The Careys: Ava's 4th Birthday Party

With us heading to Michigan for Grammy's 80th birthday party, at first I wasn't sure whether we would be having Ava's birthday party here in Georgia, or in Michigan. I couldn't NOT have a party for her, so I dove in head-first!

For her birthday, we wanted to transform the backyard into a princess tea party. I watched the weather forecasts for days leading up to the party, just hoping and praying that we could have it outdoors. Although a bit chilly that morning (in the 50's), it warmed up by the end of the party.

We used our colorful rubberized mats underneath some tables I bought at Sam's Club. The tables can extend from kid-level to higher levels, so I thought they would be good for future use. We moved all of our patio furniture into the back yard, so adults could sit near the kids. We borrowed some kid-sized chairs, as well. Doug strung a rope between two large trees in our back yard, and we hung a pinata over the kids' table. It made a nice decoration for the yard. We got some balloons from Party City with some weights, and spread them around the yard. It definitely transformed our back yard into a fun place!

I seriously overdid it with the food. I was working all week, it seemed, preparing food for this party! I really wanted the adults to enjoy it as well as the kids. Ava picked out a princess cake at Sam's Club. Here is the list of food:

Aunt Linda's pineapple cheeseball with crackers
Aunt Linda's pasta salad
Black bean salsa with Scoops
No-sugar added date truffles
Cranberry meatballs
Princess Royal-Tea ;-)
"Michigan" Chicken Salad on croissants (dried bing cherries, hazelnuts and thyme with dijon)
Pink Lemonade tarts
Fruit tray with coconut-orange marmalade dip and marshmallow cream dip
Vegetable tray
Princess ribbon jello
Kids' personal pizzas
Magical wands (pretzels dipped in blue or pink chocolate with star sprinkles)

I bought two bubble-makers from Wal-Mart, so we could have constant bubbles at the party. We had some games lined up, but the kids seemed to have more fun running through the bubbles. They were a hit!

For the games, I used some old Halloween costumes and bought a few other items... I placed a princess dress, magic wand, play high heels and a cone-shaped princess hat in one suitcase. In another suitcase I placed a sword, princely hat, velvet vest and belt. The kids were going to line up (boys in one line, girls in another) and race from one part of the yard to the suitcases, dress in the attire and run back. It turned into pandemonium, so the game fizzled out. The kids seemed to enjoy wearing different pieces of the costume throughout the party, though.

I put together some serious goodie bags for the kids. Ava helped me put all of the items in the bags. We had so much fun getting ready for the party!

When we tried to open the pinata, each of the kids got two turns and two hits per turn. We didn't use blindfolds, as we thought it would be tough enough already! Even with two turns per kid, the thing didn't even come close to breaking. So I enlisted the help of Jay, after I hit it once and it didn't do a thing.

When it broke open, it was hilarious, the kids enjoyed picking out pieces of candy. This is the first pinata I've ever seen that actually had LEFT-OVER candy after the kids were done! They each took time picking out just the right pieces of candy. Very selective. Hilarious! I had put some confetti in it, as well. The kids had fun putting some confetti in Liam's hair. :-) He looks good in pink confetti, what can I say?

Ava opened gifts after all of the guests left. She had so much fun opening them. :-) We didn't invite any of Ava's school friends to the party, as it's an all-or-nothing deal. They don't want anyone to be left out, which would've meant 8-10 more kids (at least) at the party.

The kids that came to the party were:
Alana
Kylyn
Lily
Matthew
Mekhi
Olivia
Ryan-Ashton
Wyatt

Mr. Jay and Mrs. Sarah came to the party, as well, even though they don't have kidlings. Thanks for coming, everyone!

Matthew had to head out to his baseball game after the party, so he wore his uniform to the party.