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Retro Rocket Party

I love to share Lauren’s parties. They are so chocked full of thoughtful detail, and this one is no different. Her oldest boy just turned three, and he is a Buzz Lightyear aficionado. OK, that may be an understatement. Since his last birthday, The Children’s Museum of Mississippi has opened. There’s a retro rocket right in their logo, and the kids absolutely LOVE to spend a day there immersed in the hands-on activities. Plus, there is A/C, which in Mississippi in July, is a game changer.

Lauren already had the venue, the rocket theme and a color scheme in mind when we started talking birthday, so I whipped up this invitation.

The party was right at noon, so the idea was to get the kids in the party room first, knowing they’d all be chomping at the bit to play. We fed them some lunch, had cake and released them into the museum as they were ready to play until they dropped. I created some large-scale printable party signage, a Pink Peppermint first. The first stop was the Party Room.

When everyone arrived it was lunch time, so the boys and girls settled in and went to work at tables covered in dark blue butcher paper. They ate from silver star-shaped plates and enjoyed UFO PB&Js, star shaped graham crackers and fresh fruit.

To drink, there was Zimbi Super Alien Juice. It’s awesome, because not only are the bottles cool looking and shaped like rockets, but also because when the drink is gone they fly! Seriously? Yes!

The kids also got these awesome alien cake pops from Mom’s Killer Cakes.

I love the way these alien pipe cleaner napkin rings turned out. Super cute, inexpensive and right on theme!

UFO sandwiches were made using Uncrustables, alien finger puppets and the clear base from gumball machine containers. Adorable!

Here’s the fresh fruit skewered on these cute silver star picks.

And here’s one of my favorite elements–a little craft pack of stickers, crayons and glitter glue that invited guests to decorate their space. How creative is that? They went to town too. Right on the butcher paper. It was great because it gave those waiting for others to finish eating something to do before the cake was served.

And while the kids ate, moms and dads had a chance to fuel up too.

There were chicken nuggets, fresh fruit, chips and other goodies like Orbit gum, starbursts and starlight mints! Love it.

And since everyone was likely to stay and play in the museum for a couple of hours, they also got these awesome space age to-go packs of Black Holes (mini Oreos), Nuts and Bolts, Shuttle Smoke (popcorn) and freeze-dried Fruit in Space. The sign read “Take Me to Your Leader.”

And when they were done with their plates, they knew where to find the trash can, labeled “Space Junk.”

There was also a chance to play Pin the Tail on the Comet. I was excited about this one. It’s Pink Peppermint’s first ever printable party game!

Finally, the moment they were all waiting for. Cake. How cute! I love the cloud effect of the icing. The bakery matched it to the invitation.

And here’s the birthday boy making his wish! They turned out the lights while he blew out the candles, and the look of pure magic on his face watching everyone sing was priceless!

Only a couple more pieces of business to attend to before turning the kids loose on the museum. Party favors were made from these great, oversized candy capsules. We added some simple paper rings to turn them into goody-filled flying saucers.

Included were toy laser guns, starbursts, bite-size milky way candy bars, glow-in-the-dark stars, spring-loaded martians, suckers and other treats.

The message read “Hope you had a stellar time!”

Guests also got a sticker to wear and filled their pockets with take-home snacks before they left the party area.

Out in the museum the kids pushed, pulled, moved and squirted, loaded, built, digested and then did it all again.

What a great celebration! Happy 3rd birthday, buddy!

Not Just Another Golf Partee

I have a fantastic golf party to share with you today. This is another sweet soirée from my pal Jenny. You may remember the adorable airplane-themed party she hosted for her son last year. Jenny is so hilarious and creative that I get all twittery with excitement when she contacts me about a party because I know it will be awesome!

This year she {and everyone else in her house apparently} had golf on the brain. Husband loves it. Son loves it. There you have it. Golf party. I think a lot of us hear golf party and think “putt putt,” but Jenny as well as Amaris, hostess of the first super cute golf party I helped with earlier in the year, have made a great case for this theme with the younger crowd. I mean, what toddler doesn’t love to beat the stew out of something with a set of plastic sticks? Exactly.
Lauren and I got busy chipping away at some party inspiration.  Here’s the custom invitation I did. It may look like I can’t spell, but the birthday boy’s name is Tate, so we went with the “3rd Annual Birthday InviTATEtional” and the copy read like a sportscaster’s script. Something a little playful and different.

They planned to set everything up outside, but on party day it poured all day long. Jenny said they had to “call a mulligan” and set the party up inside, declaring the backyard a Water Hazard. Too funny.

Here’s the first hole in the entry way.

And a couple of holes down the hallway.

Here’s that handsome birthday boy deep in concentration. Hey, golf is a serious matter.  Look at him in his little argyle sweater vest. Love.

They set up a kid-size table in the living room. How cute is that little table? Jenny made the sweet banner using scrapbook papers and used inexpensive white tissue balls hung from the ceiling to mimic golf balls.

