the not-a-party party

Okay, so in our family we don't have friend b-day parties every year. The official rule is every other year, but even then, we try to make it somewhat enticing to opt for some kind of alternative. Awful, I know. We got to realizing this year, though, that Porter had not had an actual "party" since he was five. It was a monster pool party (because the two things go together so well), during our Houston days when late September was still crazy hot!

Needless to say, we decided the awesome (I will not go into just how awesome, since I did that in my previous post) 10-year-old needed a party! Turns out, I had a couple of really amazing epiphanies through planning and actually experiencing the big event;).

First... 10-year-old boy parties aren't really parties at all, they're just super cool and laid back hang out sessions! Yep. Fun times when boys see who can eat the most pizza, attempt to play wall ball in the upstairs game room, and finish off a package of football-shaped Oreos received 20 minutes earlier as a b-day gift.

Second ... Crafts are absolutely not required!! No, seriously.

Oh, how my outlook on a house full of boys has changed;)!!

Okay, so we actually did do just a tad more than hang out. Porter and his buddies (including James, of course) all headed over to the arcade with Dad for an hour or so while the two younger boys, Mae (plus friend), and I finished decorating a bit, got a few snacks ready, and waited for g-ma to arrive with pizza.

Shortly after double L showed up, the boys came piling back in the door ...

... and started chowing down.

We had yummy cake ...

James made sure Brooks could not spit on the cake (I mean, blow out Porter's candles) ...

And then Porter opened presents from all his great friends.

At this point the boys headed upstairs for some gaming and wall ball (as mentioned). Later that night after everyone had gone home, Porter (in his new Seahawks shirt) and Kevin played a few more games. Must have been pretty late because Dad's looking a little tired and, in case it's not obvious enough, Brooks is sawing some serious logs on the arm of the sofa.
Oh, yeah. He's out.

So much fun! My only regret is that in attempting to only invite as many kids as could fit in our beast of a car, I think we overlooked a boy or two who I really wished we would have invited! Ahh well, there's always next time.

Love ya, Porter. Double digits? Really??