Liesl's birthday party

We hosted Liesl's birthday party on Saturday - a few weeks late because of various soccer and other commitments - with three of her best friends coming over to play. Diya, Nora, and Campbell arrived at 2 and we piled into our rented minivan (the party bus!) to head over to the Southwest Community Center Pool.

The kids played Marco Polo and freeze tag, we tossed rings for them to dive and find, they went down the slide and off the rope swing, they piled on top of the floaties and up-ended each other off and under, they pretended to be mermaids. Sebastian joined in the games too and it was fun to see Nora treating him like a big brother (teasing him relentlessly, mostly). Swimming pools are SO MUCH MORE FUN w friends.

We came home and the girls piled into the showers, two in ours and two in Liesl's, and came out all clean and in pajamas.

Our first game was pass-the-parcel, a happy variation of musical chairs where four little toys are wrapped in a big present, and the girls pass it like hot-potato while the music plays, and then when the music stops, the girl who is holding it unwraps one present, and then they continue until everyone has a toy.

And then we had dinner - mac and cheese and chicken, peas and broccoli, carrots and cucumbers, apples and oranges.

After dinner we had a pinata stuffed with candy and the girls took turns swinging at it. We started with a cardboard stick but then when that broke, got a old wooden baseball bat.

Next up: one of Steve's famous scavenger hunts - this one puppy-themed. The girls were a team helping out the detective pups -- each clue was taped to a stuffed dog. (We have a lot of puppy friends in the house, apparently!)

And then on to presents! Always a big hit.

I made a confetti cake for the party - a white cake with sprinkles baked in the cake and then scattered on the frosting. It was perfect for the occasion.

The girls climbed into sleeping bags and snuggled in to tell stories - the swimming had clearly had its intended effect, and some of them were getting sleepy by 8:30. There was the usual whispering, but Steve went up and worked his magic (shhhhhh.... shhhhhh) and they all were asleep by 9:30 or so, super early by sleepover standards.

In the morning we set out mini canvases, acrylic paint, and brushes for an art project - a good distraction while we made breakfast.

And then we had challah French toast and berries (with sprinkles!) and the girls went home. Happiest of birthdays to Liesl.