Hardly Controlled Chaos

Oh hey, peeps!  Long time no talk.  School and activities have made life extra busy the last several weeks, and quite frankly, I'm just too tired at the end of the day to blog.  Womp womp.  However, I've received several injunctions from various kids that I need to start updating, so here is the first in a series.  ;)

Alex celebrated his 8th birthday with a "friend party" a few Saturdays ago.  We decided to go with a venue for the first time ever, and I have to say it was a genius move.  Even if the venue WAS Chuck E. Cheese.  Hahahahaha.  {I feel like they should start paying me commission for how often I promote this place.}  Since he was turning 8, I told him he could invite 8 friends to his party and as a little lagniappe, I let Jane and Isaac tag along as well.  You'd be surprised at how upset this made Sophie and Grace.  Hahaha.  Ethan was working at Sonic for the day, so I think he was fine.  ;)

 The birthday boy.

Having Chuckie take care of everything -- from the cake to the party favors to the ice cream to the food -- was awesome, and it made for a less stressful than usual party planning experience.  Unfortunately, the stress of planning the party was replaced with the stress of a packed Saturday at Chuck E. Cheese along with a multitude of hyperactive 8 year olds.  Haha.  Two hours of unlimited play time later, and I was more than ready to call it a day!  Hahaha.  {There's a reason this blog post is called "Hardly Controlled Chaos."}

Unfortunately -- as is often the case -- by the end of the party, Alex's mood was crashing hardcore.  Not enough sleep the night before, combined with lots of treats and the adrenaline rush of partying, helped to create the perfect storm of emotional release as we headed home from Chuckie's.  And by storm, I do mean storm.  Screaming, crying, threats, and tears were our reward for throwing an awesome birthday party, and by the time we got home he had really hammered home his point that we are the worst parents ever and that he hates us.  Winning!  Doh.  After forcing him to go to his room to chill out once we got in the house, he calmed down enough to rejoin the family and we were able to finish out the day without too many more outbursts.

 This is as good as it got for getting a group shot.  

 They were all pretty stoked to find a game with a busted ticket dispenser that kept spitting out tickets long after the game was over.

 (Still dispensing those tickets.)

 (Scott hit a jackpot of his own.  Hahahaha.)

Now that all is said and done -- and plenty of time has gone by -- I think both Alex and myself would agree that this was still a pretty awesome 8th birthday and we would probably do it all over again if presented with the option.  :)

 The piece de resistance at the end of the party was a stint in the ticket blaster!