Girly Spa Party

My baby girl turns 7 in a couple of weeks.  With summer birthday around a holiday, we have chosen to hold her party a couple of weeks early.  This works great for being able to pass invites out at school and catching friends before the frenzy of summer travel and activities.

This year we did a spa party.  Back in February a local spa had a half-price deal on one of the local deal sites for a party for 6 girls.  The price was right and the wheels were in motion for a fun party.

With such a fun inspiration and theme we set out to create a fun day for the girls.  Given that the party was limited to my daughter and just 5 of her besties, it was easy to go all out.  Couple that with some amazing clearance deals from the dollar section at Michael's and a few craft projects it was an amazing party!

To start, I searched Pinterest and created an inspiration board.  We loved these nail polish invitations so that is what we started with.  They were a definite hit!

This was our starting off point.  We next started going crazy with the pink, black and zebra theme.

The party started at the spa with painted nails, edible chocolate facials, up-dos, face paint, body glitter art and making their own bath salts.  If you have a spa near you, I would totally look into doing this.  The girls had a ball being pampered!

Then we headed home for a fun photo shoot. I scoured my daughters room for hats, boas, sunglasses and more. The girls glammed up and I took their pictures - the entire group, BFF's and individuals. The back drop was simply a dollar store pink plastic table cloth stapled to the wall and embellished with some black & pink crepe paper. I quickly edited a few photos using PicMonkey and sent them off to Walgreen's. Each of the girls got to take their photos home with them.

Pizza and cake were a big hit.  The girls loved the nail polish cake.  I used 4 6" cake rounds, stacked up and topped with a stack of 3 cupcakes for the wand lid. The surprise for the cake was in the layers.  I did 2 layers of zebra stripes using rings of chocolate and strawberry cake sandwiched between a pure chocolate and pure strawberry layer.  The girls loved this.

Decorations were kept simple but the highlight was the handmade nail polish pinata.  I had seen a similar one online for approximately $23 (after shipping) and knew I could make one for way less.  Using a structure made out of a single sheet of poster board, I taped it together, added a couple layers of paper mache and covered with strips of tissue paper that had been cut to look like fringe.  Easy 2 hour project (over the course of 2-days due to drying time) for less that $4.  Technically it was free because I already had everything in my craft room to make this!

We didn't end up using the pinata since we simply ran out of time with all of the other activities.  My daughter is excited to use it as a decoration in her room.

One of the first gift bag projects I came up with was a hand mirror.  Hoping to find a pink mirror at the dollar store with no luck I found these great black ones.  I simply used some pink zebra scrapbook paper cut to the shape of the mirror and applied with a couple layers of decoupage.  The girls loved these (and so did I).

I lucked out one afternoon at Michael's when I found a variety of items including bath fizzies, bath poufs, small pink frames and these great journals for 25 cents each.  Using some zebra scrapbook paper, I simply cut a new cover to size and used spray glue to adhere them to the journal to fit the theme.  Total cost of the gift bags was under $3 each.

This left room to do a couple of craft projects to help fill the time.  This was a sleep over party and our spa appointment was at noon so we had a lot of time to fill.  The girls made ribbon flip flops using some ribbon I found at the discount fabric store in town (3 rolls for $1 - score) and pink flip flops I found on sale at Michael's for $1.25 each.  I also bought some $1 wood picture frames and 50 cent craft paint to make a photo frame for one of the photo booth pics!

Finally, since no party is complete with out thank you cards, I took one of my daughters photos and created a thank you card using PicMonkey.  (Have I said how much I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE PicMonkey - well I really do!)

How fun is the posterize effect with one of the newest features - sketchedy mats.  So fun!  Any who, we sent these to Walgreen's and will be mailing them out this week!

Now that the party is over, it is time to actually get ready for her actual birthday! AND I NEED A SPA DAY!!!

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Mini-Cupcake Shooters

Happy 4th of July my fellow Americans!  What a fun time of year.  I can't wait to see some fireworks tonight - although I don't think I would be disappointed if they were RAINED out!  With the drought as bad as it is in Arizona right now and the heat absolutely scorching, a nice rain shower would beat fireworks everyday of the year!

