Thanksgivingaway

I'm feeling thankful about so many things right now -- great friends, a wonderful family and an incredible support system (that's you guys!) -- that I felt it was time to give something back! My sample sewers have donated some amazing items sewn with Andalucia and I have thrown in a few goodies of my own. Check out this sweet gift package, which I am calling "Mommy & Me," because I think it would be great for a baby shower or a girl's 1st birthday or as a sweet Christmas gift, but there are still some things in it that any mommy would enjoy...

andalucia-giveaway

Clockwise from top left: Fabric Jingle Ball by thepolkadotototspot, Patchwork Boo-Blankie by Bug-A-Boo Baby, Luxe Bib by Bug-A-Boo Baby, Elephant stuffie by gocksfrocks, Assorted ModGreetings cards and bookmarks, Four 1-yard cuts of Andalucia ribbon

OK, here's the deal: Sophie is about to turn 7 (SEVEN! OMG!) and she has opted to have a small celebration at home instead of a big party with her whole classroom. See, she's been jonesing for a Nintendo DS with a bunch of games so she has traded the big party for it. The plan is to have some relatives over to the house for cake & presents then she'll have a sleepover with a couple of her closest friends.

So here's where you come in: I want to make this a special day for her, even if we're not throwing the BIG PARTY we're used to around here. Can you guys give me suggestions of something fun I can do at the house that night? I'm looking for cool slumber party games/ideas. Also, some unusual decoration ideas for her room or the house. Even food ideas are welcome! Have you thrown a similar party recently? Or read about one? Feel free to post links! :)

I am giving away this HUGE gift basket of Andalucia sewn goodies in exchange for your ideas! Sophie's birthday is on December 3rd. I will randomly pick a winner on Thanksgiving Day, November 27th.

Go...

86 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:19 PM

    Patty I have a post on my blog about my dd's slumber party this past April:
    http://hoganfe.wordpress.com/?s=slumber

    Stop by :)
    mary
    hogane handmade
    handbag originals

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  2. Anonymous11:54 PM

    Oh sleepovers are so fun! I remember one year we did that and my mom and I made the cutest invitations that were little leeping bags and when you open the bag the details were inside. You and Sophie could have a blast making those. Oh and POPCORN! You MUST have popcorn. Not sure if she's a tink fan, but that new movie also just came out on DVD. Rosy enjoyed it, but she's only 4. Might not be "cool" enough for the big bad 7 year old! XOXO Karen

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  3. Our family parties usually consist of the birthday person's favorite meal and cake, however some of the most fun I have had with my children is to have a dance party. Basically it is blasting your favorite music and then dancing around like crazy people. (we put my old 45's on - if you are old enough to know what those are!) My children LOVED seeing their Mom dance about because I really let loose and we all had a good time. Now that they are "all grown up" (ages 21,18, 11 and 11) they don't find it so funny anymore. "MOM, You're embarrassing me!" lol - just have fun and don't worry about a big production, and THAT'S what it's all about!

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  4. Oh wow!!! I'm speechless about your giveaway. So fantastic!

    And, how exciting that your little girl is turning 7. I think her decision for a small party will be wonderful. My cousin recently through a slumber party for her little girl and she did a "spa day" theme. The girls all came in their cutest jammies and the mommy's spent the night doing the girls' hair and nails, giving facials and massages and then they ended the night with popcorn and story telling. Her daughter had the best birthday ever and all the little girls LOVED the party.

    It was sweet, simple and unforgettable.

    Good luck with your party!

    Shannon
    www.lilyhavencollection.blogspot.com

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  5. My little recently turned 7 year old had tons of fun with a dress up party. We found lots of fun "big girl" dresses (old prom dresses, bridesmaid dresses, etc) at thrift stores and she and her birthday party friends spent almost the whole time dressing up and having a photo shoot with each new outfit. Then the thank you card came from one of the photos of each girl taken with my daughter in their dress up clothes. Very fun age!! Enjoy.

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  6. How fun would it be to get some of your fabric scraps, ribbons, etc and see what crafty item everyone would come up with.

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  7. Patty...I just read a cute article in Parent magazine that talked about a pj party. All the kids came in their favorite pjs with their favorite stuffie. They even had these awesome little individual cakes that looked like little people laying in bed.

    I'll try to find the article and send it to you ;)

    Sort of bittersweet isn't it? My oldest "baby" just turned SIX and I'm still in shock!

    take a bow Jenn

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  8. the parties at our house always include the birthday child's favorite meal.....even if it doesn't make sense. (like, pancakes and mashed potatoes....ick.) But, it is their special day so they can choose whatever they want!! Also, I like to send a balloon bouquet to them while they are at school. It really makes my daughter feel ultra special. :)

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  9. My idea is pretty close to the dress-up theme just mentioned. When I was just about 7ish my girl friend threw a tongue-in-cheek "pageant party" and we showed up in dresses belonging to mothers and older sisters (those flouncy, tea-length 80s dresses made perfect ball gowns for us! Haha). What was great is that her family had come into town for her party as well, so it wasn't just us girls. One of her little male cousins was the MC for the event, her older sister, and a couple of her friends were in the "Sr division" ;-p ... we had on the spot talent, and answer silly questions segments, you name it. In the end we all walked away with sashes that had our funny "titles" on them written out in glitter, and I think the overall "winner" got a little extra prize.

    I just remember having a blast, and it was great because the visiting family could act as the "judges", and be involved too.

