Stranger Things Birthday Party

I planned a very last minute Stranger Things party to celebrate Hugh's 8th birthday this week. I texted a couple of friends on a Sunday night, took a trip to Target and the thrift store on Monday and had everyone come hang out on a Tuesday. Everyone loved it and I vote for more middle-of-the-week-parties to look forward to in the future!

I used Joni's endlessly creative blog to provide some inspiration for the party. I hit up our local thrift store for the needlepoint art ($4.50). The Christmas lights I already had and Shiloh painted the alphabet wall on paper and then we cut them out and hung with masking tape. We attempted to create an Upside Down in our garage using a few spooky Halloween spider nets and viny wood from the yard, but it really only looked cool after dark so we'll practice some more for Halloween and then I'll report back!

I was not prepared for how nostalgic the food would make me feel. Despite it being 90 degrees out I wanted to make big pots of chili with warm cornbread. I used The Pioneer Woman's recipe, but tweaked it to resemble more of my grandmother's version, which (not to brag or anything) has won some awards at chili contests. I'll post the recipe at the bottom of this post.

I added real Coca Cola and Hugh was giggling so hard the entire night that he was drinking "coke".

God, fourth children. 

Everything else was so easy, which is maybe my favorite part of the 80's...it feels like no one was trying to impress anyone. They were literally just sticking boxes of cream pies and Nilla wafers out for snacks with cokes and calling it a day. Which is also maybe why we have so many health problems now, but that's a conversation for another day...

I made the non-fussy-Lipton-onion-soup-mix-dumped-into-a-container-of-sour-cream dip to go with the rippled potato chips and had a flashback to the 80's/90's version of my dad dunking chips on Sunday afternoons growing up. 

I am the kind of person that just rinses and repeats a good thing when I find it, which is this classic chocolate cake recipe  from Smitten Kitchen. The cake is not too sweet, super simple, and the perfect size for simple family celebrations. When I'm hosting a party I just double the recipe and make 2 layers.

Perhaps my favorite part of the night was how many children got Hugh cheeky birthday cards that caused absolute eruptions of laughter. His reputation precedes him and I love that he has people in his corner who get him and appreciate him.

I don't think I'll ever know someone quite like Hugh. While I live on the edge of slightly terrified as his parent, I mostly find myself absolutely enjoying the front row seat of raising him in my thirties. He is wildly inappropriate. Endlessly creative. Passionate about all things Hollywood and Fortnite. Whip-smart. And deeply loves his people.  

Happy birthday, son! You're the love of my life.