Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Remember the 80s? What was your favorite fashion trend? Too many to list, right? Well, what better way to bring it all back and celebrate an 8th birthday than with an

80s Party!

Ally, my sweet baby girl, just turned 8 years old last week on the 16th and at the last minute of an already hectic week (see previous post) we decided to invite some of her friends over for a birthday party. I have to admit, I work well under pressure. We were able to get the invites out, balloons ordered, decorations purchased, games made, craft project decided, house cleaned, house decorated, cupcakes baked, 80s outfit picked out, dressed, dolled up, and ready for the best bash of the year in only 1 day. That's got to be a record somewhere.

The girls all came in their best 80s outfits and they were so cute! I was reminiscing and wondering why in the world we thought we were so cool dressed the way we did. Some girls were wondering the same things saying, " Why am I wearing 2 pairs of socks?" "Why did you wear everything crooked? Crooked side ponies, crooked shirts, ..." "Why are you tying a knot in my shirt?" It was so funny to listen to all the comments! Here are a few of the outfits they showed up in.

Adorable, right? :)

We started out with a dance party and the dancing queen herself was feeling right at home. Well, she was at home, but she was trying to get everyone to come out and dance with her. We had some awesome dance music playing and some girls really let loose!

Notice Maddie snuck into the party. She wasn't supposed to but when she came downstairs with her blue eyeshadow on, we had to let her party, too. :)

Then we played "Pin the Side Pony on Ally". I have to give my sister credit for the totally awesome idea, but that I actually got the picture taken, edited, and the poster printed and at the party in time was all me. :)

Then we (me and my great friend Alicia - who so thoughtfully offered to stay and help) taught the girls how to make friendship pins. Remember those? I remember putting those on my shoelaces and loving to make them for my friends! So the girls loved making them and we had to show them where to put them on their laces. Maybe we started that trend again? :)

We also let the girls graffiti on the sliding glass door, writing notes and birthday messages to Ally.

Here's their finished product! They loved it, and Ally insisted we keep it up all weekend long.

Then of course there's the cake. Why make it myself when I have a roomful of capable little girls wanting to make it, too? So we had cupcakes, frosting, neon sprinkles, colored sugar, and let the girls have at it, decorating their own little cakes.

Birthday girl with all 8 candles on her little cupcake.

So there you have it. A perfect party for a great age. It turned out to be one of my favorite birthday parties for my kids, hence all the pictures in this post. I couldn't leave anything out! We had so much fun putting it together and we think every 8 year old girl should have their own 80s Party!

On a more serious note, turning 8 is a very special occasion in our church. It's the age where our children can choose to be baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Ally is so excited for her baptism next weekend. She has been looking forward to this day since her oldest brother was baptized 3 years ago. Finally, her time has come and she couldn't be happier. Ally is such a beautiful girl inside and out. She is a delight to our family, bringing us so much joy. She is thoughtful, sensitive, smart, soft-spoken, spunky, animated, sweet, and is growing up to be quite a remarkable young girl.

Happy 8th Birthday, Ally!