Posted on: Sunday, January 16, 2005

Dad's first slumber party one to remember

By Michael DeMattos

It all started nearly six months ago when we asked our daughter how she wanted to celebrate her birthday. She announced without hesitation that she wanted to have a slumber party. And without hesitation, we agreed.

I want to start by saying that the girls were absolute angels. All eight of them!

That's right, eight second-grade girls with hearts on their sleeves and stars in their eyes.

I should have known I was in trouble when the kids were being dropped off. One by one, the cars pulled up the driveway and while the girls ran into the house I chitchatted with the parents. Not surprisingly, they were every bit as nice as their daughters. Most of the parents had made plans for the night, and most of those plans included a quiet dinner alone.

One parent said that he had considered getting us a bottle of wine but thought better of it when he considered the task at hand.

"We can't have you crashing before the kids," he said. "You will need all the energy you can muster."

He was right, of course, though the next morning he brought by a lovely bottle of pinot grigio that seemed more like a salve than a trophy.

Still, the conversation was mostly light and easy. It was the knowing looks that creeped me out. Perhaps it was just my imagination, but it seemed I could hear the mother's silent voices saying, "Good luck, you kind but foolish man, you will need it." The fathers simply stared at me, questioning my sanity, silently wondering if I had lost my mind. Yes, I knew right then that I was a fish out of water.

Just an assistant that fateful night, it was my wife who planned out all the activities for the girls. There were clever crafts, yummy food, cool movies and fun games, including truth or dare. Thankfully, I was kicked out of the room for that game; evidently I did not meet the minimum criteria for participation.

The night went off without a hitch. By 10:30 p.m., the girls were lining the living room floor tucked into their sleeping bags watching "The Lizzie Maguire Movie." They seemed to know every line by heart and broke into song right on cue.

One by one, just like how they arrived, each went down for the night, with the last child falling asleep at about 1:30 a.m.

To be honest, I was pooped by 7 p.m. and bone-weary by 2 a.m. But while my sleep was brief, it was solid, and I woke up in the morning to the sound of laughter.

Their energy was boundless and their intelligence uncompromising. I followed as best I could. They had fun and so did I. It was like being at a carnival complete with roller-coaster rides and fun houses, and I was proud that they let me be a part of it.

I survived my daughter's slumber party!

It sounds like it should be emblazoned across a T-shirt.

Oh, but don't worry, dads, it was not that bad. I had a great time. It seems to me that girls really do have more fun, and at this age, they are even willing to let us fathers join in. You have to enjoy it while you can, because soon the opportunity will pass and all you will have left is the sweet memory of children's laughter and the feeling that the world and your little girl are whizzing by you at light speed.