Pancakes and Pajamas

With Samantha's 12th birthday on the horizon, I started to think of ideas of how she could celebrate with friends ... while still in the middle of a global pandemic.  Our "bubble" (that has now become a daily phrase this year -- along with things like "social distancing," "wearing a mask," "maintaining 6 feet of distance," etc.) is relatively small and we would only be able to invite a couple of friends that we consider to be in the same "bubble."

I reached out to three mothers ahead of time to see if they were "ok" with letting their girls come over to celebrate with us.  The girls were all in school together -- albeit, wearing masks and social distancing -- and I was pretty sure that we were comfortable from both sides letting them spend some much-needed and much-missed time together.  We planned the party with a "pancakes and pajamas" theme and I promised Samantha that I would keep it 'toned down' and casual.  (She did ask me to plan at least one craft and allowed me to decorate a small poster for behind the cake table).

There were six girls in total -- three of Samantha's closest friends, the neighbor next door, Samantha and Sophia.  It was really the perfect group size.

Ahead of time, I picked out pajamas for each of the girls and had them set out on the table when they arrived.  They fit perfectly (!!!!) and one of the girls was astounded to find out that they "got to keep them!"  Ha!  

They made the perfect party favor and also made for a nice group picture of everyone that Samantha now has framed in her bedroom to forever commemorate this special event.

I opted for a light pink and gold theme; I thought that the gold was so classy for a 12-year old and I was able to use some decorations from parties in the past.  These balloons were a special find and they lasted for weeks afterwards before we finally (carefully) popped them and let the confetti out.

Six girls fit perfectly at the table ...

And what party of mine would be complete without flowers!  I cannot believe that this tiny peanut is 12 years old already!  I have such vivid memories, all these years later, of bringing her home from the hospital weighing less than 6 lbs with a tiny head of dark fuzz cuddled up next to me.

We ordered pizza and breadsticks and the girls stuffed themselves silly and laughed the whole time. 

 

After dinner, we headed into the living room so that Sam could open her birthday presents.  Her friends know her SO WELL and she smiled and gushed over every single item.

Then, it was time for cake!  Over the years, decorating cakes has become a hobby for me.  I use it as a creative outlet for myself and love the whole process from start to finish.  I've been asked before if I would consider doing it for more than just a hobby but right now I prefer to just do it for family and friends.  

For her cake, I used white cake and buttercream frosting.  I stacked the layers and added a basecoat of frosting.  Once that was set, I set to work making it look like a stack of pancakes.  Most of the girls were convinced that I actually just used pancakes to make it!  I made a pat of butter out of marshmallow fondant, a real strawberry and real blueberries and a dollop of frosting for whip cream.  Oh!  And the "maple syrup" was dark corn syrup drizzled over the top.

The craft that we chose was homemade soap-making.  I bought a few molds, some glycerin, some colors/dyes and some scents.  The girls had the best time choosing their colors and scents and it did not take very long for the soaps to set up.  The girls were able to put them in bags to take home later within an hour after pouring.

That night, I fixed a few snacks and the girls chose a movie to watch in the basement.  I didn't hear a single peep out of them after 11 pm ...

The next morning (Opening Day for hunters!), Steve headed out into the woods to hunt and I set to work preparing the big breakfast.  

Obviously pancakes were on the menu, but I also served a parfait bar, eggs, chocolate chip muffins and lots of bacon.  I even fixed virgin mimosas.  And do you know what makes mimosas even better?  Drinking them out of gold-plated bottles with gold straws!

Happy birthday to my favorite 12-year old girl!