching up to come….including Delaney’s birthday, her party and Easter.

1 week in to Spring, after 5 days of 80 degree temps.  The bonus for the kids was even a snow day.  Last night I told Marty that school had better NOT be cancelled because I had 100 things to do that needed a quiet kids free house.  Well, 10:00 last night, school cancelled.  We woke up this morning and now snow, which made me like the fact that school was cancelled even more.  But  100% chance it was coming.  Had I been a teacher (as I was 10 years ago) I would have been jumping for joy at the idea of a snow day.  Fast foward 10 years and well, today I wasn’t excited.   

But you have to admit, being snowed in for the weekend at the end of March carries a little bit of uniqueness to it, so we’ll just enjoy the fact that for the first time all winter we might just break out those new snowpants, the end of March.  This is the midwest, so we have come to expect abnormal as normal.

So it’s time to do some baking don’t you think and watch a little March Madness.  Have a great weekend.

One last whine I’m hoping:

It’s nearing the end of March and we’ve had the most gorgeous weather for February and March I can remember.  While I’m so thankful, it’s almost been harder to keep having winter weather sneak back in after we’ve had temperatures nearing 89 degrees.  But…looks like we need to take this winter a little more as tonight we’re in a winter storm warning going in to the weekend.   So, we’ll just put the thoughts of flower beds and spring planting and the tidbits of spring (like our pear tree which is in full bloom) aside while we are reminded that this is Kansas and anything goes for weather.   I have new snowpants for the girls that I got for the holidays and then decided to hold on to them until it snowed.  Well, we haven’t had ONE snow that was right for sledding.  So I suppose we’ll be getting that here at the end of March.  While we need the moisture, we don’t need the frost.  It will not be nice to our fruit trees.  I guess the wheat (which is all around us) is far enough along to be ok.

So just a little more whining from me about this weather.  I think surely soon, this will pass.  

I’ve gotten several emails from this one,  our  new emailer in our house.  One of the funniest was the day she came running upstairs to show me her report card, sounding like a herd of elephants running through the house.   Afterwards she was just BEAMING with pride in herself and went to her room.  I received this email from her only seconds later.

(btw, I’m trying HARD not to say much to her about her spelling.  We discovered earlier this year, she has a vision issue called Strabismus and she’s been in vision therapy for 9 months now.  It’s truly been a blessing for her in many ways, but her spelling is one of the casualties.  She’s going to have a lot of catching up to do as far as that goes since her eyes haven’t been seeing words correctly all her life.  So I bite my tongue and we just do as much reading as she loves to do.)  AND I want her emails to be fun for her.

and a few more she sent me while she was on spring break.  Turns out she has decided it’s easier to email me then come upstairs to my office.

Gave her a new book to read over spring break and this followed.

Both of the girls were hanging out in Delaney’s room and so I got an email then from McKinley.  Must have been a special day because they don’t often hang out in big sister’s bedroom like that.  

and then (she calls her sister, Kissy, it’s a combination of Kinley and Sissy) this one came later on that day.,