Tate’s aunt made white cake balls, and they filled green pails on the table to look like buckets of range balls! Love it. Jenny used artificial turf from a home improvement store as a table runner, and the cake was a golf hole-shaped like a number 3.

As the invitation suggested, the kids were playing golf for the coveted “Sippy Cup.” So each child got a sippy.

And as a party activity, each was able to personalize and decorate his or her very own Sippy Cup. Everyone’s a winner! Those are the Sippy Cup tags I made with my new fab cutter. Love that argyle ribbon.

They all took home a set of plastic golf clubs, their personalized “Sippy Cup” trophy, and a sticker that said “I played a round at Tate’s 3rd Birthday!”

Despite the rain, everyone had a blast at the Robertson Country Club. Spoiler alert: I’m about to show the thank you notes we came up with. If you are expecting one, don’t go any further.

Well folks, this concludes our coverage of The 3rd Annual Birthday InviTATEtional. Thanks to Jenny for letting us be a part of the festivities. It was a blast, as always!

Heroes and Villains, The Final Chapter

We return for the final installment of our story to find our super friends eyeing the fantastic candy buffet.

A stroke of creative brilliance by no other than, you guessed it, supermom. Super candy with an element of danger and complete with superhero toothbrushes? Seriously, it doesn’t get much cuter than this.

Except for maybe this. Cityscape cake wrappers with hero and villain cake toppers. Complete with flying capes!! How did supermom make this work? Let’s just say, there is nothing Eleanor can’t make happen in her lab. A little fabric stiffener, a cup, a rubber band and BOOM! Perfection.

And yes, these cupcakes were as good as they looked thanks to Kristen of Crumb Gourmet. Check her out even if you are not local to the Jackson area. She also does cookies, and she ships!

There was even one specially designed for the birthday boy and placed on his own mini version of the industrial cupcake stand.

As this super day began to come to a close, guests were asked to fill their bags with goodies from the candy bar. They also grabbed a beginning reader comic book favor. Hero and villain options available, of course.

Truly, no ordinary day indeed. Bravo supermom and Happy 5th Birthday to our hero, Reese.

Don’t miss the other installments of our heroic adventure.

Tables and balloons

Decorations and food

Invitations

Heroes and Villains, Part Three

As we return to the story, we find our team of heroes and villains heading back outside….

Our super friends were greeted with tables perfectly outfitted (and caped) for both the good and the bad to pump up their muscles and enjoy some of that SUPER hero sandwich.

WOW! Even the balloons were perfectly outfitted for the occasion.

Let’s pause our story for a minute and talk about how adorable these Pink Peppermint Paper balloon costumes are. A perfect accompaniment to the theme. And our supermom stashed them everywhere—inside, front door and food tables. AWESOME!

About as awesome as the super weights holding them down. GENIUS!

But that’s not all…

Tune in next time to see what sweet surprises supermom has in store.

Click here if you missed the super food and drink or here to see the invitation. And for pity sake, if you’re reading (and we know you are) be one of the good guys and leave us a little comment. Thanks and have a super day!

Heroes and Villains, Part Deux

Hi there. Lauren here again. Back with more from the big day…

Our party begins on an unusually warm October day in the metropolis of Madison. Our birthday hero and his band of super friends began gearing to meet and celebrate Reese’s big day. Why, even our villains were excited about this extraordinary meeting of both the good and the bad.

Outside, the stage was set for the caped tots to face off in supermom’s awesome box village. WOW! What an awesome way to use old moving boxes and guarantee literal squeals of delight from heroes of all ages. In addition to painting and adding the great window details, Eleanor even cut a path through the middle so the kids could hide and play inside, while some super tunes from the birthday boy’s own heroes and villains iPod playlist filled the air.

Opposite the life-size village was a mini creation for some of super boy’s favorite plastic heroes and villains to duke it out in.

Meanwhile, back inside…

Supermom laid out a spread for our hungry heroes and famished villains that consisted of what else—a 6-foot hero sandwich and ONE-TWO Punch to drink. YUM!

Not to mention the plates and napkin sets. Will you eat with the good or dine with the bad? Make your choice….

To Be Continued.

Miss the invitations? Check them out here.

Heroes and Villains, Part One

I am on the road, so Lauren graciously offered to tell you about Reese’s Heroes and Villains party last weekend.

What a weekend for our supermom and party-planning hero, Eleanor. For months she has soared over everyday ideas and leapt past licensed superheroes to create a fifth birthday celebration for her son that was truly out of this world. It all began here with the design, development and distribution of these one-of-a-kind invitations announcing the theme—Heroes AND Villains. KA-BOOM! What a fabulous idea. I mean, let’s face it what five-year-old doesn’t want to see what it’s like to flip their cape every once and a while. Brilliant! So with a theme in place, a date set and a super boy to please, our mom of mystery set out to execute no ordinary party. Did she succeed? Tune in next post to find out.

