THE TWINS

Happy 39th birthday anniversary today to my husband's grand-nieces Aron and Angie.  Similar in look, they were referred to as "The Twins" all their lives, but they were certainly not "identical", and have grown to be two distinctly different people.  Until they were adults, my husband could not tell them apart.  Below is an article from 2010:

                  SLUMBER PARTY

When my husband's twin grandnieces were ready to turn 13, they were visiting at our home and they said that they wanted to have a slumber party to celebrate their birthday.  I said that I had always wanted to have a slumber party when I was a girl, but I had never been able to do those kinds of things.  Angie excitedly said, "We could have a slumber party HERE!"

The next day their mother Robin called and asked, "Aunt Sue, were you serious about the Twins having a slumber party at your house?"  Of course I had NOT been serious about it, but I didn't miss a beat and answered, "I'd love to have the slumber party at my house!" and afterwards, I was so glad I did it.

I sent out invitations which read,  "Aron and Angie Henry and little Suzy Shirkey-Raypole request your presence at their combined slumber party!"  I sent the invitations to my friends and told them that they had to wear nightgowns and fuzzy slippers.  The twins invited many of their friends.

On the evening of the party, five of my friends came.  My friend Bobbi was the most original as she drove to my house, already dressed in her nightgown, wearing fuzzy slippers and curlers in her hair. Another friend asked her, "Are you crazy?" but changed into a nightgown at my house  A third friend fell asleep at 9:00 p.m. and the other two crashed before midnight.  They demanded the beds and the girls were on couches and in sleeping bags.  Gerald and my mother retreated to the safety and quiet of the upstairs bedrooms.

The party lasted all night long and there were prizes for all the events.  We had contests and prizes for singing, dancing, makeup, hairdos, cooking, screaming, and a scavenger hunt and the GRAND PRIZE was to be awarded to the one who stayed awake the longest which meant that I had to stay up ALL night to know which one was awake the longest.   We watched movies, made popcorn balls, Rice Krispie treats, brownies, and ordered pizza.

The next morning, my husband, while looking around at all of the debris, asked, "NOW, will you learn to quit whining about all those things you didn't get to do when you were a kid?"  Throughout the years, Aron and Angie and I would fondly recall "our" slumber party.

At least fifteen years after the slumber party, a young woman came up to me in Kroger and asked, "Mrs. Raypole, do you remember me?  I was at The Twins' Birthday Party at your house!" As we reminisced, she said, "I won the makeup contest at the party!"   I responded, "And I won the screaming contest!"