    I think anything like that is going to be a fast, easy way to put together a fun party. Having something where the kids themselves bring things from home also makes the whole thing more involving, instead of just having a bunch of kids showing up ready to be entertained all day, they bring in lots of their own fun, and clever ideas to play with and share. Plus leading up to the party you and the birthday girl can work on favors together, and her friends can work up their costumes, and build all sorts of anticipation (even if the theme isn't "pageant" ... i dunno if that's really pc anymore especially with all the girls getting stripped of their crowns and showing up nekkid on the web! But Sophie could totally pick her own "theme" Haha!)

    Good luck, I'm sure it'll be a total blast no matter what! ;-)

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  10. I have a pix only post about my Big Girl's 7th birthday slumber party that we hosted last month. She too was holding out for a DS.

    I made each girl a fleece sleep-over sag. We had a late night (9 pm) scavenger hunt, a make-your-own pizza dinner, slumber party cakes, and then the girls stenciled tee-shirts. They loved it!!! As for a movie--we watched princess diary 1. And the best part--the girls had such a big day at school and then all afternoon at our house, that they all fell asleep by 10!!!!

    you can see some of the pix at http://salinda.blogspot.com/2008/10/big-girl-turns-7-and-another-tooth.html

    good luck!-salinda

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  11. Your giveaway items are way too good to give away!!! Love, love, love your fabrics!

    I have 7-yr old sweetie in my life so I get to hear about each party she attends. She raves about the spa parties (fashioned after Libbie Lou). At this age her creative side is coming out too and she LOVES coming over to do sewing or paper crafts. Here are a couple of projects we did recently: http://midwest-chic.blogspot.com/2008/10/just-few-things.html The cupcake pincushions are SO easy, I got the silcone baking cups in the dollar bin at Target.

    Whatever you do, hope it's a blast!

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  12. Hi Patty,
    I can remember the sleepovers I had as a child, oh the memories! I think a good idea would be letting the kids make there own individual pizzas with all the fixings. They could help with the dough, and maybey even make some neat looking faces on them with the pepperonis. I bet they would enjoy getting a little messy with the flour and sauce. I always enjoyed popcorn and a movie before bed too.
    Danielle
    www.danibagsboutique.com

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  13. Patty,

    Congratulations on your new fabric line! I'm anxious to get my hands on some yardage!

    For a sleepover, I would suggest an activity around pillowcases. I would think a plain case (natural linen or linen blend) with your fabric as the cuff would be beautiful. Use your fabric with Wonder Under and allow the girls to cut out and design the top---flowers, letters, etc. An adult can help them iron it all together. You can also have them add fabric paint and other embellishments such as your coordinating ribbons. Do you have access to an Accucut? If so, this would make it easy to cut out more complex shapes, especially letters. I haven't tried using wonder undered (is that a word?) in my Cricut machine but that might work as well.

    Of course, if it's only 2-3 girls then you could also make them each a pair of pjs with your fabric. Again, you could make the bottoms and them have decorate a plain t-shirt to coordinate.

    When you're done? Settle in with PJs and pillows to watch a movie.
    I have only two boys, 7 and 9, so I cannot suggest the movies (if it's not Star Wars or Indiana Jones it doesn't hold much appeal at my house).

    Maybe you need a party helper?

    Cheers,
    Shari

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  14. Patty, we were in the exact same situation. Miss P wants a DS too, but I had no idea what do with a bunch of little girls all night. So instead we opted for ice skating (today, actually)instead and letting someone else do everything. We'll hold off on the DS until Christmas. I'm going to keep an eye on all the suggestions, as I'm sure that will be us next year. Have fun!

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  15. I found this in my search for fun party ideas for the girls- I bookmarked this one for a future date because it sounded so fun. The Theme is Candyland- which I am loving!!!Lots of games and decoration ideas!!

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  16. A friend told me about your Andalucia and I've been in love since. Congratulations.

    I have a few DARLING treat ideas that I just found. http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/04/make-your-cupcakes-pop.html

    And this cake is so cute and it could involve your daughter's artwork.
    http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/05/can-you-draw-as-good-as-six-year-old.html

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  17. Anonymous11:38 AM

    The only thing that I can recommend is let your daughter be as involved as possible. On my children's birthdays, I let them pick all the meals of the day. They often provide the best ideas for decorations, too. It really is their day...so I let it be all about them.

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  18. When my girls were young, they loved for me to create a scavenger hunt for them. Each clue leads to the next and so on, until they get to the prize - maybe cute goody bags (small drawstring bags made from your fabric and filled with candy and trinkets). The clues could be photographs (a certain tree, chair, etc.) if you want. Also if there are holiday lights in the area by then, you could have them all put on their pajama's, robes, slippers, pile in the car and take them for a tour (with Christmas music playing on the radio).

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  19. hmmmmn...you could throw a princess party and let each girl tie her own tutu and embellish wool-felt crowns (or even brightly colored foam crowns), or you could do a cooking party and let the girls embellish simple aprons with fabric markers. if you do the cooking party, it's fun to cook up a bunch of different pasta noodles, give each girl a small tin pan (like the mini-loaf size), then let her layer the noodles with sauces(meat sauce, marinara, cheese sauce, white cream sauce) and toppings (pepperoni, cheeses, veggies, sausage). pop the tins in the oven to warm through and serve! they could decorate sugar cookies or brownies for desert, or do a build-your-own sundae bar.

    fun times!! :)

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  20. Anonymous3:02 PM

    Oh what fun! My niece lives in Africa where they don't get the first run of all our movies, so when she gets a new movie from us here in the states, noone there has seen it yet. She recently had a great slumber party where she picked several character "styles" from one of those Princess-type movies and placed them on papers in a hat. A week or so before the party each girl drew out a paper and had to come dressed in that style. It was great because some of her friends said that if they had to come dressed all "girlie" they weren't coming at all. So she had the Runaway Undercover Princess (dressed in jeans, cap, and sunglasses,) the Spoiled Glamorous Princess (before she ran away,) the best friend complete with school uniform, the "Mean-Girls" Cheerleader, and on and on...

