Easter Fun

My child is too old for me to throw themed parties for but he still appreciates the gift baskets that the holiday will bring.  Luckily I have a whole new generation of nieces, nephews and friends' young children that I can plan these type of themed holiday parties.

For Easter this year, I planned a party for the little ones that included an Easter egg hunt, egg dyeing and small games to keep the children entertained.

The children rarely have the sweets while at the party mainly because parents don't want to deal with a child hopped on sugar.  I started designing my  treat table with this in mind.  Most of the goodies were individually wrapped so the kids could grab them when they leave.  It has become a treat for them to get a bag and pick the sweets they want to take home with them.   It reminds the children of being in a sweet shop where they can take home what they want.

For this Easter themed party, I made Angry Bird chick cake pops because my nephews are a big fans of the Angry Bird games.  I also made cupcakes with chick faces, bunny faces and bunny chocolate toppers.  There were ice cream sugar cones with cotton candy.  I made butterfly sugar cookies and animal shaped chocolate covered Oreos.  Peeps have become synonymous with Easter so I placed Peeps bunnies on skewers and Peeps chicks on top of their own nest of chocolate robin eggs.  I also found some gummy carrots that I placed with the Peeps bunnies.  The candy jars were filled with Ring Pops and Dum Dum lollipops.

I used a spring pastel color theme that was inspired by the tags I downloaded from a site.  Each child had a custom Easter basket filled with toys and candy.  I also tried to keep the menu light with finger foods like chicken fingers, mini tacos, seafood stuffed pot stickers, shrimp cocktail, veggie and dip, fruit salad, popcorn in different flavors and Annie's Bunny crackers.

The weather was chilly but sunny so the kids were able to have their egg hunt.   My sister-in-law told me that it's good I have the energy to do this for the kids because she wouldn't have the time or energy to plan this herself.  I had fun executing my ideas and the smiles on the children's faces was my reward.  

Welcome Pirates and Princesses

I helped create treat tables and swag bags for a Pirate and Princess themed party that was held December 2012.  The young guest ranged from ages five to six.  The event was held at a country club.  There were treats for each theme.   The princess treat table included vanilla cupcakes and Madeleine oyster shells that I made.  Other treats included purchased coconut covered marshmallows, water melon sours, jelly bellies, smooth and minties and cotton candy.  It was quite a challenge to find cotton candy in the winter but I was able to track some down at a children's party venue.  

The pirate treat table had cake pops that I made, popcorn, pretzels, Pirate Booty, licorice, jelly beans, chocolate coins and Dum Dum lollipops.

I chose the treats based on the pink princess color scheme and the white, red and black pirate color scheme.   The tags and printables were purchased at Etsy. I tried to place as many treats in bags and for the treats in the candy jars, I provided small paper bags for the guest to be able to take the candies home.

The princess swag bags included a wand, crown, princess cup, jewelry and candy.  The pirate swag bag included a plastic hook, eye patch, pirate handkerchief, skeleton cup, pirate felt hat, skeleton ring and necklace.

Treasure boxes and jewelry boxes contained prizes like jewelry, treasure maps, eye patch, and telescopes for the little guest that solved the riddles.

The children seemed to enjoy their prizes and treats.  I was missing some of my props at the end of the party, but all in all it was a success.