Arghhh Matey!

This girl recently turned eight...

...and in the Mormon world, eight is kinda a big deal. It's the age at which you're baptized, and no one has been looking forward to this date as much as my niece, Riley. So, why not celebrate BIG??
And you know what, she sure did.
I had the opportunity to help put together the invitations for both Riley's baptism, and her pirate-themed birthday party, and I think they came out pretty cute, if I do say so myself.

Last weekend, we were all able to get together to watch Riley as she was baptized. Graham had the privledge to speak at the service. It was so amazing to see all of the people who came out to support Riley on her very special day, and I could see how grateful she was for the outpouring of love expressed on her behalf.

BUT...the celebration didn't end there! On Saturday, a whole crew of sailors came together to celebrate Riley's birthday at a pirate-themed bash. I had SO much fun helping plan and execute Riley's party, and I think it was a resounding success. At one point I had to get a head count to see how much dessert needed to be served, and counted 66 people. Holy heck, it was packed...but the more the merrier, right??
Her mom and dad pulled out all of the stops. From the fun themed-food, to the amazing games (including "walk the plank," and a treasure hunt, of course), to the huge jumpy house, and a real-life pirate ship, the party was definitely awesome...at one point, my sister-in-law, Hilary, and I gave each other high fives for a job well-done...and we deserved it! Whew...what a lot of work!

And what kind of aunt and uncle would we be if we didn't dress up? I mean, we had to play our parts as a couple of scurvy pirates, ya know!

By the end of the day, I was pooped. Having that many kids in one place will do that to you, but it was so worth it! Happy birthday, Riley...I hope it was everything you wanted and more!