It's a merry Cars party!

Birthdays in our house have always been a big deal. I am totally in love with throwing parties, so this year when my son said he wanted a Pixar Cars party, I was so excited! I saw how he carried his little friend McQueen with him from day to night, so I knew he would really like a party dedicated to his best buddy. Here are some of what we did:

I opted for checkered sashes on the chairs with a table runner that was sewn to look like a road. The scene setter was a great backdrop for pictures and Aiden couldn't get over the lifesize Mcqueen!

For the table centerpiece, I found these fun printable letters that were a road theme, so I made large 'Aiden' lollipops out of paper and placed them in balloon weights to anchor them down. A simple but fun way to have an interesting table scape.

The dessert table was an extravaganza of all of Aiden's favorite things! Fruit, gum balls, lollipops, chocolate, cookies, etc. And cake of course!

 The route 66 signage was a throw back from the first movie and a trip we once did across country. The food had names inspired by the movie and all things related to cars (chocolate biscotti were dipsticks, rock candy on a stick were sir axle rods, etc).

Aiden is totally in love with the Dinoco version of McQueen so I knew he had to be part of the cake. I made this multiple layer extravaganza with white cake and lemon curd. The icing was butter cream and some of the layers were encased in fondant. A road running down it with some of Aiden's favorite characters completed the look. He couldn't wait to get his hands on his new little buddy. 

We made his bunting using checkered bunting and added a crepe paper element that was sewn so as to ruffle. On the signage itself we used the Cars font (Magneto) and if you look close you can see each letter has a road encircling it. So fun!

The drink table had a "Taste In" bunting (after Fillmore's Organic Fuel) and the table was topped with peace sign fabric. I found this cute little Dinoco label from the movie and knew I had to do something fun with it.What better than to make mini apple juice cans into oil drums! And the kids totally loved their Dinoco juice! The tower was made out of a couple of boxes wrapped in craft paper and styled with Aiden's logo and checkered flags. We also had orange juice, milk, and for the young at heart some leaded fuel (aka Starbucks espresso shots). The drinks were paired with black and white paper straws which added a nice touch.

Sarge's Supply Hut housed the favor boxes which were little race tracks with cars and checkered flag with each child's name. Each favor box was individualized to the child's interests (sewn car rolls for the automobile obsessed, dress up tutus for the girls who were into princesses, invisible writing sets for school age kids, etc). Each guest also received a booklet titled "Aiden's Favorite Things" which talked about his favorite things, had some activity pages, a CD with songs he liked, and pictures of all of the party guests (because they are Aiden's favorites too!).

We had all of the food at Flo's V8 cafe. I read somewhere that when designing the Flo's V8 cafe sign, they wanted the sign to be reminiscent of an air filter.  The woman at the auto parts store was super kind with helping me find just the right one to compliment the Flo's V8 cafe sign I made. Aiden liked it so much that he wanted it for his room!

This was a breakfast time event, so all of the food was centered around that. We had mini leaning towers of tires (Luigi's Special), quiche, hash brown in diner boats with a Flo's logo sticker, fruit kabobs, cereal (spare tires), muffins (I used one of Aiden's racetracks to arrange them), and yogurt parfaits. There were also other sundry cookies, breads, and the like. The wrapped flatware had napkin rings that had a road pattern on them and were placed in an oil pan.

Then on to the games! We had car races using Aiden's blue track (www.blutrack.com) which did a loop d'loop. One of the older kids loved manning the checkered flag at the finish line. Above is a picture of the leader board that we made with all the kids names on it. They kept going up to the board and pointing out who they wanted to race next (soo cute!). After the races, we had a medal ceremony for the winners (essentially everyone!) where the parents were the paparazzi and the kids posing in front of the scene setter.

Over at Ramone's body shop we had all kinds of fun!

The kids painted wooden cars and got Cars tattoos. The day before the party Aiden and I made the Ramone's cardboard cut out together (you can see a bit of it in the background). They also had a little area for Izzy's Curio shop where they decorated 'license plates' (foam rectangles with stickers, stamps, alphabet letters, etc). We also did a McQueen pinata (the pull kind as most of the kids here were younger). We also converted a train table into a racetrack with some motorized cars and characters from the movie. There was never a dull moment!

Then we had various decor elements to round out the rest of the space..all car themed of course!

All in all it was a really fun party and all of the kids had a great time. It was wonderful to see my son's eyes light up when he saw his favorite movie come to life. All in all totally worth it and can't wait to see what strikes his fancy for next year!

Beaded Bonanza!

So you are almost done with all of the party details, when you get to the favors. One way to go, is to use a coordinating bag for all of the typical favor schwag...bubbles, stickers, and the like. Or you could do something a bit different.  Planning and putting together personalized, thoughtful favors really is the way to go when doing a party. In the past, when we focused the favor on the little party guest's interests, it seemed to go over much better (and less likely that the favor would end up in some junk drawer somewhere!). We stayed true to that when we whipped up these favors for a 4yo boy's birthday celebration, by putting together these adorable beading kits for the li'l girl guests.

