LaRue Weekend Edition: 13-year-old Birthday Party

Wow am I tired.  Last evening we hosted a birthday party for G and her friends, which included 11 girls and 1 poor guy.  (The other guy invited couldn't make it.)  I did tell the guy, J, that he was a brave soul for being there with all those women.  He shrugged and said, "I like women, so it works for me." 

G wanted a carnival theme (not Carnivale with the masks and Venetian courtesans - not till she's 16, anyway) and thus I convinced my Grandmother, my Mother, my sister's significant other, and S to participate in running games:  junk food walk, toss the ball in the pond and hit the lily pad, knock over the cans, dunk the basketball, and the water gun challenge. (I vetoed renting a dunking booth.) 

After a brief exchange with the party goers that involved me instructing them as follows:  "Do NOT squirt the 10-year-old with water.  Do NOT toss the 10-year-old in the pool." and them responding with "OH MAN!"  they were very nice to S and she had a blast.  Guy J spent some time with her and she thought he was hysterical.  She also gave out tons of tickets for prizes for whatever she felt like and at one point I heard someone say, "G!  Your sister is AWESOME!" 

The Chick was kind enough to come and play Fortune Teller and read the Tarot cards.  She was hysterical.  Some of the questions asked by the kids were very sweet.  Some very telling for their age, and some rather depressing.  Examples of questions asked by actual 13-year-olds:

1.  Will I be pretty when I grow up?

2.  Will I still be friends with these people when I grow up?

3.  What will my favorite color be when I turn 18?  (Black)

4.  What will my job be?

5.  Will I be famous?

The Chick told me she tried to dole out little life lessons along with the cards. And she took over the auctioning of prizes when the time came, as I am not nearly loud enough for 12 13-year-olds.  It helped that we had a microphone.   

Turns out that about 80% of the kids were either my height, or taller.  Which was very disconcerting.  One girl mimicked me at one point and I told El Jefe about it.  He asked me if I had said anything to her.  My comment?  "Oh yeah, I was going to look UP at this 5'9 child and wag my finger at her."  Instead I simply used my Mom Voice and she sat down quietly.  The Mom Voice, not unlike The Drill Sergeant Voice.  It should be patented.

We had hot dogs and chips, popcorn, candy, and El Jefe bought a cotton candy machine and went to town with it.  G said that people kept telling her it was one of the best parties they had ever been to.  Which satisfies my little interior perfectionist.  Especially since in my senior year of high school my buddy S and I were known for throwing parties.  We had a Murder Mystery party, 50s and 60s party, volleyball parties, water parties, Hawaiian party, etc.

Ah youth.  That would be me in the large picture hat.

The best part is that the parents were PROMPT.  By 10:10 all but 1 kid were gone.  And I was able to sit down, put my feet up, and have peace and quiet at my house.  It was lovely.  The silence, that is. 

Which is going to last until approximately July, when we have S's 11th Birthday party.  Lord only knows what she wants her theme to be.  It could involve Space Travel or Firearms.  Who knows.  But this I know - 13-year-olds?  Are MUCH louder than 11-year-olds.  I don't know why.  It must be the hormones.  Or maybe the hair gel seeps into their brains...

Comments

[The Cheap Chick]

One thing you forgot - not only are 13-year-olds LOUDER THAN A PLANE TAKING OFF, but they are so pretty.

Pretty in that way that lets them paint their faces in "EMO" (whatever that is, they all looked like Brandon Lee from The Crow to me), wear a mish-mash of clothes, have their hair styled by a blind scarecrow, and yet... still be just lovely.

P.S. Madame Cheap Chick had a blast. Although her head is quite sore today.