Fun was had by all

at the boys' birthday bash. And now we have a five year old and a one year old! We started getting ready really early in the day since there was sooo much to do. Mommy straightened Elizabeth's hair and put a lil makeup on her. Then she threw on her Dorothy dress. I scored with this dress on Ebay. Because I HATE paying full price for anything and I LOVE to help out another mom who loves to sew, I immediately bought it. And paid much less for it than I would have in any store might I add! It was a homeade dress sewn by another mom; what a timesaver for me it was! Elizabeth wanted it a lil bit 'fancier' so we added on a lace trim at the bottom of the dress. Ewok makes the perfect Toto, doesn't he?

 Next up, Emily. She wanted to be a gypsy, but I was determined not to spend the amount that they were asking for on gypsy costumes. See her top? I found a white sheet in the back of the linen closet that hasn't seen the light of day for the last several years. With a few snips and stitches, it became her pheasant top. I made the skirt and the sash and we accessorized her with gold costume jewelry. To see the smile on her face when she threw on her costume made it worth all the time and effort that was put into it.

Not sure how Yoda and a gypsy relate to each other in real life, but it sure makes for a cute pic.

 Yoda wasn't too sure of his costume and kept turning his back on the camera. Mommys begging and pleading to "turn around and smile, Ben" seemed to make him want to keep his back on the camera even more!

 Finally, he turned around for a quick snap.

 Here are my kids and the neighborhood kids posing for a few more snapshots.

 Dad's decor...

 When Ariel, the Little Mermaid, was dressed and ready for her debut, she came out to take a few pics with Dorothy.

 And some with mommy, errrr... I mean Princess Leia and Yoda.

 Leia and her lil Yoda man.

 The Star Wars crew. That's Matthew as Darth Vader. And I'm not sure who Daddy is here because I've never seen the whole movie from start to finish, don't tell anyone I admitted that, haha. Daddy claims he's a character from in the movie, so I just took it for what it was and believed him.

Again, not sure how Little Mermaid relates to Star Wars characters, but in my perfect world they do and they are all walking around together and get along just fine.

 Meggie's costume is a long bodysuit with a handmade seashell top glued with No Sew Fabric Glue. The skirt was soooo easy to make. I think this was the funnest and easiest costume I've ever made!

 And it made her very, very happy too.

 Mommy even put a lil mascara on her eyelashes!

Here's the back. It cracked me up the way she held it up like a 'real' princess.

 More neighborhood kids. I can't seem to escape them. Children! Children! Children Everywhere! I locked them outside so we could finish getting things ready for the party inside!

 Brianna threw on a thrift store find, I was so excited when we spotted this renaissance maiden dress because I've ALWAYS wanted to go to a renaissance fair. So, when we finally do go to one someday, one of us will throw this on. After snapping her pic, it occurred to me that each of the costumes we donned that evening could classify as being part of different movies. This was not intentionally done but I was excited when I realized this. Soooo... Daddy and Mommy and Matthew and Ben were from Star Wars. Elizabeth and Ewok from The Wizard of Oz. Megan from The Little Mermaid. Brianna and Emily looked like they came off the set of the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Ben's favorite thing to do lately is to raise his hands when asked a question. The question has to be said in a certain tone and voice inflection. It's the cutest thing and I'll have to post a video of it later. But, here's whats going on in this pic. Emily was ticked off for some reason or other but Mommy was determined to get a picture of this lil group. I threatened her to smile "or else"!!!! Then I asked Ben, "who thinks Emily needs to go to her rooooom?"

 He raises his hands and smiled, which ticked Emily off even more!!!! Hahaha. What a mean mommy, huh!

 The party eventually got started and our guests started arriving. Elvis, or rather his ghost, was a one of the best costumes there! This was another handmade costume by another homemaker mommy. I was messing with the settings on the camera when I took this pic but I decided not to delete it because Elvis' ghost is even cooler and creepier than just Elvis, right? Haha.

This is our neighbor Dylan, dressed up as Indiana Jones. We call him Dilly Doo.

 Brianna, Iliana, and Kirby.

 Another neighbor, Vanessa. She ended up being my lil photographer for the rest of the night! Loved it!

 Waiting for the bug show.

Princess Leia's mom.

 Kenzi and Nana.

 Here's the cake. I sooo badly wanted to cut Ben a piece, stick it in front of him, and let him go to town. But.... he was soooo OVER IT. He wanted nothing but his blankie, bear, and BED! So, it didn't happen but hopefully next year it will.

 Some more decor before we go...

 Lastly, one of the hottest snacks we made. Boo Cups! Soooo easy to make and the kids loved them!