Super Sleuths

Last Saturday, we celebrated Hopie's 10th birthday by having a "Nancy Drew" themed party. Friends had to help Hopie solve the "Case of the Missing Birthday Present" by finding and following 10 clues hidden throughout our church. The church was a great, safe place to have the party because there was ample space to hide all the clues. I loved seeing their enthusiasm as they figured out one clue after another. They were so cute!! (Can I say that about 10 year olds?) I have had so much fun planning this party, and have been working on it since she came up with the idea last summer. Oh, don't get me wrong. I love planning their parties, but I am not that organized. No Martha Stewart tendancies here. When I say "working on it," what I am really saying is when I was out shopping anytime during the last 6 months, I might run across something for the party that would work really well. The Dollar section at Target was a big help, especially when they would have items on sale for 50% off. (Don't you love seeing the sale signs in that section? I feel like I am instantly at a garage sale of really cool stuff.) And Dollar Tree had huge magnifying glasses that were just too unbelievable to pass up. (See pic) I can't imagine why anyone would buy these other than planning a Nancy Drew party....and I am pretty confident that there aren't too many of those going around. :)

If you haven't seen the Nancy Drew movie from last summer yet (this is what prompted the idea for the party, I think), it is coming to DVD sometime in March. It has an excellent message for young girls on being comfortable with who you are, even when your peers ridicule you. Nancy is depicted as both classy, fashionable, and responsible. A breath of fresh air from a lot of characters pre-teens seem to be interested in at the moment.