One final party

After planning birthday parties for my mother, Pete, and Elegant in the past six weeks, not to mention a work-related dinner that I had only four months to pull together, I am now in the home stretch.  All that remains is Graceful’s party this weekend.

Since Graceful is going to be 10, naturally, she chose to have a sleepover.  And naturally she couldn’t decide which of her friends to invite, so they ALL were invited.  Yep, I’ll have a dozen elementary age girls running around my house on Saturday evening.  Don’t you want to be me?

Graceful wants a themed party.  But of course.  And I am honoring her wishes, because this is probably one of the last great kid’s parties she’ll let me throw for her.  Who knows, by next year she might be too cool for that sort of thing.

I mentioned here this summer that Graceful wants a Harry Potter sleepover and, not long after that, Stephanie at Bad Mom kindly emailed me her notes from a similar party she threw for one of her kids.

So we started off with the invitations, which were letters to each girl, informing her of her acceptance to Hogwarts Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  I found parchment to print the letters on and, since we don’t have actual Owl Post here, we put an owl sticker on each envelope before mailing it.

When the girls arrive on Saturday at 5:30, I’m going to greet them on the porch dressed as Professor McGonagall.

Yes, I think I can manage the scowl perfectly.

The first thing we’re going to do is take the girls down to my office in the basement, where they will visit Gringotts Bank to get some galleons (chocolate coins covered in gold foil).

Then, we’re going back upstairs to visit Diagon Alley.  Yesterday, Graceful and I made signs for each shop the girls will be visiting.

Ollivander’s Wand Shop (“Makers of fine wands since 382 B.C.”) will be set up in the study.  We printed out information on the different types of wand woods and their magical cores to help each girl make the best selection possible.  Graceful went out to the yard and found a couple dozen sticks of the right lengths, so the first-year Hogwarts students will have plenty of wand options.

Across the hall in the living room, the girls will visit Flourish & Botts to get their quills, parchment paper, telescopes for Astronomy, and crystal balls (large marbles) for Divination.  They need to go to the Apothecary for their cauldrons for Potions and toads for Care of Magical Creatures.  And then finally, it’s on to Honeyduke’s Sweet Shop, where the girls will stock up on far too much candy.

Can I just say how much I love Oriental Trading?  Ten minutes of shopping yielded some gems, including realistic bug candy, cauldrons, telescopes, and toads.

Dinner will be in the Great Hall.  I found some Hogwarts house banners on Etsy and Pete and I are discussing how to simulate candles hanging from the ceiling.  (Our discussions have largely been fruitless.)  The girls are going to eat pizza and drink pumpkin juice (Orangina) and butter beer (creme soda).  Dessert will be Cauldron Cakes (cupcakes).

After dinner, the girls will be watching the first Harry Potter movie in Gryffindor Tower.  (Actually, our basement rec room).  To get in, each girl will have to get past the portrait of the Fat Lady by saying the correct password.

No, we are not doing a Sorting Hat ceremony, as each girl is sorting into Gryffindor, although I suppose I could threaten to sort them into Slytherin if they misbehave.

And that’s pretty much where I have run out of ideas.  On the one hand, I know it all seems over the top, but I think the girls will enjoy themselves.  On the other hand, it is a little silly and I can think of one or two girls who might be a bit scornful.  All that really matters is that Graceful have a good time.