Lorelai's PJ Party

My little baby girl Lorelai is six years old now! Also, I've been a mother for 6 years already. How time flies.

Our big gift to Lorelai this year was a new bicycle...

I had searched for a bike at the last community yard sale, but couldn't find a new one. However, one family had an old bike frame that they gave us for free! A few trips to the store later, we had a set of tires, a kickstand, and a new seat & handlebars.

As you can see, the bike is quite sturdy, but the parts don't match each other all that well. We have christened it "Franken-Bike," due to its mongrel nature. Lorelai loves it anyway!
On the night of Aug. 12th, we had a small family affair with cake, ice cream, and presents. Lorelai got several presents she really enjoyed, including this lovely lightsaber...

...and a dinosaur encyclopedia! With just this one book, Grandma & Grandma Barrett have transformed Lorelai's career ambitions. Now, instead of a screenwriter, she wants to be a paleontologist!!

The next day, it was party time! Lorelai had been bugging me since January--literally--for a "pajama movie party." So finally, this summer, I thought, "Why not? She hasn't had a party since she was three, and she's been remarkably consistent in her request." So I searched online for a few ideas, and got everything ready.

Everyone showed up in their pajamas and brought their sleeping bags too. We piled everyone into the living room and put on a movie, while a friend's mother made balloon animals for everyone.

Throughout the movie, we had craft time; I bought fabric markers & paint, as well as a few large decorative stamps. Then all the kids (including Lorelai) were able to decorate their own pillowcases to take home!

Ehh, it's not fine art...but they had lots of fun doing it! We also had a large brunch for everyone...

...complete with waffles, eggs, sausages, juice...the whole works!! It was a tasty (and messy) affair.
And of course, no birthday party (at least around here) is complete without a pinata...

The kids all had a great time beating it into submission, then scrambling for the candy afterwards:

As the party wound to a close, it was time to open presents:

including this game of Twister, which the girls are all thrilled to own!!

Lorelai also got lots of art supplies, some jewelry kits, and a glow-in-the-dark art pack (complete with laser pen!). After the party was done, we crashed pretty hard; I don't think any of us left the house for the remainder of that day. I had lots of fun planning Lorelai's party, but I am also glad I don't have to do another birthday party again for a while...it takes a lot out of you! I am really glad, though, that my eldest child (along with the rest of us) had such a great time.