Simple Party Tips-Birthday Party Feed Zone

Hello friends!  Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  Most of the kids around us started school today.  I can't believe how fast summer flew by!  If you're one of those moms who sent her kiddos off to school this morning, be sure to check out our Back-to-School Dinner posts.  Click here and here for some fun ideas to celebrate their first day of school.

Today I wanted to share the pictures from the birthday party themed feed zone that I decorated for Wildflower Pedalfest along with a few tips I had for simple party decor.  In the photo above you can see the full spread for the feed zone, similar to what you could do for a buffet at your party.  I really like to have a backdrop for my buffet tables that coordinates with my theme.  For this layout I used three foam poster boards that I bought at Hobby Lobby.  I was able to staple these boards to the picnic tables to keep them standing up.  You could also push the tables up against a wall to keep them standing up if you don't want to staple into your table.  To decorate the boards I used the same paper fans that I used for Queen Bee's graduation party (you can see that here).  I just hot glued them on the foam poster boards rather than hanging them.  To bring in the bike theme for the Pedalfest I made a bike garland using my Silhouette cutting machine to cut out the bikes.  They are actually glued to the foam boards because I was worried about the wind, but I glued them to look like the garland was draped along the boards using red and white bakers twine.

Above is a photo of a "cake" that I made of styrofoam.  It has come in handy for several events I have hosted, it makes a great centerpiece for your buffet table and you can easily change out the topper (a number 4 in this case) depending on your party.  It was super simple to make.  I started by using a plastic scalloped cake base that you can find in the cake decorating section of any craft store.  I then layered my four styrofoam circles and glued them each with hot glue.  After glueing each layer I would insert a wooden skewer in three different places in the middle of the circle and then place the next layer on top of it so secure each layer.  So each layer is hot glued on, but there are wooden skewers to keep them each more secure.  Once you get your "cake" built it's super fun to decorate it, even your kids could help.  I used paper, ribbon, and decorative brads and just hot glued them on.

Above you can see that decorative party hats and party horns can look great grouped together on your table, they are a simple and inexpensive way to add a little fun to the buffet decor. Of course, cake stands are my number one party essential.  I love having things on different levels and the bright fun colors or pretty glass of cake stands always look beautiful.  I am always on the lookout for fun cake stands, I love adding them to my collection.  You can find them for great deals if you watch for them.   The ones pictured above were found at Target and Home Goods each under $20.

If you love the bike garland used above be sure to enter our "Life is like Riding a Bicycle" giveaway!  You could win your own bike garland and lots of other fun bike themed goodies.  Click on the yellow banner at the top of this page for details.

Back to School Dinner-Part 2

We have been busy bees around here getting Queen Bee ready to leave for college.  We drop her off tomorrow and I am an emotional wreck.  I am really going to miss seeing her everyday.  Although it's hard for her dad and me, I am excited for her.  She is such an amazing girl and I'm sure will have a wonderful experience.   Okay, enough of the mommy tears...on to happier memories.  

I wanted to share a few more pictures of our back to school dinners today.  One of my favorite ways to decorate the table for back to school dinner is to cover the table with paper and let the kids draw on it to decorate themselves.  You can use black paper with chalk or white paper with crayons, they each look great and the kids have a lot of fun decorating the table.

The kids love making a wish for the new school year and blowing out their candles in an apple (pictured above). 

Below is the table I did for Queen Bee's first day of high school back-to-school dinner.  Her school colors were yellow and brown which is pretty unfortunate for the most part.  However, they did make a pretty back-to-school table setting which is a bonus. When your school colors match sunflowers how can you go wrong?  

Here is the picture I promised last time...well, sort of.  Here is my little lunch lady in her hair-net.  This was one of our favorite back-to-school dinners.  We had a blast being the lunch ladies.  I'm sure gonna miss this girl (yes, I'm crying now).  Love you Magnolia!

Back to School Dinner

Ever since Queen Bee was a little tiny baby bee and starting preschool, over 15 years ago, we have been doing a special "Back to School Dinner" for her on the first day of school.  With her leaving to college this week I've been looking back and reminiscing on all of the fun memories these dinners have made.  I highly recommend that you start this tradition with your kids.  It's been one of my very favorites (and one of her favorites too, she even asked me if we were going to do a Back to School dinner before she goes to college...Umm- Yes, of course we are!).  

I wanted to share with my readers this week some of the fun pictures and details from our dinners to hopefully inspire you for your own.  We usually invite some of our extended family to participate but you could just do this with your immediate family if you'd like.  We start the night with a special dinner where we talk about her first day of school.  Then there's a back to school fashion show, where she models her favorite back to school outfits for everyone.  Finally during dessert, each of the kids starting the school year get to make a wish for the upcoming year and blow out a candle that's stuck in an apple.  Over the years we've tried adding different elements, but these are the things that we've enjoyed the most.  

The above pictures are from our dinner when she was going into 11th grade.  It is always so much fun to come up with a decor theme for the dinner each year and decorate the table.  This dinner my theme inspiration came from this beautiful pink mum I saw at the grocery store that reminded me of the color of a pink eraser.  I then built everything around that.  Throughout the years, some of the things I've used to decorate that have basically become back to school dinner decor staples are; large lined paper, a bundle of pencils, washi tape, books, a globe, and composition books.  I just go around the house and gather things we already have that will work with my theme and try them out.  

I look forward to sharing more of these moments with you this week.  I'm even considering throwing in a picture of the dinner where Queen Bee and I both were lunch ladies in hair nets.  I think that was her favorite. 

Throwing the Perfect Party-It's All in the Details

I wanted to share a few small details from Queen Bee's graduation party.  To me, it's always the little details that make a party special. Above, is the table we had sitting at the entry to our backyard.  I used my grandpa's old vintage suitcase and glammed it up a little for people to leave their cards. Instead of the traditional guest book we wanted to do something unique and meaningful for Queen Bee.  I decided to have guests each write their favorite memory of Queen Bee on a little square of paper and then place them in the glass jar.  It was so fun for us to read all of the memories of people she loves!  Some of our cute younger guests wrote many notes to her, it was so sweet!  They turned out to be a great keepsake from the party.  

I love thinking of things I already have around the house that I can repurpose for the party.  This red metal picnic basket was the perfect thing to corral all of the plates, napkins and silverware.  One of favorite party planning tips is to just look around your house for inspiration.  Base some of your party decor around things that you already have.  

On the inside lid of the picnic basket I taped one of Queen Bee's graduation pictures.  I used Queen Bee's graduation pictures to decorate throughout the party and added some fun travel and adventure themed quotes to some of them.  I love this one from Lady and the Tramp!  This was Queen Bee's very first Disney movie, she was obsessed with it!

Need and inexpensive, simple and meaningful graduation gift that is under $2.00?  Click below.