    My sister also baked flat sugar cookie "castles" for the Princess movie theme and each girl decorated her castle with icing, glittery sugars, and candies.



    Good luck in your search for ideas! There are fantastic ones to choose from already listed here!

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  21. I love throwing a good old fashioned home party. We haven't had a slumber party yet but I am sure that will happen soon. Here is a link to my daughter's 6th birthday last year:
    http://limegardenias.blogspot.com/2008/04/birthday-party.html
    We decorated those little cakes and it was a huge hit. We also did pedicures and I was sure to have lots of nail decals on hand and pretty fans I found at our local Asian grocery store so they could fan themselves while the adults made their toes pretty. We also used yards and yards of tulle and put it all over so it would look fun. And if you haven't played Apples to Apples, it would be a great slumber party game. Have fun!

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  22. You might like to set up craft activity like making a beaded bracelet, decorating a photo frame, or recovering a journal with papers, flowers, and stamps.

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  23. A treasure hunt with silly riddles as duplicate clues for each team: "your next clue is close to what I eat when I wake up". Goofy prizes like silly hats make it even better. Consolation prizes even sillier for the second team, of course.

    Popcorn of several flavors. A tin of the chocolate popcorn is a must.

    Slumber party decorations include anything starting with a ZZZZZZZZZZ. They'll have fun guessing all the Z's in the house.

    Good luck~~motherhood is sainthood!

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  24. You might think this is not so great, but it was just tested on my sister's 8-year-old at his party and was a MAJOR hit (even with boys). They ate your typical "Birthday junk food" and then each child got to decorate his own pre-assembled haunted gingerbread house. My sister got the kits (she had to assemble them the day before the boys got to the party so the "cement" was dry) at either TJ Maxx or Marshall's Home Goods. The kits came with the walls and roof of the gingerbread house, the cement (icing mix), and loads of different candy to decorate the houses with. Those boys had loads of fun because they were all trying to out-do each other and it kept them EXTREMELY occupied. As they were leaving the next day they were able to take their completed gingerbread houses home as one of their party favors. Another great thing was that the kits were approximately $5 each. This activity also made for a great photo opportunity (each kid got to take home a picture of himself decorating his house). What fun with something so simple, yet traditional around this time of year!!

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  25. sleepovers are so, so fun for that age. there are so many routes to go, but i love the classic pampering. manicures & pedicures, cucumbers on eyes, facial masks while sipping on cocoa from big girl mugs. our girlie nights always turn into dance parties and karaoking! =)

    i don't know about house/room decorations except one time hubby and i filled up 50 balloons with helium after they went to bed one time. it was sheer delight for her to wake up to that.

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  26. These are some ideas I got off another site when planning my daughters 7th birthday.

    having sleeping bag invites

    have a scavenger hunt - you can do indoor/outdoor

    have a snack they can make (when i was younger we made chex puppy chow at a friends slumber, fun times!)

    we did pizza english muffins at my daughters. supplied the toppings, and the girls made their own.

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  27. Anonymous9:21 PM

    I second the scavenger hunt idea. Something with easy clues that leads to something exciting at the end. The best sleepovers I had as a young girl were mostly unstructured where we could just use our imaginations! Maybe provide some new props for imaginative play!

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  28. Anonymous9:53 PM

    Good evening. For the sleep over I like the idea of having a spa day where you have a make-up station, a nail station, and a hair station, kind of like Libby Lu. I had a friend who did this for her daughter's birthday at home and it was a huge hit.

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  29. A Fancy Nancy party? Crazy dress up cpstumes, lights hanging in odd places, ballet slippers, wings, etc. Loads of hair accespries. Give everything a fancy name. Sleepovers are so fun. I think it would be cute instead of a large cake for the girls to decorate their own cupcakes or cakelettes. Williams Sonoma had the cutest buggy cake pans. And they could really have fun decorating them. Then eating them. http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/sku9217787/index.cfm?pkey=ccake%2Dpans%2Dcupcake%2Dpans&ckey=cake%2Dpans%2Dcupcake%2Dpans
    That is all I have, LOL! My girls are 3 y/o and 2 y/o so no big parties for us yet...Have fun! Shawnta

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  30. My middle one turned 7 in October and we had sleepover as well. One of the ALL TIME favorite things they did was get to do a "make-over" on hubby, Troy. The girls got the biggest kick out of it (he was such a good sport). I let them break out the make-up and they did his hair and make-up and then all took pics with him. One super cute idea for a party gift is I took pics of the birthday girl with each one of her friends invidually and then I ordered some Slumber Party foam frames from Oriental Trading to send the girls home with. Each girl went home with a picture frame and a picture of themselves with the birthday girl. Easy breezy and something they can enjoy for a long time!

    I am sooo excited for you! Andalucia is even more beautiful in person! I would love to win!! I have a girlfriend that just had her first baby girl 3 weeks ago. I would love to give the baby goodies to her.

