Preparations

Tomorrow's the big day. Bridgette's sleepover birthday party. She hangs around a really nice group of girls, and she's inviting them over for the sleepover. It sure beats the parties she used to have as a little girl...when we'd invite all the girls in the class, so we wouldn't offend any of them. Now, it's just her "gang." (I'm so "uncool" when I call them that...) They're so funny. They have their own language - it's called "Garnet." (They're also brains, so it's really a WHOLE language...) They also have nicknames. Maddy is newest to the group - it used to be just Bridgette, Jillian and Abby...they never called each other that, though - they were Bridgie-la, Abby-la and Jilli-wa. Maddy didn't get a la/wa name when she came along. Maddy came up with her own nick names for everyone. I forget what they all are, now. It's so funny, though - thirteen is fun, when you're in a group of nice girls who are accepting and sweet. (I wouldn't know, my experiences weren't that way - but I'm seeing it through Bridgie-la's eyes, and it's wonderful!)
Bridgette's little girl parties were always very hands-on for me. There was the year she had a "Tea Party" Birthday. I bought formals at Goodwill, laundered them and cut off the skirts. I had my mom help me sew elastic in them all (a big deal for me - not so much for her) and paired them up with thrift sale purses and big, gaudy jewelry. Each girl arrived and had a big box wrapped to the hilt to open. In it they found these dress up clothes. They put them on over their clothes and we began with the tea party! I took pictures and wrote an article and it got published in a magazine! (Did it help that I was field editor at the time? Could be...)
Another year, she had an animal party, and we painted fingernails in tiger stripes and leopard spots and had opaque jell-o eggs with (sterilized) plastic animals inside.
Another year, we had a doggie party, and ate puppy chow (the treat made from Chex Mix, chocolate and powder sugar) from brand new, washed dog dishes, made "collars" from chunky beads and face painted ourselves and wore foam "ears" attached to plastic head bands.
Alas, things have changed, now that she's thirteen. Today, after school we are going to Michael's craft store (Mom has to have SOME involvement, for Pete's sake!) to pick out hats or totes or something to fabric paint. I suggested t-shirts, but my sweet little girl is afraid her friends will wear them to school and her other friends will feel bad that they weren't invited to her birthday party. Isn't that sweet? I love her heart! So, we're picking out some craft for the group to do, and a cake for mom to make. They'll have pizza and probably play the Wii (Shelly has a cool dancing game I'm going to ask to borrow...so if you're reading this Shelly, prepare to be asked!), and giggle and talk way too long into the night (I've already coached Mike to take Aaron and disappear for as long as he can - for his own sake)! I may also pick up some beauty treatments - some face masks or something...don't you think girlies that age would love that?
Oh - and Bridgette wants to hang lots of balloons. (For some reason I HATE balloons. She used to love to keep them around when she was little until they were just little deflated things on a string - basically garbage stuffed in her toybox. She's my little packrat and I am a tosser. So, we ended up with a "3 day limit" on balloons. Balloons at birthdays is a big thing for her...even now at 13. I think when she grows up and goes to college, the first thing she will do when I leave is buy a package of balloons!)
So, today I have a SAMmy's Small Group Leader meeting at my house - and then I am preparing for "The Big Day" tomorrow...and calling the doctor because Mike really thinks I should tell the doctor about this cyst thing I have going on. Ugh. So, I will. But I don't want to. After Mike left for work, Bridgette said "Grandpa (meaning my dad) never liked going to the doctor either." I just looked at her. ?!?! And she said, "I'm just saying."
I'm going to focus on the fun of planning Bridgette's party, though. It's fun seeing her with her friends. It helps that her friends like me! I love it when they tell me what's going on their teenie-bopper world. I'm so proud of who my daughter is becoming. Can you tell?