Enjoying the Small Things

Enjoying the Small Things

You’ve Got Mail Fall Movie Night

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Every September, I kick off the fall movie season by making an event of the First Viewing (proper noun, of course) of You’ve Got Mail. The You’ve Got Mail fan club is a loyal, passionate group of individuals who may argue over the best quote from the movie—“thank your”— but agree on the fact that it’s a cinematic masterpiece, one of the best feel-good movies of all time. Besides the comforting 90’s nostalgia (ah, the sound of a dial-up modem connecting to the Internet), there is a buffet of sensory delights that never fails to charm me no matter how many times I’ve seen the movie (over 50, I’m sure.). That buffet includes Kathleen Kelly’s timeless fall wardrobe (last year, I recreated four of her looks with a 9-piece Kathleen Kelly capsule), New York in the fall, every little charming detail in Kathleen Kelly’s apartment that would be just as darling today as was when it was filmed, coffee shops, a streets-of-New York moment featuring the song “Dreams” by the Cranberries that will make you never be able to hear the song again without thinking of Meg Ryan walking under a canopy of fall trees, and then…the bookshop. Oh that little children’s bookshop with its enchanting twinkle lights and pumpkins and lamps and story hours.

…I’m getting carried away. All that to say, I save this movie every year to watch in the fall, with a fire in the fireplace and a mug of cider in my hands. This year called for a little more though, so I invited a few friends to join me (we are keeping our circle very small for anything indoors) for all the fall things we’re craving and an entire evening dedicated to You’ve Got Mail. I made my mom’s red lentil soup, served it with New York soft pretzels and tried to inject YGM love into all the details.

Naturally, Kathleen Kelly pajamas:

Tall Decaf Cappuccino cups that we did not use for Tall Decaf Cappuccinos.

The friendliest flowers, of course.

The shoe books…

“I bet you just love that Mr. Darcy”…

My father-in-law printed me a movie poster. :o)

New York in the fall cookies.

I painted little treat bags with YGM symbols…

…and filled them with:
– a candle (to make your apartment smell mossy)
– a bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils
– NY 152 stickers (I bought this 6-pack and added my own label)
– Tall Decaf Cappuccinos
– and a handkerchief (“a handkerchief is a Kleenex that you don’t throw away.”)

We all wore pajamas and feasted on the perfect movie snacks after soup.

It was a very Kathleen Kelly-approved cozy friend night, and now I want to repeat it every weekend.

We didn’t twirl, but I did do my best convince them all that Tom Hanks is sexy. Cheers to that.

Know a You’ve Got Mail fan? Make a themed gift box for them for a holiday gift this year.

Good as Nell: A Lizzo Party for Nella

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At the end of every year, anticipation for Nella’s birthday is the little surge of excitement that helps my kids overcome the disappointment of the the post holiday slump. So every year after Christmas, we ask Nella what kind of birthday party she wants and then excitedly spin her feedback into party planning that adds some fun to an otherwise quiet month. Some years she’s very clear about what she loves and what she wants (her spaghetti obsession begat her Little Italy Party, and her Barbie Party was a given). Some years, we help her out. But this year, she knew exactly what kind of party she wanted…a Lizzo party. Nella loves Lizzo. I admit, I wasn’t sure at first if we could turn a Lizzo theme into a party appropriate for kids. I don’t mind my kids listening to songs with swear words given that I think it creates great opportunity to learn about expression, uncensored art and what’s appropriate to sing to vs. say out loud at school, but not every parent feels this way. But the more we dug into creative interpretations of a Lizzo party, the more I realized it’s a perfect birthday theme for 10-year-old little girls–confidence, creative expression, body positivity–Girlfriend owns her power. An Instagram follower then suggested “Good as Nell,” and the rest was history.


(We made Lizzo’s flute necklace with this flute ornament.)

Since Lizzo’s songs are rich with empowering lyrics, we used them in all the party details.

A juice bar was a must, of course…

And a tiny purse station:

I found packs of mini tote bags at Hobby Lobby and cut “purse flaps” and “pockets” to fit them out of patterned felt. Kids decorated their purse fronts and then added buttons, ribbon and rhinestones for embellishments.

Lainey and her friend ran the Lizzo makeover station where they recreated some of Lizzo’s fabulous colorful looks.

 

 

…and then they had their picture taken for their record labels at the “Fresh Photos with the Bomb Lighting” studio.