    Amy

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  31. Anonymous10:45 PM

    When my girls were little we did a party that would now be considered as a "Spa Party". Do nail, toes, make-up anything that would make little girls feel pretty. Get a couple of movies and be ready for an "All nighter". How fun I wish I was young again.
    Nancy

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  32. hey girl! What a great giveaway! :-)

    sleepovers...wow, my oldest is 17 and my youngest is 5 and its almost time to start the fun times with sleepovers again.

    One of the fav's was Twister! yes, its such an old game but the girls loved it! even at 12..haha

    I am lovin the spa day idea, and personal pizzas ideas. I am sure she will have a blast! :-)

    ~Alicia~

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  33. One year for my daughter we did a tea party. We invited the girls to come in their fancy tea attire (dress-ups0. We decorated with lots of fancy lace and flowers. We served little finger sandwiches and cookies with our tea. The girls really loved acting so grown up. afterwards we just played lots of dress up and some simple games.
    Good Luck. Let us know what you decide to do!

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  34. Hi Patty, I love your fabric line! Congrats on the first of many.
    I think a fun idea for your sweet daughter's party would be some kind of scavenger hunt with maps and clues that the kids have to figure out and then find the next clue. Have some cool treats along the way for them to "find" as part of the hunt then have a fun movie or activity be the "end" of the hunt. Just a suggestion
    Mary
    Have a great time!

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  35. Patty, I love the decorate your Pillowcase idea and embellish with your fabric and ribbon (I know you have a bunch ;)I saw the beautiful stuff at market!

    I was thinking you could have the girls cover head bands with your ribbon and fabric and embellish with some cute buttons or even those plastic bracelets would be cute for them to decorate themselves and take home in the morning!

    I have 3 boys! 10, 8, & 2 so I'll just vicariously live through you okay?
    besos hun!

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  36. I know a few people have mentioned it already, but one of my favorite activities when I was young was to do a scavenger hunt around the house and at a few neighbors (who were informed of it).

    you can have the girls make their own mini pizzas for dinner. olives, ham, pepperoni, pineapples, and mushroom all make great faces!

    my niece absolutely loves to help out making cookies. she makes then really small so they are bite sized. You could even have them use cookie cutters and decorate them.

    i see a food trend here... i think kids playing with and making food is always so much fun=)

    i cant wait to hear what you end up doing. I am sure your little one will have a blast no matter what!

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  37. Ooooh, I'm in love with this giveaway package. :)

    Okay, on to the slumber party ideas! Of course, a special dinner/dessert. When my oldest was 7 (she's all of 8 now), she would have chosen fancy dishes and candles on the table, maybe with place cards (she likes pretty presentation!). Or throw in a do-it-yourself food option; cupcake decorating, maybe?

    Let's see, painting toenails is always fun, or braiding hair into teeny tiny braids... while eating tasty snacks, of course.

    You could build a giant "nest" out of quilts and pillows and watch a movie together.

    You could craft something together... party hats for all the people and the birthday girl's dolls? A fabric bunting to drape around the room?

    That's all I've got for now! Have fun! And thanks for the contest!

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  38. I love home parties! I find the girls need a few things to do but then they just need to have fun with their own imaginations.

    For my daughters 9th bday this year we did an all day party since a sleepover wasn't going to work out for each friend she wanted. But all these same activities I would have done if we had a sleepover. We went to a local pottery place to do some painting and then came back to our house. They ate little sandwiches cut in different shapes that I did with cookie cutters. You can make PB&J's, turkey, ham, cheese, etc. cut into circles, flowers, trees, snowmen, or whatever you like. I also had a small pizza and finger foods. I had small bottles of water in cool looking bucket with ice. I find water much better than juice since they load up cake, etc.

    For their craft the made fabic tied flip-flops (take strips of misc fabric scraps and tie them around the thong part of the flip-flop).

    See Family Fun for instructions: http://jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts?page=CraftDisplay&craftid=11414

    We made goodie bags out of polka-dot fabric. My daughter made name tags for each bag. Each bag had nail polish, hairbands, lip gloss. After opening their bags they disappeared into her room for at least an hour. For your sleepover you can make fabric bags with your AWESOME fabric and fill them with nail polish (A must for a sleepover), hairbands (you can even make these), and a new toothbrush and toothpaste for them to use before bed.

    My daughter likes things to be coordinated so made cupcakes frosted in coordinating colors with the fabric bags.

    See pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/punkiepies/BdayParty#

    A sleepover party we had when she was 7 going on 8. We decoupaged waste paper baskets with scrapbooking paper and flat glass buttons. The girls LOVED this. They also decorated pillow cases with fabric markers.

    Another fun thing to have is a ton of balloons on the floor in the room where the girls can play and jump around with them. It's an inexpensive fun activity.

    See pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/punkiepies/AGSlumberParty#

    Each of the girls can bring a (new or used) book to the party that you can donate to a preschool, elementary school, library, a needy children's group, etc.

    Must haves at the party.. balloons, movie(s), music, blankets to sit on for painting nails and just hanging out on.

    Each of the girls
    Enjoy her special day!

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  39. Just wanted to pop in here and say how excited I am about all these ideas! You guys are really creative! (well, I knew that already, that's why I asked!). I've been having a blast clicking through all those links you've posted and checking out your pictures. I already have some ideas churning based on your suggestions. I'll be sure to post many pics of what we end up doing.