To celebrate the 4th I decided to try making some cake push-ups.  Ever since I saw this fun twist on a party treat from My Cake School on Tip Junkie, I had to order some of the push-ups.  Of course, I had to wait until JB Prince got them back in stock.  I split the order with my friend Heather over at No Business Like Sew Business.  We both are very excited to try a variety of treats using these fun, reusable push-up containers.

Aren't they just so fun on the dessert table.  Here is what I did...

Baked up some mini-cupcakes without liners.

Assembled my push-ups and punched the stems into a 1" thick piece of Styrofoam lined with foil. 

This worked fine although they wobbled every which way.  I need to come up with a push-up holder - ah, I am feeling a DIY project coming on!  Watch out!

I cut my cupcakes in half.  I then placed a dollop of frosting in the bottom of the cup, followed by the bottom of the cupcake, frosting, top of cupcake, frosting and finally, sprinkles.

They were a big hit with kids and adults alike!

We had just got out of the pool, that is why the kids are wearing their pool ponchos.

I can't wait to try more fun treats in these great push-pop containers!

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5 Tips for Making a Rainbow Cake

I learned a few things when I made my daughter's rainbow layer cake a couple of weeks ago.  I found that these 5 simple tips made making this cake a breeze and just had to share.  The cake was a big hit and I encourage you to give it a try.

MY 5 TIPS FOR LAYER CAKES

1. Liquid food coloring - this mixed in much easier and cleaner than I expected. I found the gel and paste color to difficult to mix in and left specs of intense color. I was afraid the liquid would not produce the bright, intense colors but it worked great and I really did not have to use that much color.

2. Freeze the cake - it is much easier and cleaner to work with frozen cake. You tend to have less crumbs, you don't have to worry that you will crack or break the cake layers when handling them and you can easily cut off the domes with a serrated knife.

3. Freeze layers of frosting - I actually learned this awesome tip from Angry Julie Monday and it is brilliant. Simply trace the bottom of your pan onto a piece of parchment or wax paper, flip it over and frost the interior of the shape. Place in the freezer. As you layer your cake you lay the frosting on top of the cake layer and peel off the paper. Genius. No crumby mess and gloppy goo!

4. Line your plate with parchment strips. Place a small dollop of frosting in the center of the cake and place your first layer of cake. Gently slide 4-6 strips of parchment under the edges of the cake. Make sure that none of the plate is showing. Frost your cake and don't worry if you are a bit sloppy. When done, gently pull the parchment out from under the cake. You should have minimal clean-up on the plate. You may need to go back and fill in a few spots along the bottom of the cake where the frosting pulled away but this makes for a very neat finished cake.

5. Use straws as support stakes. Cakes of this height and number of layers require supports to hold them in place and not allow the layers to slide. Straws work great. They are very easy to trim with a kitchen shears.

Here is my picture tutorial for making a rainbow layer cake.

2 white cake mixes and some food coloring (see tip #1, I ended up and used liquid coloring instead)

Mix up cake mix according to package directions, divide evenly into 6 bowls (1.5 cups each)

Stir in coloring - color of batter will be the color of the final cake.

Bake cakes, let cool.  Wrap each cake with plastic wrap and freeze.

Make your frosting.  I used this non-dairy whipped cream type frosting that a friend picked up for me at a Mexican store in South Tucson.  It was great since it was so light and not too sweet.  Normally I would use the Wilton butter cream frosting as it is always good too.  I know some people have used canned frosting as well so pick your favorite and mix it up.  You will need ALOT.  I used this entire quart container which when whipped up filled a huge mixing bowl and it was JUST enough.

Draw circles on some wax paper and frost with a generous layer of frosting and freeze.

Freeze enough frosting layers to go between each layer of cake.

Assemble cake by alternating layers of cake and frozen frosting layers.

If necessary, slice off the dome of each cake to ensure your cake is flat.

Line the edge of your cake plate with strips of parchment or wax paper so that when you complete your frosting, you can remove them and have a clean plate edge.

With a cake of this height, supports are necessary.

Straws are an easy solution as they tap in easily and can simply be trimmed with a kitchen scissors

(much easier than using a wood dowel).

Frost and decorate your cake.  It is okay to keep this simple since the

real surprise and beauty is when you cut into the cake.

Cut and enjoy!!!

Rainbow Pool Party: Part 2

Friday I gave you a fun little sneak peek at the fun rainbow themed pool party we threw for our girly today. The party was a HUGE hit and of course, the girl was in heaven.

