It sounded like a jet airplane was taking off from my family room

Anyone who believes that girls are louder or talk more than boys is either delusional or has never had a slumber party for 11 year-old boys. Seven boys screamed more than all the girls who have ever come to any of Bri’s slumber parties combined!

I don’t know what possessed me to allow Jake to have a slumber party after last year’s half slumber party fiasco. One of the kids called it a fighting party. I thought this year's party would be better not only through better planning but more importantly through a thorough culling of last year's guest list. Those who made the cut were polite and nice.

Well, after I stopped the boys from screaming and pushing each other around on the rolling chair it got a little quieter. I banished the chair to Lizzy’s room and tried to dull the boys’ senses with food. When that failed I sent them downstairs to watch Speed Racer. They were torn between eating the snacks and throwing gummy bears at each other. Naturally being boys the floor was covered with gummy bears and I was relieved that I didn’t buy the silly string.

They started burping like ducks and one of the boys threw up. Both my mom and dad called during the party. I thought they were in tune with me and heard my psychic call for help; but later I realized they both called to talk to Jake.

Fortunately, only three boys ended up staying over night! I hate to think of how loud it would have been with more! Girls know how to whisper, but 11 year-old boys don’t possess the gene sequence that allows them to whisper.

Last year my husband supervised Jake’s party while I took the other kids out. Surprisingly, this year when I asked what he wanted to do he volunteered to take the other kids to Boston’s Children’s Museum. By the time he got home I figured out that I probably could have doubled the kids he had to take and halved their ages and he still would have chosen to leave.