    Looks like we'll have to have the slumber party the Sat. after Thanksgiving because of everyone's schedule and we'll only have 2 guests plus my 2 girls, so it'll be small & sweet... this actually makes it easier for handmade treats & stuff. I can't wait! :)

    patty

    P.S. and to whoever asked (sorry I can't find the post right now) if I was old enough to know what a 45 is, hahaha, unfortunately I AM! I still have my old collection of vinyl sitting in a box somewhere around here... ;)

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  40. Each of them could decorate a T-shirt for the B'day girl :)
    and for a nice home decor idea , A photo tree is nice. You paint on the wall a life size tree, or smaller lol and on each branch you put a photo.

    www.mummy-butterflysew.blogspot.com (english blog)

    www.mesamoursmespassions.blogspot.com
    (french blog)

    Sonia
    xxxx

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  41. Hi Patty!
    One of my favorite birthday party/slumber party memories was when I turned 11 or 12 and we all made individual pizzas. Each girl got a small pizza crust and we had ALL the toppings to choose from! It was really fun to create our own pizzas and was still a low budget party for the family. Requires a little clean-up, but who doesn't love a pizza party! OH - and the next morning we had the same kind of deal with pancakes. My mom made the batter and we got to choose what went in ours - blueberries, m&m's, chocolate chips, etc.

    Hope this helps and your daughter has a great birthday! I am totally digging Andalucia! Congrats!

    Anna
    www.sweet-dreams-designs.net

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  42. You've gotten so many great ideas, so hopefully I have some unique ideas! My oldest little one is only 4, so I've got all this fun to look forward to! Some fun things I remember from my own and friend's B-day parties:
    * Make your own pizza -- individual pizza crusts or simply canned biscuit dough, kids put on their own sauce, cheese and toppings.
    * Treasure hunt with clues hidden throughout the house (in books, coat pockets, places that you don't mind all the girls getting into). As the treasure you could have all the supplies for the next activity....
    * Decorate your own t-shirt/sweatshirt/bag/pillowcase/simple fabric purse. Fusible applique and/or fabric paints!
    * Since you'll have cake earlier in the day, how about late night cookie decorating or build your own sundae.
    * One of my best friends' mom would always make biscuits in the morning and cover them in chocolate syrup! It was such a special treat and so fun!

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  43. For our last birthday party, we did a bugs and butterflies theme. I cooked cake in little clay pots (idea from Martha Stewart), frosted them and covered them in crushed cookie "dirt" and made flowers out of gum drops and scalloped fudge striped cookies. Then we put a cut butterfly on top and a gummy worm in the dirt. They were a BIG hit. The girls all got butterfly nets (thanks to the Target $1 section) and we searched the house for butterflies hidden everywhere. They went home with their own pair of butterfly wings. It was a very fun party. Good luck with yours!

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  44. Ok...I haven't read all the comments, so excuse me if this has already been suggested. But how 'bout a "spa night". They can all have their nails and toes done, wear robes around, put on a face mask ( like a facial) fix each others hair...that type of thing. You could fix little parfaits in those plastic martini cups. Make specail drinks with some sprite and their favorite kind of juice ( put fruit on a skewer in the drink).

    just thought I'd throw that out there :)

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  45. Here's the post to my daghter's
    7th birthday party:

    http://marievilla.blogspot.com/2008/11/wild-pajama-party.html

    We had pizza, chex mix, fresh fruit, pink lemonade and then cupcakes for the girls, cake for the adults. We also let the girls build their own ice cream sundaes and had a little sundae bar. We kept it simple as far as a menu goes.

    For games, we played musical pillows (similar to musical chairs), a question and answer game about who knows our daughter best, etc...but you can read my post to see all that we did. I'm sure your party will be beautiful.
    Good Luck!

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  46. I saw recently where someone created a fairy wonderland in their house for the girls. Low lighting with tons of white christmas lights and it opens up a bunch of crafting possibilities!

    Happy Birthday Miss Sophie!

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  47. Anonymous5:00 PM

    You've had some great ideas. Both of my girls and their friends loved making little fairy tea cups at their birthday parties last year. It has the combined fun of keeping them busy for a little while and making some of the food. You can see them here on my blog
    http://quiltfabricdelights.typepad.com/quilt_fabric_delights/2007/12/birthdays.html

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  48. Make your own pizza! You provide the dough and set out the toppings. This theme can also carry forward to cupcakes, cookies, crowns.
    If you really felt like sewing you could also do pillowcases for the sleepver guests...

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  49. first of all I am sooooooooooooooo impressed with your line. I wish I could sew- I would eat up all of your fabric:) Maybe we can do a collaboration and I can paint one of your daughters in a set of yours wearing your gorgeous fabrics- hint hint:)

    Anyways, I just did a 6 year old sleepover and my daughter had 6 friends come over. We played pin the tail on the donkey (now they have pin the bird on Cinderella's hand)http://cgi.ebay.com/DISNEYS-PRINCESSS-GAME-PIN-THE-TAIL-ON-THE-DONKEY_W0QQitemZ140275498426QQcmdZViewItemQQptZWedding_Party_Supplies?hash=item140275498426&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318, I got a princess pinata and filled it up with goodies, and we played musical chairs. Also I made vanilla cupcakes with pink frosting, and we did crafts and made hair accessories using a special kind of glue that was not toxic. I also told them a ghost story---called Sally...it is a story (not true) that was told to me when I was 8 when I was at a sleepover and for some reason it stuck with me. It went over amazingly!!! good luck

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  50. Okay- we opted out of a big party this year as well! My dd turned 7 in August and she had a few of her closest friends over for a sleepover! The girls are at a age where they love make up and such! So we did manicures and pedicures! We went and got all the fun smelling feet scrubs and lotions, fun paint colors- and went to town! Then we did hair wraps! I googled how to do hair wraps- and the girls went gaga over it!!! All it takes is embroidery floss, and charms if you want, and you to braid! Then we picked the newest girly movie out, had popcorn, pizza and pop!!! For the goodies bags they had these super cute tins that looked like mini old fashion lunch boxes in hot pink at michaels and gave each girl there own pedicure kit and polish! You can get the kits at the dollar store! Super easy, Girly and Fabulous!! That is what the girls seemed to be really interested in!Oh- and while doing the hair wraps, the girls sang there lungs out and danced to the Taylor Swift cd!!