GOODY BAGS

 I really despise goody bags at birthday parties.  They are generally filled with a bunch of trinket trash and penny candy (I know, that shows my age as NO candy is a penny anymore).  That being said, of course we had to have a parting gift for our gracious little guests.  I generally like to spend a touch more and give the kids one slightly larger item.  Since we were tasting the rainbow on this party, I bought regular sized bags of Skittles and placed them inside dollar store paper treat bags - 10 for $1.  We decorated the bags with more pinwheels in rainbow colors.  I love the display on the bench (my Dad made for us) in the front entry!

FOOD DISPLAY

I love so many of the really fun party food displays all over blogland with colorful backdrops for the food table with fabric or streamers.  Well, with the rainbow theme, crepe paper was a no-brainer - 6 colors for $6 and we are good to go!  I measured the wall to determine how long to make the streamers so they hang just below the table.  Then I simply folded them over a piece of shoe molding that was left in the garage when we bought the house.  I stapled each piece and hung it up using string and 3 push pins.  Easy peasy lemon squeasy!  I love the effect.

We kept the food simple as we knew we would be outside most of the time.  We ordered a 6' sub from Fry's and I made a rainbow striped fruit tray, a colorful veggie tray, chips, and dip.  My favorite dip was the homemade tomatillo salsa I had canned HERE.  Yummy!

TASTE THE RAINBOW TREATS

I definitely had a lot of fun with the sweet treats.  I made a rainbow layer cake and chocolate cake balls along with a glass filled with skittles.  I look forward to sharing some of the tricks and tips I have for making these tasty treats!

LIFEGUARD SHIRT

My hubby's duty for the party was to be the lifeguard and pool monitor.  While the parents stuck around, we knew it was important that we make sure that all of the kids were safe.  And why is it that when you are looking for something you know you have seen a zillion times, you can't find a single one.  I checked 4 or 5 places for a Lifeguard shirt.  Since I couldn't find one, I headed over to JoAnn Fabrics and picked up a $2.50 red shirt and some iron-on letters for $3 and made one myself.  A little zinc oxide on the nose and whistle (the very same whistle that used as a lifeguard from ages 14-24!) and he was a hit!

FUN TREAT

Who doesn't want an ice cream cart at their summer pool party?  The cart was loaded with dilly bars and other novelty treats from DQ.  So much fun!!! If you are in Tucson - make sure to call the DQ on Tanque Verde to have this cart at your party!

SPLASH!

It was such a fun day and our birthday girl had an awesome time celebrating with her friends.  We truly enjoyed the company of their parents too!  We have incredible friends!

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Baking Adventures! Cake Bites!

I don't know about you, but this past month has been crazy with birthday parties, end of the school year parties, end of the soccer season parties, school performances and promotion ceremonies.  I swear we have had not had a quiet day in over a month.  With all of these parties and potlucks, I took it as an opportunity to try my hand at making a version of cake balls and treats on a stick which seem to be all the rage in blogland these days.

First let me say this, Bakerella is pure genius and I love the inspiration from this incredible site.  I love all of her pops and bites and the many variations that others have done out there.  The decorating of these is so fun and so much can be done.  For our end of the season soccer party I decided I wanted to try my hand at these.  A couple of years ago I tried to make some cake ball pumpkins and failed miserably with the cake simply falling off the sticks while I tried to dip them, I decided to try the bites.

I headed to Michaels with my 40% off coupons in hand and picked up some candy melts and a couple of molds for making your own peanut butter cups. 

Following the directions from Bakerella, I baked my cake, let it cool, mixed it with the frosting (and yes, this is very messy but very fun at the same time).  I formed my balls and stuck them in the freezer for a couple of hours but I will say, they really didn't freeze as hard as I thought they would.

I then melted my chocolate candy melts according to the package directions by placing them in a freezer Ziploc bag.  Once the chocolate was to the desired consistency, I simply snipped a small corner of the bag and carefully filled my molds a little less than half full and placed the balls in by twisting them gently to make sure that the chocolate reached the top of the mold.  It took a bit to get my rhythm down but this part went easier than I thought.  These set up pretty quickly, however I was glad I had picked up 2 of the molds as it would have taken forever to finish the over 60 balls I had made.

