Also

This weekend, in addition to that concert (that went pretty well, by the by), I went to a car show.
I have lots of pictures, but I also have English homework and a math project to get done.
Here's a teaser:

Ahem.

I am in a concert tomorrow.
I know that sounds fancy.
I got a new dress and new shoes and even earrings.
But I don't feel fancy.
It feels like someone ought to come around, tap me on the shoulder and tell me that I don't belong up there.
I've worked hard on my piece, but it wasn't enough. It isn't perfect.
It's a duet and it will be spectacular and showstopping - If I don't mess it up.
And that's not said to elicit tongue clucking and "You'll-be-fine"s.
Messing it up is a distinct possibility.

I'm not nervous like I was a couple weeks ago for my recital performance in class. It's a different sort of thing. It isn't stage fright, it's just that I feel unprepared and exhausted.

I need some sleep tonight. I'm actually going to take some pain medication (which I never do) to help out with my car accident injuries (bleah) so I can sleep well tonight and I'm hoping that the sleep will erase some of this blucky feeling.

I'll let you all know how it goes, to be sure.

Daily Bliss: hanging around a car show with my dad

All Is Not Lost

I just wanted you all to know that I made a skirt today.
I know I was going to give up sewing, etc., etc.
But.
It's just a tiny little skirt, right?
My math homework can wait, right?
Maybe there can be time in my life for both learning and making.

The Party

First of all, here's the case of bubble gum flavor oil:

I was surprised at how much of it I ended up using - almost half! We had that many girls come to our house.
Check out the clever invitations Emma designed! I was planning to buy papers and make something cute, but she came out of her room one day with a prototype for this and I decided it was high time I started letting her help me out in the party department.


It opens up to say "OMG!" So, I wrote on them "OMG! Emma's turning 10!"


I had a couple of party sponsors this time around, without whom the party would. not. have happened. I'm not even kidding. Even if I hadn't gone to bed at all, my tasks would have been unfinished. Denise is pictured here with some of the 30 kabillion balloons we blew up and filled with bubble gum. Denise rolled cake into little balls for cake pops. Denise laughed at my bad jokes. Denise was awesome.

Also, my sister (in law) Mindy showed up and stayed late. Here she is working a little bit of cake pop magic.



I would like to say that I shall never again attempt cake pops. There was a cake pop on the floor at one point, splatted into oblivion. At that point, it was nearly midnight. I had only gotten a couple hours' sleep the night before, due to an unfortunate English Paper Event. I would have thrown all the cake pop balls across the room and splatted them against the dark windows, cried a few bitter tears and gone to bed at that point. But Mindy had a stroke of genius and managed to piece together just enough cake pops for all the girls to have one.

I love messing around with all my glassware to see just how I want the table to look.


Party food:






We know a brilliant young artist who has a face painting business and we were so excited that she could make it for Emma's party. She was such a big hit! She had a line during the entire party and wound up painting nearly all the faces in just an hour and a half!


The story of rest of the party is probably best told by the photos I took (I was only able to actually take photos because I had such wonderful family and friends that helped us manage this party. Again, I am unendingly grateful to them).










A good time was had by all, or at least most. Best of all, my baby is ten years old and had a party to be proud of. This is probably the last big birthday party we will throw, so we really wanted it to be great. I have loved this part of being a mommy, but I'm pretty much just a mom now. Big kids have different needs and I am getting too old to stay up all night making stupid cake pops!
The biggest celebration, of course, was that Emma and I have both been alive for 10 extra years. I say it every year, but in case you haven't known me for long - Emma came into the world in fittingly dramatic fashion, nearly taking both of us out in the process. So, every year, I am reminded that I am so grateful to still be here and have the blessing of such an amazing little person to share life with. She has changed me and inspired me since coming along and I can't wait to see what this next year has in store for her.

10

Party pictures coming soon.
When I manage to recover.

I'm supposed to be writing an English paper...

Sometimes I like to pretend my life is a musical.
I twirl around the empty house and sing out the rhetorical questions that define the lives of middle-aged women everywhere like, "Why, oh why can't I find my fat jeans today?"

And then, if I'm feeling especially peppy, I will run to stage left (the other side of the room) and pretend I'm the voice of reason, singing in accusatory response, "It's because you wore them yesterday, you fool!"

The lights dim, leaving a spotlight on my tragic persona as I lament, "Perhaps I shouldn't have eaten chocolate cake for breakfast. Perhaps then - then I could wear my skinny jeans with that cute ruffly top today."

And...
scene.

Bubble-licious

I am knee-deep in preparations for Emma's birthday party today. Mind you, I have an English paper due in two days and a math quiz on the agenda for tomorrow, but this birthday party is taking over my brain. I guess you can only deny your inner party planner for so long before it stages a coup.
We are having a "Dubble Bubble" party to celebrate the double digits! It seems like a fun thing, right? Well, it's so fun that it's turned into the social event for the entire female population of the fourth grade. I had thought there might be ten girls, at most. In fact, it will be closer to twenty. Sigh.
Things have been going swimmingly, though. I have planned a bubble-blowing contest and a dart-throwing, pop-the-balloon-and-keep-the-gum-from-inside-of-it game. We will make headbands with fuzzy pompoms glued to them and take pictures of all the girls together against a colorful backdrop. I have even hired the daughter of some friends to come and paint faces.
For food? Well, remember when we made all that candied popcorn? The store I bought the flavoring from also carried a bubble gum flavor oil, so I got to work planning all sorts of food around that. Only, when I went to buy it today, they were sold out. Much Googling and panicking happened on that day.
Unfortunately, bubble gum flavoring is not easy to locate. I ended up having to order some from a website with expedited shipping ($$!!) and the only option was to order a case of 24 jars of bubble gum flavor oil!
So.
I am making bubble gum candied popcorn and probably a bubble gum drink of some kind. But that will only use about two of those 24.
Mercy.
My budget-friendly, small-ish party for a few girls has suddenly become bubble-gum-palooza. These things seem to happen to me all the time.