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  51. Anonymous6:52 PM

    I didn't read all the comments, so I hope that my idea is original and I'm not just a copycat. When I was younger, my parents were into country music. So every year when the CMAs came on, it was a huge deal. For days and weeks afterward, we would have our own award show and my cousins and I were the performers. We put on the most ridiculous costumes! You don't have to be into country music, you could pretend it's American Idol. And dress up, and by all means, capture the silliness on video. The girls will love watching themselves!

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  52. it would be fun to focus everything around the letter S
    at our last bday party, we had un frosted cupcakes with a sugar stencil.
    it was so easy just get an S stencil, lay it on top and sprinkle regular white (NOT confectioners) sugar on top. less mess and soooo cute, we did this for my sons pirate theme party with chocolate cupcakes and a jolly roger stencil.

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  53. My sister-in-law, Catherine always takes pictures of the kids sleeping the the basement at the cabin. They make this little nest--three couches, feather bed between and the crash while watching movies, "like a pile of puppies" is how Catherine puts it. It reminds her so of her little brothers and how they would fall asleep on each other waiting for her to come home.

    The giveaway is really beautiful. Oh, I hope I'm lucky.

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  54. How fun! I think a boutique theme would be fun. You could do fun things with their hair~like clippies, glitter, etc. Nail polish is a must and you could even have them make their own scented lotions! Just buy some unscented lotion and some travel sized containers and some fragrance oils! That would be a fun and easy project they all would be proud to make!

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  55. For my daughters 8th Slumber Party I made a pillowcase for each girl and embroidery/appliqued their initial in the middle. I then gave them fabric pens and let them decorate. It was fantastic fun and kept them entertained for ages.

    I also bought some recycle bags and did they same style initial in the middle of one side. This way when they changed into their PJs they put their day clothes into the bag. They really loved them.

    Another thing I did on my embroidery machine was an in the hoop sleep masks. They had lots of fun and when some wanted to go to sleep while others didn't they popped on the masks.

    Once the girls finished decorating their pillowcases they put it over there pillows and settled in for a DVD and popcorn

    All of the above was a big hit, the girls loved them.

    Have fun

    Deanna

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  56. We used to play the Chocolate Game (really creative title). You all sit around in a circle with a pair of dice. In the middle of the circle is a big bar of chocolate, in its wrapper, and a hat, scarf and pair of mittens, and a knife and fork. You pass the dice around and when you get doubles you jump into the middle of the circle, put on all the gear and try to eat the chocolate bar with the knife and fork. While you're doing that the dice are still being passed around and when someone else gets doubles you take off the stuff and they jump in and take their turn. It's really an obscene chocoholic feeding frenzy. It's very fun.

    Also, you can order pizzas to be delivered to your neighbor, and then watch out the window when your confused neighbor answers the door. :)

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  57. Patty- I don't have little ones, but I have siblings and cousins that are younger. I love it when they are like 6-10 and they seem so excited to do anything (well besides their chores). I'm sure you will have a lot of posts and I would say a mini spa day would be a blast. I know Family Fun has tons of party ideas by age: http://familyfun.go.com/parties/

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  58. Patty, love your new fabric line. Congratulations!

    A couple ideas for a party are to get the foam tiaras and have them decorate with jewels, feathers, foam letters to spell their names, etc.

    Have dress up clothes for them and have them dress up and put on a show or a play for you. I think all little girls love to do that.

    Hope it goes great!
    -Lori Porten

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  59. For my son, we had a build your own pizza bar with mini pizza crusts and lots of fun toppings. The kids loved it!
    You could also make marshmallow popcorn for the kids.(email me if you want the instructions)
    Girls love to dance, you could get out the video camera and make a music video and then make copies for them to take home. Creating necklaces or stationary is fun for a bunch of girlies too. And if you have a WII, the Dance Dance Revolution or something like that would be fun. Twister, Kid Tac Toe with teams (if you have enough girls, this is the fully interactive one where they are the X's and O's)
    For breakfast you could do "create your own Aebleskiver " where they choose the filling that they want in each one.

    I've got a million more somewhere in this overcrowded brain o' mine, but I am at a loss for some reason.
    Anyway, I hope she has a ton of fun on the big #7!
    Mandy

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  60. I have boys but if I had a girl you could do all kinds of themes but how about a girls night of pampering like painting nails, doing hair, having a fun fashion show with fun feather boas and learning some new dance steps.

    You could also have someone taking photos like they were paparazzi and then give the photos to the girls later in a frame for a gift. Oh which brings me to maybe a Hollywood theme, with the girls dressing up like their favorite celebrity and pretending they are at a movie premiere, you could go crazy on that one!

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  61. i would just make it really girly---junk food, popcorn, etc. maybe set up a cookie bar, (sugar cookies with all kinds of fun frosting and candy to put on top and i'm sure they would love to watch high school musical or enchanted. maybe even a little photo shoot for each of the girls. any way, your fabric is beautiful, thanks for the cool giveaway!

