School is back in session, fall is in the air, and it’s the time of year when we refocus on getting our homes and lives in order. Perhaps your friendships took a "summer vacation" too?  That’s why fall is the perfect time for an intensive girlfriend get-together. GirlfriendCelebrations.com proposes a September Sleepover, with the theme "Back to Girlfriend School." Let’s all learn a little more about each other!

Setting and setup

Your sleepover can take many forms, depending on your budget and preferences:

• Host it at a girlfriend’s house, with movies and/or spa treatments for entertainment;
• Hole up in a local hotel for a lockdown, and order in pizza;
• Book a "downtown" hotel for the group, see a play or enjoy a swanky dinner and clubbing;
• Get out of town and make a whole weekend of it.

The details are up to you. The point is to spend some intensive time with your friends, have fun, and ideally leave with stronger bonds than before.

Invitations

This is a special event, and a special invitation will help build excitement. Symbolize the fun of a girls’ sleepover with a pretty pillowcase invitation. Purchase some inexpensive plain pillowcases (here is an online source, but also check your local dollar store). Create an invitation on the computer and print it out on iron-on decal material. Iron it onto your pillowcases, and you’re done. If you are very crafty, you might want to use rubber stamps to decorate your pillowcases, or embellish them with bric-a-brac or ribbons. You can roll up and tie with a ribbon, and hand-deliver your invites, or fold and mail in a large envelope.

Food and drink

Your menu will vary with the type of sleepover you plan. You may be eating out, and frankly, the food and drink details aren’t as important as the activities for this particular gathering. 

Activities

Now for your "homework": Here are a few ideas for friendship-building activities. Approach them with a sense of fun and your girlfriends will want to participate!

• Share your Talents: Wouldn’t it be fun if your girlfriends "schooled" you in what they love? Have each girlfriend plan part of the weekend by leading an activity. What are your girlfriends really good at? Perhaps one girlfriend can teach a morning yoga class, one can give makeup-applying lessons, one can give a tour of the best used  bookstores in town, and one can lead an afternoon tea tasting. The sky’s the limit!
• Breakfast Buddies: At the start of your gathering, have each woman identify (on a piece of paper) one or two of the other women she would like to get to know better. Then assign each girlfriend a breakfast buddy to pair up with in the morning. (Don’t reveal the pairings until the morning!). Ideally, each pair can go off somewhere to chat over bagels and coffee (or whatever), and you can all come back together for shopping, spa-ing, or whatever you have planned for the day.
• Girl-Group Scheduling: Take this opportunity to plan your monthly gatherings for the next year. Assign each month to a different girlfriend. Use your laptop to browse GirlfriendCelebrations.com, and brainstorm party ideas.
• Friendship Goals: This is a great time for a frank discussion of your needs and potential as a group of female friends. Ask each girlfriend to think about and write down what she wants out of her girlfriends group. Is she getting it? If not, what could change that? Share your thoughts with each other. After hearing each other’s wants, perhaps you will decide to set some group goals or create a group "mission statement."  Perhaps there are things you could change to help everyone feel more supported. 

And of course, DO indulge in all your favorite slumber-party standbys: Paint each others’ nails. Play Truth or Dare. Look at trashy magazines. Complain about men. Stay up all night and talk!

Party favors

• Take a group photo and deliver a print (framed or not) to everyone after the event.
• Create a custom t-shirt, bookbag, mug, etc. with the name of your girlfriend group (or the name of your event) and the date. You can customize lots of things at www.cafepress.com (matching custom-printed thong underwear, anyone?)

We know many of you enjoy weekends away with your girlfriends. Give some of our ideas a try and let us know how it goes. We’d LOVE to hear all the details! Have fun learning more about your girlfriends!