The next part was really easy, I simply melted the red candy melts in a small, deep bowl and dipped the balls in so that the red met with the chocolate.  I dusted them with a pinch of sprinkles and then my 4 yr old son placed a mini-M&M on top.  I know he ate as many as he placed but that was okay as he so wanted to help.

One of my daughter's friends has Celiacs Disease (and while I looked at making gluten-free cake, I  just couldn't bring myself to paying $5 for a box cake mix so I decided to try using marshmallows instead.  Using the same "bite" concept, I replaced the cake ball with a marshmallow.  I had to pinch the bottom of the marshmallow to make sure that it fin in the mold.  I think they turned out great and she was so excited to get her very own special treat!

My daughter has a summer birthday but her school designates a day at the end of the school year for each child who has a summer birthday where they get to go on stage during their flag ceremony to be recognized.  They also get the opportunity to bring treats for their class.  My daughter's day was the same day as their Kindergarten promotion ceremony and breakfast potluck so I was concerned about sending cupcakes.  The kids were loaded with donuts, muffins and bagels in the morning.  To keep it simple, fun and something that everyone in class could enjoy (her friend with celiac's is also in her calls and her teacher has a gluten allergy as well) we made marshmallow pops.

I let the kids help make these.  I put the marshmallows on a stick and gave each kid a small bowl of sprinkles.  They dipped the marshmallows so they were covered about halfway up and then dipped them in their bowl of sprinkles.  I used my silicone mini-muffin pan and when they finished covering them, they simply placed them back in the whole to set.  This worked great so that they did not stick together.

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the finished product.  They were cute and were a big hit at school.  The kids loved them and her teacher loved the simplicity of it as well as cupcakes in the classroom can be VERY messy.

Garbage Party - The Event

Today is my baby boys 4th birthday!  He is such a blessing and we love him so much.  This week of celebrating has been awesome and his party day on Saturday was a huge hit.  Our little man loved his recycle truck cake as did everyone who was there.  The garbage truck needed more wheels as everyone wanted a mini-donut wheel.

To add to the garbage theme, I planned a couple of simple and silly activities for the party.  First, the kids went outside (how we love the beautiful Arizona winter days) and made some noise by running and jumping on rolls of bubble wrap.  Everyone young and old loves to pop those little bubbles and what is more fun than when you are encouraged to jump on them.  It was loud (kind of like fire crackers) and lots of fun.

The second activity let the kids pick up trash using a "garbage grabber".  The kids loved picking up cans, crumpled newspaper and bottles and putting them in a box.  I think several mommas may be buying a "garbage grabber" as it encouraged a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds to clean up.  Really, is there anything better than that.

This is what I have learned - there are ALOT of garbage trucks on the market.  I believe our little trash mogul has a fleet of over 10 trucks now and no two are the same!

Happy Birthday Bubba Z!

(This last photo was taken at preschool this morning as all of his friends sang to him - cha, cha, cha!!!)

Garbage Party Sneak Peek

EDIT:  Visit part 2 of the festivities here to learn more about our garbage party!

Our garbage and recycle loving little man is turning 4 next week so we are celebrating with a garbage & trash party.  I will give a full run-down of the festivities after the party but I couldn't wait to share some of the decorations and the cake. 

The Recycle Truck Cake & the Inspiration

I am really proud of this one.  I love how it turned out and my sun is already bouncing off the walls and he hasn't even had any sugar laden frosting yet!  I used bread pans to make the cake and shape them in to the truck and mini-donuts for the wheels.

Inspiration for the decorations was pretty easy - reduce, reuse & recycle...or raid the trash bin.  I made the banner using a roll of blue ribbon and I cut triangle penants out of the Sunday newspaper.  Since I don't have a fancy dicutting machine (insert hint to my husband here that a Cricut or a Silhouette machine would be awesome) I cut apart a simple Happy Birthday banner from the dollar store.  I would have loved to cut up food wrappers and boxes for the letters but I ran out of time and well, I love the bright colors of the banner.

I found these small blue garbage cans at the Dollar Tree several months ago and just knew I had to pick them up. They are going to work great for chips and pretzels for the party.

The party is in the morning and I must get some sleep.  I will share more about the fun after we celebrate our little garbage man turning 4!