We started by assembling some terrific ethically sourced beads (from women's artisan communities of course!). Coordinated by color, we creating a very fun collection of several sorts of beads that included wood, ceramic, glass, paper, bone and metal components. They were placed in a matching wood box with a very cheery pointillist patterned lid complete with elastic, findings and instructions.

The li'l girls loved what they got! The boy party guests received a collection of their favorite things (Legos for those blocks lovers, and car books for the automobile obsessed). Later, when I happened upon some of the party guests and saw them making use of these favors I knew our little gift hit just the right note.  Junk drawer beware.. you may not have many new friends to join you!

Start your engines!

My son simply loves the Pixar Cars movie. So, when his birthday came around this year, I knew we would be reviling in all things cars. Here is a little sneak peek...

I totally love the look of paper invites, but in our electronic age, they often are not very convenient for guests. So instead, I have taken to doing an initial Evite and then doing a paper invite/reminder card shortly prior to the party (especially handy the day of if someone doesn't have a smart phone but still needs the party address). This year, I thought a pit pass and raceway ticket would be super fun.

For the pit pass, I downloaded a few images from the movie and then added each little guests name. I then laminated it and clipped on a lanyard. My son was so in love with his that he didn't take it off for 3 days straight!  Then, I made the ticket using microsoft publisher and images from the movie. The ticket bar code was actually a QR code that directed each guest back to the Evite. Lastly, we crafted the signage for the party and shrunk it down to a smaller size so it could bind the elements together. To pull it all together, we bound the lanyard and ticket with some checkered ribbon and the Aiden is 3! circle. On the envelope, I completed the look by making return address labels with the piston cup logo.

Overall, it was great fun to make. And to see the look on my son's face when he saw his pit pass...it just melted my heart. KaChow!

A special project for a special teacher

So after all of our research (see our previous post on teacher gifts), we decided that the crayon art was the perfect teacher appreciation gift. We also added a special flower arrangement too. The kids joined in on the act, which made it super fun!

I started by collecting the materials we would need. Colored pencils, rubber band, a framed dry erase/corkboard, flowers, a bit of ribbon, some post its, a jar, paper, and some flowers.

We sorted the pencils and crayons by color and the kids got to pick how the colors would flow. Then, we shaped the crayon letter by breaking apart the crayons and arranging them accordingly. They loved the opportunity to break the crayons, which was so endearing to see. Then, we hot glued the crayons down and Voila!

 Then, each child wrote a thank you/appreciation note to their teacher and this was pinned up on the crayon monogrammed board. It was super sweet to see all of their creative art work. The kids loved finished product and there was even one request that I 'youtube' the process so her mom could learn how to do it for a mom-daughter project...that is one smart cookie!

Next, we made a vase out of color pencils. The color pencils were arranged around a glass jar and they were held together by a rubber band.  Then, every child was given a flower and together they made this lovely flower arrangement. A cheery layered ribbon trim and card were perfect compliments.

All in all everyone was left with a nice warm, fuzzy feeling..adults and children alike!

Our teacher absolutely loved her monogrammed pin board and 'custom' flower arrangement. She said she couldn't wait to hang at her breakfast nook at home (after showing it for a couple of days at school of course). I felt touched that the children were so excited to show their thanks to a teacher that really brings out the best in those around her.

So, if you have the chance to work with 20 fabulously creative kids, do so...I know they will never forget the importance of showing thanks to the people that make a difference in their lives. And I will never forget feeling impressed by the care and excitement of these amazing youngsters. Such a special day!

Here's one for the teachers in the house...

As the school year is coming to a close, I am on the search for good teacher appreciation ideas. I love to find meaningful ways to express my thanks, but that can be challenging when there are so many great ideas out there. In the past, I have picked what I would have liked to receive and realized later that while it gift was appreciated, it maybe didn't resonate the way I thought it would.

Many of my teacher friends would say that the gift that they appreciate the most is one that is given all year long..that of the parent's time, concern, and interest in what the child is doing and respect for the teacher's efforts. That said, sometimes at the end of the year we want to go the extra mile and let those teachers know how much we appreciate them. So here are some fun ideas I have found to do just that!

For that teacher who loves the great outdoors (and perhaps a bit of chocolate) this little gift seemed to be the perfect fit. Being a lover of tags that are a play on words, this one left me with a smile.

What math teacher wouldn't love to be told that they rule?! Also, a nice addition (see I told you I loved a play on words, lol) for those teachers who love cookies.

I love this idea because it is super practical and pretty. I might change it to waterless hand sanitizer if they don't have a sink in their classroom.

If there is one thing that teachers always need, it is supplies! This teacher survival kit is chock full of great supplies. This may be a particularly nice gift for your child's special teacher who goes above and beyond or even at the beginning of the school year. I love the cake shape and most of these things can be had at a local Target or office supply place.

Lastly, I love this wall art. Perfect for elementary school teachers! Such a darling idea.

All in all, I think the best gifts are those where you are really able to "get" who that person is and give them something that resonates with that. If they are a gardener, then maybe a potted plant with a sign "thanks for helping me grow", if they love coffee, then a gift card from their favorite coffee place with a "Thanks a Latte" saying on it, or if they love to travel then a basket of sunscreen, magazine, and a copy of '1000 places to go before you die'. In all cases, they will really appreciate the sentiment and know you care!