remembering aniq’s 2nd birthday where we somehow managed to get almost all the guests to dress up their kids as superheroes, i had a sudden flash of inspiration for auni’s 2nd and thought, maaaybe they’d humour me again this time round.
i’d developed a ‘fascination‘ with the fairy tale classics in the recent months, having realised what a treasure trove of rather twisted, backdated values, ideals and morals they represented, as i re-read (and over-analyse) them as an adult. it made me question how relevant these stories are in our modern times, and whether they are worth being retold, being so far removed from that world – where characters lived in woods amongst preying creatures; where occupations were predominantly menial; where the females were mostly depicted as being vapid, preoccupied with beauty, and matrimony was the ultimate goal; and where the males were the overall archetypal saviour. there was so much going on in those stories that the more i read them, the more i baulked at the logic, but LOL-ed at them anyway because come on hana, THEY’RE JUST STORIES FOR CHILDREN, right? who cares if Father Bear and Mother Bear slept on separate beds, or whether Rapunzel’s hair could actually withstand the weight of a grown man, or why anyone would want to kiss a dead woman in a glass coffin unless he’s a serial necrophiliac?
but the moralist nazi in me says, all stories MUST have a moral, dammit! so i wrangle them out as best as i can after every “The End”. i mean, surely there’s value to these classics for them to be so time-honoured, however preposterous they may appear to such a sceptic reader. and i do get that the universality of the themes of these western tales serve the purpose of creating a kind of collective consciousness. plus, anything that promotes literacy and the love of literature wins points in my books any time.
so anyway, for me, the one story that stands out the most with its richness in symbols is the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. from the colour red, to the chasteness of the cloak, to the naivety of the girl, to the wolf’s nature and true intention…
man, i could go on, but i won’t! coz for now, let’s just focus on HOW CUTE the children at the fairytale party were, shall we? 
let me introduce to you the characters who appeared:
here’s Peter Pan, who flew in specially from Never Never Land for the party.
Snow White, who took time-off from the slavedriving dwarves. (btw, she won Best Dressed for her mummy’s excellent effort in creating and sewing her costume from scratch. kudos! the non-domestic goddess me is still in total awe.)
I think Alice’s Queen of Hearts’ husband, the King of Hearts, came in his mommy’s best shawl and brooch.
Aye aye, Captain Hook! where’s ye eye-patch, matey?
The Wild Thing put on his best brandon flowers’-inspired guyliner for the occasion. “let the wild rumpus begin!”
The Three Blind Mice. See where they, err, hide.
2 out of the 7 Dwarves came with their chaperone. (along with 4 Giants.)
a little fairy who was supposed to be Puss in Boots (notty pussycat!) but i guess her footwear was sent for mending at the Elves and the Shoemaker’s.
the activities kept them busy…
attempt at group photo. call in the trolls!
Gingerbread Boys and Girls, thanks to Kak Chomel, esah’s sister. off you go, into the baskets, before the greedy foxes eat you up.
special thanks to Keatar, my SIL’s BIL, for making these masks with his own bare hands. (ok, i’m sure there were scissors and glue involved, heh.)
special thanks to Ayu aka Simply Cupcakes @justjetaime, for presenting us with the cake. 
“and i’ll HUFF, and i’ll PUFF, and i’ll BLOW THE CANDLE OUT!”
to family and friends who came to share the fun, on behalf of auni – THANK YOU! we’ll make darned sure auni remembers this birthday for the rest of her life. she’s already said “i LIKE!” when we asked if she liked her birthday party. (we also just reminded aniq of *his* 2nd superhero party by showing him the photos as evidence of our equal effort – he kinda forgot but now he’s really pleased with his parents, so.. yey us? ha ha.)
ps: special mention to the Daddy for his kickass side dish of homemade mexican chilli beans in taco shells and wraps. (trivia: his original plan was to cook kachang pool and nasi lemak, but i convinced him otherwise – lol.)
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