Early this year, pre-COVID, Sophie’s birthday party guests went to summer camp, but this year they headed to the mountains and a ski chalet. When Kaja’s daughter Sophie turned ten in February, she wanted a more grown-up party. Around the holiday season, Kaja had held an apres-ski party for adults, so she decided to repurpose many of the decorations for a more sophisticated vibe.

Fake trees, sparkling gold decorations, and snowflake ornaments transformed their Hoboken apartment into a glittering winter campground.

Decorations from the adult holiday party included pine boughs and garland, silver and gold balls hung from fake trees, and little Christmas trees on the table. All of them gave a woodsy, winter vibe to the apartment.

This camp in the woods had unusual wildlife – unicorns! Kaja scooped up Cat & Jack pink unicorn onesies at Target. The guests immediately put them on when they arrived, which also kept their party clothes clean during games.

To go along with the old-school camp theme, the guests played traditional games. They divided into teams and competed to eat donuts on a string with their hands tied behind their back. Rolls of toilet paper turned a team member into a mummy. Sophie’s favorite was Pass the Parcel.

Kaja had wrapped a pink hoodie in a box, then wrapped that box inside a bigger box, and a bigger one, and so on. The girls sat in a circle and yelled out a countdown from five. They each took turns to unwrap the boxes, handing it off when the countdown finished. The girl who reached the bottom of the nesting boxes first, won the prize!

The TV room had been turned into a ski chalet with fake fire. Kaja hung temporary wallpaper to make it look like a log cabin. A flickering bulb cast realistic firelight as they gathered around in their sleeping bags.

They stayed up past their bedtime giggling. Kaja’s husband sat out in the living room “shushing” them when they tried to sneak out. Eventually they all drifted off, cozy and warm.

Sophie’s party was a fun adventure for everyone – from the mom who drew upon her creativity to turn her home into a campground to the kids who went “camping” for a night. When morning came, and parents came to pick their kids up from camp, they shuffled off full of smiles – and a few hidden yawns.

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