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  62. I was watching Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane on the Style Network and her daughter Ming Lee had a Camp Fire Sleepover Birthday Party. The girls coming to your house can make little tee shirts that say "Camp Sophie" on them. You can have one room that can be the "campground" with a tissue paper fire in the middle of the room and cover the floor in couch pillows and let the girls sleep in there (like one big pillow bed). If the girls already have a play tent, pitch that in there too, they would have so much fun. For dessert they can have "microwave" s'mores. I think by visiting AC Moore and making all the decor yourself it will save you tons!(Check out video here::http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyzLe6Ju2eg) I hope this helps....I'm sure it will be a great sleepover!

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  63. Anonymous9:35 PM

    My daughter is 7, and her favorite thing to do is to play kitty cat/horsey/doggie with her friends. So maybe if your daughter has a favorite animal, you could make that the theme of the party. You could make cat or dog "chow", i.e. chex mix, a theme-y cake or cupcakes and other snacks like that. Many disney movies have an animal as the main character, too, so that could work into the slumber party itinerary. Hope you all have fun!!

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  64. How about a make your own tutu party... or maybe a camping sleepover... set up some tents and make smores, popcorn, etc... Or you can get a copy of Wal-e and let them watch it for inspiration to make their own robots. Gather up some shoe boxes, misc cardboard, scrapbook paper, buttons, etc... and let them design their own robot buddies. Maybe even put on a play/puppet show with them.

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  65. It's a birthday party, so there definitely must be a cake. Which one to choose?! I suggest the "Sleepover Cake" :) Take a look here http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50198
    There are 2 options:
    1) the girls must prepare it
    (designing themselves)
    or
    2) you order one already made (in case of some other cooking activities you planned)

    My best wishes on Sophie's birthday :)

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  66. OMG, 7, how fun!! My oldest is only 3, so I'm not sure what 7 year olds are into now-a-days, but what about a tea party! You could make each of the girls a simple little apron of thier own. And if you're feeling up to it ~ even embroider each of their names on the aprons as well! Hope she has a great birthday ~ have FUN!! :-)

    Kelly

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  67. What wonderful goodies!

    I really like the idea of surprise balloons in the morning. Sneak into her room at night and fill the ceiling with balloons and when she wakes up her first sight will be a cute surprise.

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  68. I remember when I was a kid one of my favorite parties was when my mom helped my friends and I make our own individual pizzas and then we had an ice cream sundae bar (you know, tons of different kinds of ice cream chocolate, strawberries, gummies, nuts, whipped cream, etc.

    Anyway I don't know if your daughter would like that kind of thing, but it was a hit when I was young -- and with my siblings.

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  69. I have three boys (and a baby girl) so I have no original party ideas. I am, however, an excellent blog stocker. Here are some links that I bookmarked for when my baby gets older.
    http://thirtyhandmadedays.blogspot.com/2008/08/girly-girls.html
    http://tipjunkie.blogspot.com/2008/09/day-3-girl-birthday-party-ideas.html
    http://tipjunkie.blogspot.com/2008/09/day-1-princess-birthday-parties.html
    Good luck.

    p.s. -- I am in love with your petal mod blooms fabric!!

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  70. {Ok, I meant to say blog stalker . . .}

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  71. Are they into dress up or modeling? You take such awesome pictures...maybe have them each bring some cute clothes and have a "Top Model" type thing and take head shots or something? A glamour, slumber party! :) You could even do them up in Photoshop, get them developed at a 1-hour place and give them as favors?

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  72. I found this fun party idea...
    It's Time
    for Tea!

    Get out the frilly dresses and hats it's time for tea, fancy cookies and cucumber sandwiches. In the garden, patio or special place in your home, a table decorated with pink flowers and fancy china of bone.

    Since its a sleepover you could turn it into a tea or Alice in Wonderland "them" which would be great for dressing up, decorateing and of course lots of giggles:)
    Brooke

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  73. doing something along the lines of "doing hair, make-up, nails" would be fun...as well as a "crafting" time...maybe you could help them hand sew something...or create a scrapbook page or something to that effect.
    have fun!

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  74. I don't know if anyone said this yet, but I was thinking that since her party is in December, it might be fun for the girls to make gingerbread houses. It's so fun decorating and they're at a great age for it. Or, you could put a twist on it somehow. Maybe they could just decorate gingerbread girl cookies to look like themselves.

    Also, I heard of a good idea one time. If you want to give her money (towards the DS or something) you could just put a single dollar bill inside however many balloons you want to fill and she has to pop all of them to get the money out. Kind of exciting - especially for 7 year old girls!

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  75. When my daughter was younger we had a "come as your found" party... basically you go around to hand deliver the invitations and whatever your guest is wearing when you get to the house to give them their invite (ie: bather, mismatched sweats, pyjamas, one girl was even wearing a little Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costume (she was playing with her little brother!!) - well that is what you wear to the sleepover party! It was so fun and they talked about it all week at school and made such a drama about it (as little girls do!!) but they all came so relaxed in their casual clothes that they had a blast! You could incorporate a viewing of High School Musical into the party and if you do please contact me as I have some gorgeous HSM Three bottlecap necklets, all beaded beautifully that I would love to give you for each one of Sophie's guests (as a party gift), as I said they are beautifully made and I can ship them overnight to you (at my expense) - if you would like them!! Just want to give a little back - got my Andalucia Trim and am just over the moon with it - thank you soooo much Patty for designing such a lovely trim - it is so bee-uuuu-deee-fuuulll! (fabric on it's way too! woohoo!)
    Anyway, let me know!, good luck with the party Patty - Hugs from Jen

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  76. I wish I had a great party idea because my oldest turns 6 today and her party is on Saturday. Someone with more energy should start a local business to throw kid's birthday parties...I'd have them come.

