Five years ago, Chris and I made the decision that we were going to pretty much discontinue the large birthday parties we had been throwing for the kids. There were several reasons behind this decision, and everyone in our house was good with it. However, when we built our house, I told myself that I wanted to use our space (both indoor and out) to host people a few times a year. I have a pretty deep-seated desire to share our home with others, so Chris and I made the decision to start hosting a back-to-school party for our friends and loved ones. This gathering was SO MUCH FUN and a great success in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Then, 2020 hit. That was just a weird year, and just a few weeks before what would have been our back-to-school bash, we decided to homeschool all the kids. That decision was last-minute - and although it turned out wonderful - I spent many hours thinking, researching, and praying over how I was going to orchestrate everything and make it out alive :-). For this reason, we decided to forego having a back-to-school bash so I could focus on a strong start to our homeschool.
Last summer (2021), we had every intention of having our back-to-school bash, then our entire summer was derailed when I broke my ankle. I was still unable to put any weight on my foot and using a knee scooter to get around during the time that we would have hosted the gathering, so we once again decided to not do it.
THIS YEAR, however, the kids pretty much weren't going to take no for an answer when they asked if we could have our back-to-school bash again. And that was okay with us, as Chris and I were ready to get it started again, too!
Leading up to the party, we had a list of projects and games we wanted to make. Bren is always up for helping with a project, and he was excited to work in the garage with his dad! He also worked in the shop with his Grampy helping build a cornhole set for the party.
He certainly wasn't the only one excited to prepare our house and yard. The twins only remember bits and pieces about our back-to-school bashes of the past, so they wanted their hands in every part of the planning and preparation. I loved how they cleaned and set up the playhouse for their friends :-).
Our event was the evening of Friday, August 12. As usual, we had a hearty guest list, but little knowledge of who would actually be able to make it. Thankfully, we had a great turnout.
The kids wanted to be sure to invite our neighbor, Mrs. Mooney, whom they just love. They walked over to her house and walked back to our house with her, then when she was ready to go home Brianna walked her back to her house. She seemed to have a good time and mostly visited with my mom.
We had a make-your-own trail mix bar like we have in years past, and it was a huge hit with the kiddos.
Brooke, Caroline, Lia, and Brecklyn
Kyrie, Gavon, Anna, and Brianna
Anna and Shana
Brianna and her sidekick, Lia
One new thing we did this year was set up a quad-ball net. This was the star of the evening! At any given time, there was a line of kids waiting to play. This will probably be a staple at our parties from now on.
Bren, Brayden, Steven, Zack, Allen, Neo, and Zac
Brayden, Zack, Allen, Neo, Zac, Kyle, and Ashlyn
Caroline and Samantha
The fire is always a popular spot, as well!
Zac, Kyle, Brooke, Mark, and Brecklyn
Allen, Bren, and Zack
Chloe and Ashlyn (Grampy in the background)
Chelle and Tia
Blake, Mark, Zac, Allen, Grampy, Samuel, and Jordan
Kristin, G-Jo, and Lisa (with Russ, Landon, Jesse, and Angie in the background)
Blake and Jordan
Brecklyn, Brooke, and Sadie
Angie and Chelle
More quad-ball pics!
Renee, Jen, and Charles
Rebekah and Kristin
We put out paint pens and rocks to paint as a craft. Most of the girls enjoyed it, although Brooke decided to paint Ms. Anna's nails instead of the rocks, and Anna in turn painted Brooke and Brecklyn's hair :-).
Brooke's nail job
Brecklyn's hair
Blake, Gavon, Kyrie, Hayden, Brianna, and Lia
Allen, Avery, Bri, and Kyrie
Blake and Bren
We set up an obstacle course like in years past, but it was far less popular this year than it had been. The younger kids enjoyed it, for sure, but most of our kiddos were 10 and older this time. In fact, for the first time, we had quite a few teenagers at the party, and that changed the dynamic of things quite a bit. Activities that had been a huge hit in the past (like glow sticks, the playset, and the playhouse) gave way to quad-ball and the fire. It was interesting to see the shift since a few years have gone by since we'd hosted this gathering. It was still great - and the kiddos all still had a blast - but it made my momma heart a little sad to see how much everyone had grown up since our last back-to-school bash.
Brooke on the obstacle course
Brecklyn on the obstacle course
MORE quad-ball, lol!
Chelle and Jen
Bren and Zack
Brecklyn, Brooke, and Lia
Zac, Bren, and Neo (sweaty and sticky . . . just as they should be after a fun summer night!)
It was great to have some families over who have been to each one of the back-to-school bashes. It was also great to have some families over who are "newer" to our life and had never been before. For my record, those in attendance were: Jason, Shana, Zack, Jordan, Russ, Lisa, Chloe, Renee, Britt, Kyrie, Mark, Anna, Gavon, Blake, Mrs. Mooney, Grampy, G-Jo, Paul, Rebekah, Hayden, Avery, Charles, Jen, Allen, Samantha, Landon, Kristin, Kyle, Steven, Samuel, Brayden, Ashlyn, Ross, Tia, Sadie, Caroline, Jesse, Angie, Neo, Zac, Lia, and our crew.
It was such a fun evening, and I'm so thankful that we were able to make it happen again. Of course, the kids are already talking about next year :-).
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