The “Bling Bling…that’s the goddess in me” station offered gems, glitter, sequins, Mod Podge and glue for the girls to decorate hair brushes…

…and their own records. I picked up a bunch of old records at Goodwill and spray painted them gold. The girls decorated them with gems and glitter, and I printed their photos to make labels. They turned out so cute!

My dad led the kids on a scavenger hunt to find Sasha, Lizzo’s missing flute.

…and then back for lunch and cupcakes.

(These microphone cupcakes are from the What’s New Cupcake? book. For the record, I cursed 22 times when I made them because the microphones kept falling over).

We had so much fun putting together the favor bags for this party. Almost everything came from the dollar store (we made the labels for the bath bomb, juice and ring pop.

This girl was so happy.

Over the years, we’ve made different accommodations at her birthday parties to make her comfortable, but this year we made none. In fact, when she was opening her presents and her friends gathered around to help her, Dash yelled at everyone, “She doesn’t need your help. She can do it herself, okay?”

Ten years ago, the thought of imagining what her life would look like at ten years old was too much for me, but here we are, celebrating with friends and glitter and dancing and makeup and an almost 10-year-old’s room that is now trashed from a double sleepover. Baby, how you feelin?

Feelin’ good as Nell.

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Party Resources

Disco Ball Balloons
24-pack Mini Disco Balls
Foil Door Curtains
Lizzo Straws
If I’m Shining Stickers
Lizzo T-shirt (Nella’s dress)
Lizzo Coloring Book
Lizzo Pins
Play Microphones
Clip-in Rainbow Hair Extensions

Dollar Tree: clear favor bags, sequin purses, hair brushes
Michael’s Dollar Section: gemstone compact mirrors
Target Dollar Spot: bath bombs, 4-pack mini nail polish

Harry Potter Party

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It is a wonder what a little candlelight and music can do to an ordinary day because our house turned straight up magic Friday evening as the sun set which was my cue to light a fire, pull out the candles and yell, “Alexa, play Harry Potter soundtrack!”

The goal for our annual Harry Potter Party is, of course, Hogwarts magic. I want my kids to feel what I felt curled up in bed, hour 7 of reading the Harry Potter book that took my imagination into a captivating world that was so unlike anywhere it had ever been.

The thing I love about this party is that there are so many ways to achieve the feeling of Hogwarts, and the foundation of that feeling is candles everywhere. We added inexpensive spider webs and a few dollar section Halloween items (all which get tucked in a bin marked “Halloween” and reused year after year!). We found the little clip-on owls in the Christmas aisles (yes, already up) at Michael’s for 40% off, and they are the perfect Hogwarts touch!

Dash makes a killer Potter.

And Nella can say Wingardium Leviosa perfectly.

But the real treat this year was Brett who slipped a black wig on for a Snape appearance.

The kids’ favorite part of the evening is always the intermission for Honeydukes, a full Potteresque candy bar…

I stash away candy in my closet a month leading up to this party and gather jars I’ve saved for parties to display them. Some of the more unique candy comes from World Market (like those Pixie Puffs–the texture of cheese puffs but cotton candy flavored). The character portraits behind the candy bar are just photos I printed from the Internet–and they’re taped on top of the glass because who has time to reframe things for one little party?

Each kid is given a pouch of change, and all the candy is priced. The decision making and bartering process is so fun to watch!

Other Harry Potter night favorites include our butterbeer bar. I changed the recipe I use this year because the previous ones we made were too sweet–and too many ingredients.

The butterbeer itself is simply cream soda with about a teaspoon of butter extract added to each glass, but what makes it so delicious is the butterbeer foam you top the glass with. I whipped heavy whipping cream, a little sugar (to taste–I don’t like it too sweet!), 1 tsp. vanilla and 2 tsp. of butter extract until it was thick and foamy. Together, it was so delicious! A little rum in the adult version isn’t so bad either.

Everything else is kept simple. We had a pot of chili on the stove and ordered pizza for the kids.

The kids were convinced their tiny jars of polyjuice potion (Sprite with a drop of green food coloring) would turn them into rats, but it didn’t work.

My favorite part of the night is this…when the candy buzz settles and the kids are all cuddled up on the couch, stretched out an sleeping bags, fire crackling, candles flickering, dog asleep in my dad’s lap, and the magic of Hogwarts entrancing them all.

Speaking of dog, of course Friday came in character…

I love October, and all that is to come.

Happy Monday!
(previous Harry Potter family nights here and here).