Sleepover

Listen, people. My kid turns EIGHT in two weeks and I'm having a little bit of a problem processing that. I knew it would go fast. I just didn't know it would go this fast. We're going to be out of town on his birthday so we decided to let him celebrate it early as a combination birthday party/end of the school year party. So, on Thursday, he had his very last day ever as a first grader and that night his three friends came to a sleepover.

When they got to the house we served up pizza, salad and potato chips. Then, once they'd consumed all that, they headed outside and engaged in some type of epic battle involving swords, light sabers, cross bows and shields.

Usually I hate that this state has fireworks blasting off at all hours of the night for thirty days straight because it makes my dog turn into a neurotic, shaking mess and sounds like we're under heavy military fire for a month. However, when you've got four elementary aged boys plus a brand new kindergartner, some cheap fireworks really up the "cool" factor for a birthday party.

After the fireworks came the cupcakes and presents. 80% of my child's summer wardrobe is surf related. So, chances are, every picture you see from this blessed season will either be him in a rash guard, him in a wetsuit, or him in a shirt that says SURF on it.

He got two new Nerf guns and this Flexi-Bible. He's been playing with his buddy's bible at church for months now and he asked me if I would get him his own. My friend told me the other day, "Web wants to get Garrett the Bible he has but would Garrett even want it..."

I interrupted her, "YES! He really wants it."

"You don't have enough Bibles already?" she asked.

And, I mean, we have plenty but, can one actually have too many Bibles?

You can tell from his face that he really likes it. He has also taken it in the car with him everywhere he's gone since Thursday, sleeps with it up on his bed, and declared, "I am definitely taking this one to church tomorrow."

After the presents there was more chips and all of them piled on the couch and bean bag chairs to watch Free Birds.

When the movie was over we got them ready for bed, carried the one who'd fallen asleep on the couch up the stairs, and told the other ones a dozen times to, "Turn off your voices now and go to sleep." Because, being a substitute, TURN OFF YOUR VOICES is now part of my every day vernacular.

On Friday morning it was cartoons and donuts and bananas and more epic battling in the yard.

All in all it was TOTALLY easy, TOTALLY inexpensive and my kid TOTALLY loved it.

I'm sure the parents loved me sending their precious little boys back to them hopped up on an incredible amount of sugar and sleep deprived.