party prep

I love the fact that my girls have summer birthdays because it feels like there are a million ways to host them outside our house, which is the way I really like to host a party. (I may change my tune once we do the addition and the backyard work, but for now house parties just stress me out.) The downside to summer parties is the date planning – the summers get so busy, people go on vacation, and there are lots of local festivals and events that fill up those weekends as well. This year we are traveling quite a bit in July, and this year I’m also taking a lot of tests in a very short amount of time, so planning giant weekend events at our house isn’t going to work. We’re spending a lot of time with all of our extended family anyway this month, so it seemed silly to have them all head to our house in the middle of those visits.

But I can’t not throw a party of some sort, right? It’s just got to be simple, and fun. I can do that.I got out of test number two yesterday (don’t ask, ugh) at around 7pm, and my brain was so frazzled I wasn’t sure I should really even be driving. I had a couple of quick errands to run at places out near the testing center, and one of those places was Artmart. I had twenty-two minutes before closing to choose paper to match the loose idea floating in my head. If I could take a timed exam on invitation ideas and execution, I’d nail it.

Here’s what I got – and no, it’s not a Fourth of July themed party, although it’s just around the corner from the holiday. (And come to think of it, Independence Day sounds like a general theme around here for the little one…)

Stay tuned for the rest of the party planning ideas this week. I may not be able to make fifty flavors of ice cream this year, but I can do invitations and a birthday hat in my sleep. And sleep sounds like a wonderful idea.