The Infamous 8th Birthday Party

This past week was a significant week. I turned 28, but more importantly it means that twenty years have passed since the infamous birthday. I have always been a planner. Clipboards, charts, schedules, etc. I always mean well but rarely execute the plan of action as I would like.

I looked forward to my eighth birthday with so much excitment and anticpation. This was my first REAL slumber party. I kid you not when I say that I carried around a clip board for weeks planning that thing. I even recall taking it to church with me and working on it during Sacrament Meeting. What eight year old plans like that? I had every minute of the party scheduled. I mapped out what time my eight guests would arrive (I should add that I spent much time narrowing down my choices for guests, making sure that only the best and most important friends were invited).

I knew what time we would eat, what time we would play certain games, what time we would have cake, what time we would get our PJs on....BUT WAIT!!! Something went out of wack and ruined my plan when Amanda Zamora (aka the devil) decided to pull out her new PJs as soon as she arrived!!!!! What was she thinking? Did she not understand that it went against the plan? In hind sight I see my mistake. Upon arrival, guests should have been briefed and given neatly typed out itinerary of what to expect at the party. So in all fairness, Amanda's mistake was entirely my fault. How was she to know that the PJs were not intended to be put on until 8:30?

This was the beginning of the end of this night for me. To make a long story short, this party will go down in history as "The Genie Pajama Party". I was left out of almost all fun that night. I tried hard to put on a happy face during the first hour or so, but it was too hard and I had a terrible time. In fact, I was so left out and miserbale that I spent a large part of the night in my room crying while everyone else had fun running around the house, adoring Amanda Zamora and Crystal Price. The only girl the entire night who even noticed I was gone was Melanie Daines. She came up to my room and talked to me, making sure I was okay and hadn't died. She is still my friend to this day!

The misery continued to the next morning. I was not the first person to smack and break the pinata as I had planned. Who puts a girl's twelve year old brother in charge of pulling the pinata rope? To this day I swear he had a crush on Victoria Irwin, who happened to be the girl to break the thing open. I know he let her do that on purpose. A lot of the party is on video and if you need a good laugh, I'll make you a copy and you can find enjoyment at my expense. The wound has not yet healed for me, even two decades later. Twenty years. And yet it feels like only yesterday.