Scenes from a slumber party

Last weekend we had Ella's birthday party. She had requested a camp out for her celebration, so at the last minute, we invited four of her friends and hoped for the best.

It turned out to be one of our best parties yet. We tend to go low tech and low stress for parties and end up having the most fun.

Some snippets from the night:

• Third grade girls are exceedingly noisy. The five girls made more noise while putting together their own pizzas than a whole classroom of preschoolers. They giggled at EVERYTHING and talked so fast I didn't understand most of what was said.
• Third grade boys, even if they don't understand why, crave attention from girls. L, who lives next door, was allowed to join some of the festivities but not sleep over. His participation consisted mostly of being chased around by the girls. I thought he'd get tired of being tackled and of having the girls try to pull down his pants, but just kept coming back for more. B watched it all, shaking his head. "Poor kid," he said. "He has no idea why he wants the girls to pay attention to him."
• One should never underestimate the sheer will power and determination of five girls to stay awake as long as possible. All five girls were awake until at least 2:30, and two claimed to stay awake until 4:30.
• Five girls can get along without fighting. I expected a certain amount of sqabbling and at least one incident of hurt feelings and tears, but there were no problems at all.
• You don't need expensive favors or elaborate party activities to have a good time. The girls spent most of their time running around and singing songs, and the tent and camp fire provided tons of entertainment. B and I didn't really have to do anything to keep them busy.
• Sitting by the campfire in the morning is a great way to start the day - even if it's in your own backyard.

Another successful event!