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  77. What great ideas you have already. A spa/make up night sounds fun, then afterwards you can take pictures of them.

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  78. Thanks for all the great ideas, everyone! This party is gonna be great! I'm planning lots of homemade goodies for it. :)

    Thank goodness I'm picking a random winner because if I had to pick a winner from these ideas, I'd be in trouble. LOL!

    patty

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  79. Hi Patty

    How about going to a movie premiere as the theme? Your daughter picks the movie and the invites are gala tickets. When your daughters friends arrive they check in at the "hotel" and get all dolled up at the "salon". You can take before and after shots. We made candy jewellery at one of my daughter's parties and that was a fun craft for them to do. We strung life savers and mini marshmallows and cut up licorice on thin strings of licorice. I made little bags that the girls decorated with glitter and fabric and fabric markers. We had fancy rolled sandwiches and finger foods on trays for dinner and you could use plastic champagne glasses for the punch I made cut up cakes for the birthdays but you can also buy cakes that would fit your movie theme The girls will have fun cuddling up to watch the movie complete with popcorn. For goodie bags I filled the bags the girls had decorated with little sample sized beauty products, their candy creations and photos made up into autograph books which you can give out after breakfast The girls got a kick out of the juice and milk in the plastic champagne glasses

    I think your daughter will have a lot of fun and you can give more individual attention to her guests. She will have some ideas too and really feel good about being part of making the choices and getting things ready for the party.

    It will be a great celebration whatever you decide

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  80. Anonymous9:11 AM

    Hiya Patty!

    Not that I am entering (even though I would love all of the lovely items!) BUT I do have an idea for you! Have you ever been to Artful Designs pottery studio or one of the other pottery places around here? They are so much fun! I was there Friday and there were so many kids in there....they even have a back room you can reserve for private parties. The possibilities there are endless too...dishes, figurines, holiday items, etc! If your daughter likes to paint/be creative (how could she not be with a mama like you!) this would be a great idea for a party! PS they let you take in snacks and drinks too!
    Heather ;)

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  81. Anonymous1:46 PM

    My daughter and her friends (ages 8-11 yrs) really enjoyed drinking fancy punch from a real punch punch and fancy cups...we also did some creative fruit carving like on food network/hgtv...we made a peacock...of course pinatas are always a hit...even hide n seek with all the lights out is fun at this age!! (o:

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  82. Anonymous11:29 AM

    How fun! I haven't been brave enough to host a slumber party! My daughter is 8yr old (she had a Wii game party night) and she and her friends can not get enough sewing/crafting time in when they come to play. There are so many quick/easy projects they could do. Can be something easy like painting ornaments or embellishing a simple tote bag. Or decorating sugar cookies or cupcakes would be fun. I love all the happy birthday garland that is made with fabric in the penant shape. Good luck & have fun! Your give away is awesome! Hoping I win!
    Paula
    squala@charter.net

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  83. A slumber party how fun! I can't wait for my dd's to decide they want a slumber party. DD1 turns 7 next may so I will be looking here for inspiration. I haven't thrown a slumber party recently but remember the ones I attended when I was growing up. The best activity was at a Girl Scout overnight. We did a cooking theme and made Taffy. We pulled taffy in pairs and it was loads of fun. Of course the grown-ups did the cleaning up so not sure how messy a project it was. We also made popcorn some regular and some caramel, Rice Krispie treats, watched a movie (I second the recommendation for Tinkerbelle my soon to be 7 yr old loved it) and after we were supposed to be sleeping we got out of bed and did some scary stories (don't recommend that since a few of us could not sleep after, we were so scared.) Another fun cooking activity might be to do the little cupcake or cake bites that Bakerella makes.
    http://bakerella.blogspot.com
    She has plenty of different themes on her site or you could just use the recipe and make your own design. I bet the girls would love coloring the candy coating and making such cute treats. Since it is in December you could make Santa Hats or Christmas Trees. She has a Hershey's Kisses tutorial that is the perfect shape for those designs. Or maybe a Fairy Face to go with the Tinkerbelle movie. They are full of sugar and not healthy at all but they are too cute to pass up making them at least once for something special. She also has a few different mini treats recipes on her blog. Anything mini is perfect for 7 yr old girls in the kitchen imo. Can't wait to see what you end up doing. Have fun!!

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  84. I think the most fun I had at parties as a child was at a friend's birthday party where we were allowed to assemble our own cake. The sponge was provided, along with several kinds of icing, whipped cream and such, fruits and jam and sweets. The concoction we dreamed up would probably not appeal to me now, but we loved it!

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  85. Anonymous7:52 AM

    Oh my goodness ... what a fun time. Makes me think of my slumber party when I turned 8 years old. I couldn't stand to leave anyone out so my Mother graciously hosted 26 girls ... 2 of which ended up in bed with my parents!

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  86. Anonymous7:54 AM

    Ok, Shane is my husband ... but ...Oh my goodness ... what a fun time. Makes me think of my slumber party when I turned 8 years old. I couldn't stand to leave anyone out so my Mother graciously hosted 26 girls ... 2 of which ended up in bed with my parents!

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