Bug Out Birthday

I’m giving Lauren a much-needed break, so I’ll be the one to tell you about her son’s second birthday! Quite frankly, there’s some gushing to be done, and it’s much easier to gush about someone else’s party than it is your own. The party was so very cute, and I have so many pictures that I don’t even know where to begin, but here goes…

Pink Peppermint Parties has been all abuzz over the details for Lauren’s son’s 2nd birthday. No flies on us, for sure. For those of you who don’t remember or weren’t following me very early on, this is the adorable party she worked up for his 1st birthday.

This year’s theme was Bugs, and the challenge was to make it a party any boy would be proud of but also keep it sweet for a birthday boy still knee high to a grasshopper. We set the mood with this invitation design.

The munched edges turned out to be one of my favorite little details! Lauren even munched the flap on the envelope. Love it.

Party goers handed over these sluggy buggies to gain entrance to the Museum park. Now onto the BIG day!

The festivities were held at an outdoor pavilion. Each table had a sweet, grassy centerpiece complete with all types of creepy critters centered around these pint-sized, colorful arrangements of fly swatters and a butterfly net–all planted like flowers in large Mason jars.

Every kiddo had a place set with these stinkin’ adorable bug boxes that were personalized in buggy fashion with their names.

Also, waiting for them were butterfly nets, magnifying glasses, Build-A-Bug gummies, and these bug-eyed party hats.

There were bug-themed coloring sheets and crayons too!

How sweet is the little ladybug on that bunch of crayons? Swoon. I ran to get my camera when I saw them. I am SUCH a sucker for little details like that.

There was also an adorable game table with bug-themed puzzles, a bubble machine  (aka “the Fogger”) and COOTIE! Remember that game? Ahhh, memories…

Before lunch and cake, everyone enjoyed a bug hunt on the lawn. The kids grabbed their nets and had a great time searching for all the different kinds of bugs. Here’s the birthday boy in action.

Then it was time to munch. Note the hand sanitizer in that adorable buggy dispenser. Lauren really thought of everything!

I love the munched plates and the napkin rings too. I held one out to my two-year-old to take and she jumped a foot when she saw that spider on her napkin.

There were Slug Sliders, Roly Poly pinwheels, P, Bee and Js, Ants on a Log, Grub Worm Fruit Skewers and Bugs in a Rug.

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On such a hot summer day, the kids cooled off with what else but Bug Juice!

The adults enjoyed their drinks from these adorable homemade bug jars.

I designed the butterfly, bee and ladybug straw critters and cut them with a newly acquired piece of equipment. I was so excited by how they turned out! Rest assured there is much more party stuff along these lines shaping up!

After lunch, everyone made a beeline to the dessert table, which was highlight by delightful mosquito netting that had caught paper butterflies and ladybug hairclips, handmade by the birthday boy’s grandmother, for the girls to take home.

We also made a birthday banner with our new equipment and hung it with grosgrain ribbon behind the dessert table. It’s a little hard to see here, but it read “Happy Bday” and had a cutout of a bee in place of the letter.

The cake was a yummy chocolate bumblebee. How cute is that? I loved the antennae.

We did these cupcake wrappers with a sweet little plaid bee buzzing along for the delicious vanilla cupcakes.

And what dessert table is complete without a few grub worm gummies?

The birthday boy made his wish and everyone dug in. Look at that big boy in his buggy outfit. Too cute!

When kids and parents were all bugged out, they all headed into the Museum to cool off and have some more fun before heading home. Here’s the sticker they got before leaving.

Happy 2nd Bee-day sweet Wright!

Party ’til the Cows Come Home

So my pal Katie came to me a few weeks before her baby’s first birthday with cows on the brain. She said “Holstein” so I played along until I could Google it. Ha! (and no I’m not joking). Duh. It’s the black and white ones–the ones you picture when someone says “cow.” Anyhoo, I whipped up some invitations, and she was sweet enough to share some party pics from the big night.

They had the party at a fave local pizza joint and brought in just the right elements to make this party udderly adorable with cow print, sky blue and green accents.

. Cow Balloons

There is something about cow print that’s happy! Am I wrong? It just perks you right up. Those plate and napkins are too cute!

Cow Party Table

And speaking of too cute, this is Henry, the birthday boy, sporting a super festive cow-themed longall that Katie had made. Big bro, Thompson had a matching shirt.

Cow Birthday Bow

Here’s the cake–love the grass details and the darling cow candle. I wish my handwriting was that sweet in pen, much less in icing!

First Birthday Cow Cake

…and Henry’s smash cake. I’ve seen the pictures. He really enjoyed helping himself to it!

cow smash cake

The little guests went home with what else but cow cookies! I love this shot. The blue and green of the invitation against all that black and white–delicious.

cow cookies and invitation

And here’s one of the thank you notes.

Cow Folding Thank You Note

Moochas gracias to Katie for sharing, and Happy 1st Birthday Henry!