Friday, March 11, 2011

Chase's 5th Birthday Party

Chase wanted a circus birthday party to celebrate turning 5. She started talking about her party in December, so we've been mulling it over (planning) for quite a while. First we needed a clown....hmmm.... and then we needed two tightrope walking sisters....




















And a ticket booth, where children brought their tickets, and - if they were taller then the squirrel's tale, could come in and play (after getting a stamp and red noses)...














We needed popcorn bags (note to self, in humid climate, even if popcorn is popped only 1 hr before the party it gets soft and chewy).







































Elephant rides and pin the nose on the elephant, which in planning seemed a good idea, but kids seemed confused about the elephant and why he didn't have a nose. (Note, interesting social science experiment)













Feed the lion and ring toss ...














Tightrope walk... (made more difficult with a beanbag on the head and an umbrella in the hand)














Decorate your own party hats, along with another two tables (I didn't get pictures of) with tattoos and the other with masks.




















Pass the parcel














The cake (aka... cupcakes in ice cream cones) with marshmallows inside the cone. Note to self, don't do these the night before (as I did) and stick them in the fridge, as it makes the cones soft and chewy. I had a minor panic attack after thinking, oh goodness, what if the kids are disappointed they aren't ice cream? Well, turns out they were just happy it was pink and white sugar coated sugar. Didn't even matter the cones were chewy.

For a quick demo, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD3WBqSAfEs

And then I had my second panic attack when Jojo Poppins (our helper) and I were trying to figure out how, exactly, to keep them upright. In the end, I turned paper cups upside down, slit an X into the bottom and stuck the cone down the center. It worked wonderfully - although there was one casualty.














Some guests...







































































The birthday girl...

























































































































































































I love this picture. Chase is passionate about food she likes, like an Italian (see below). She would have rolled around on and BATHED in these cake cones if she could. She ate two and wanted more.

































And then, all hopped up on sugar, I thought a performance would be a good idea. It worked until I tried to actually organize it. Everything else was a free-for-all, so I think the kids were actually, like, what the heck is that woman trying to do to us?














Kids could enter and exit from each side of the stage above.

I have to say, I need to throw more parties for children so I can stop stressing out so much over these things. I was WAY tired after this party (I blame the fact Mads has been up quite a bit the last three nights).

Another year - hard to believe! Happy Birthday, Chase!

And now for the next part of your birthday month - 1) your birthday at school and 2) your actual birthday.

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