"MISCHIEF MANAGED."

"I solemnly swear...

...that I am up to no good."

Herbology

Potions

Care of Magical Creatures

Ollivander's Wand Shop

So, Porter also played Ollivander behind the scenes and handmade over 20 wands for the wee witches. To say he is an overachiever is an understatement. The students went to the wand shop upon arrival, reached into a cauldron and drew out a tag that named the wand they were destined for. They then entered the store (Porter's storage barn) and found the wand with the matching tag. The tags listed the core material of the wand (dragon heartstring, veela hair, phoenix feather or unicorn tail hair), the type of wood (willow, elder, ash, etc.), and the length of the wand.

The Sorting Ceremony

We were relieved that the Sorting Hat didn't place any first-years into the House of Slytherin. We had Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws galore. Yay! Callie got in Gryffindor!

RAVENCLAWS

HUFFLEPUFFS

GRYFFINDORS

Hogwarts Staff

Rubeus Hagrid, Care of Magical Creatures

(Jeff Coop, Melanie's fiance. One girl asked if he was really that tall when I told them we will have a 1/2 giant in the family. Precious. And yes, he is THAT tall.)

Professor Pomona Sprout, Herbology

Professor Growth, Herbology

Professor Minerva McGonagall, Care of Magical Creatures Assistant; Transfiguration Specialist

Monika Wilson, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts

Severus Snape, Potions

Potter Party Preparations

Say that 3 times fast!

OK, so the party of the century, otherwise known as Callie's 9th birthday party, took place on Saturday. Admittedly, this one got a bit out of hand! I think the combination of Callie's enthusiasm for the books (she's in the middle of the fifth one), all of the uber cool ideas on the internet, and Porter and I both being fans caused us to go a little bit overboard. But, I wouldn't take back a minute of that time after seeing her delight in the day. Here's a sneak peek into the pre-party prep.