bing’s 4th birthday bug party

For months Bingham wanted a “dinosaur maker” party with pancakes and donuts. My head was busy designing t-rex’s in chef hats while googling how to setup a pancake station. And then my mom gave him a bag of bugs… my lightbulb went off, Bing’s did the same (with a little nudge) and bug party it was.

While the dinos would have been fab – and a theme I am sure we will end up with at some point – the bug theme was insanely enjoyable to put together.

Going into this I knew I wanted the invite to be covered in bugs but I wanted something truly unique to the insect themes I was seeing online. Bing loves music, the color orange and having fun. Once I decided on “Gettin’ Buggy Wit It” everything started flowing. I loved it but most importantly he really loved it.

I love a simple 2 or 3 color party palette because it makes your overall design gel in a more focused fashion. Being that we were doing bugs, and bugs live outside, grass green complimented the bold orange brilliantly. When planning I had to take into consideration that weather may restrict us from an outdoor space. Enter faux boxwood wall for the cake table backdrop – would have looked great indoors but, as you can see, it looked pretty fantastic outdoors too. (This kid and his amazing luck for gorgeous party days.)

The week leading up to the party we paper mâchéd balloons that we later used as bug bodies. We learned a lot through that whole process (like trying to dry paper mâché in 99% humidity is pointless), and did not end up with as many bug as we had planned buuuut what we did have were absolutely fabulous.

Last year we had a theme that lead us to an ideal food station. This year I wanted to tie in the concept as well. At first I was thinking about all the crafted “bug food” I was seeing online. Reality then slapped me in the face. There was no way I’d be cutting olives for ladybug heads or skewering fruit caterpillars t-minus 48 hours party time – it’s just too tedious and time consuming with everything else on my plate. So then I thought about sliders. It’s a word often used when talking about bugs, they can be made ahead (very easily) and people love sliders! One of our kickass guests surprised us with a plate of homemade bug clothespin cookies, absolutely adorable on the table. My mom picked up those ant skewers that looked like they were stealing the food – um yeah, CUTE!

The wall attached to the table are pallets with some extra boxwoods and letters spelling “SLIDERS” on top. (Notice the mix media in the word – I thought I had all those letters in chipboard. Realized day of I did not and had to use some balloons. Looks like a happy accident. I guess not throwing away things does pay off sometimes.) I used more fun song puns and silly images of Bing to decorate. The final touches were the lady bugs – big and small.

This may be my favorite food table yet.

Themed drinks, one of my party musts.

For activities we had a “Bug Dig” and “Water Pistol Art”. My amazing friend Jordanne offered her talents in face/body painting as well (she had a line, she’s awesome). The kids ate all this stuff up. I love to keep them busy at parties and these were ideal for a gorgeous summer day.

Cake, everyone’s favorite. We had to do it twice because I made Bing a “FLY” hat and forgot to throw it on him the first time. Thankfully we had two cakes.

I am still figuring out this whole “how to get pictures of people in front of the backdrop” situation. Putting it out in the yard was not successful, oddly enough. Moving it in the path of the exit to the cars and making them get a pic before they left was however. This particular backdrop was too gorgeous not to be used.

And can we talk about this party posse…

Another year, another gorgeous day, another little boy party. The bugs are super cool and all, but Bing, you always bring that extra zing to the party. We love you. (And a big thank to my man and parents. As always, cannot do any of this without you guys.)

 

 

Vendors:

Invitation/Graphic Design/Party Decor/Antenna Headband Design: PPJ Shop

Cake: Hetty Arts Pastry

Balloons: Bargain Balloons

Faux Boxwood/Faux Grass Runners: Amazon

Large Sign Printing: Vistaprint

Small Sign/Label/Graphics Printing: FedEx Kinkos

Bug Catchers: Dollar Store

 

 

 

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bingham’s yellow submarine 3rd birthday party

“Better late than never” may as well be tattooed across my forehead because here it is,  more than a year later, Captain Bing’s Yellow Submarine 3rd Birthday Party!!!(Invitation can be found HERE)

First up the food. Naturally my mind went to submarine sandwiches but instead of pre-made I opted for a sandwich station in which everyone could chose their own ingredients. This was a fairly easy way to go about feeding a large amount of people. If they were not into a sandwich, there were plenty of chips, fruit and a crowd pleasing pasta salad to devour.

Can’t not mention the sea inspired beverages.The cake table was inspired by the invite with lots of blues/sea greens and a B&W stripe background (I am not sure I can throw a party without a little B&W stripe). I loved the simplicity of the cake which also provided that bit of yellow we needed. This particular year the cake was made extra memorable but a certain someone taking a bite out of it as soon as the “Happy Birthday” was sang and candles were blown. Looking back at these I can totally tell he is plotting  That grin afterwards is one of pride. Such a rotten kid! (And soooo cute!) Thanks to our friend Lisa for snapping these for us!For decor we used a lot of clear balloons for “bubbles” (which turned more white after a couple of hours as you can see). My talented mom made coral out of wire, spray foam and spray paint while I created the jellyfish from tissue paper and paper lanterns. The yellow submarine was made by cutting out cardboard into the shape of the submarine and covering with fringed yellow paper paper. The fish were the most tedious (despite their simple appearance) made from hoola hoops, tissue paper discs, fishing line, cardboard, paint and lots of glitter. I love how everything moved in the wind, almost making an underwater effect.Some year I will create my own piñata for the kids. (I have had 3 failed attempts now but I am not giving up DAMNIT!) I did manage to create a see creature hunt with blue orbs water beads and plastic sea life toys. We also had water balloons – always a hit.One thing Bingham has yet to experience is bad weather on his party day. I don’t know how this kid manages it but every year so far… not too hot and not one drop of rain. (And I already know what happened on his 4th birthday because it was over a week ago and PERFECT!) I realize someday he more than likely will not want me to throw these parties for him. But for now he absolutely loves every single ounce of it… and I am going to savor that for as long as he’ll let me.

 

 

Vendors:

Invitation/Graphic Design/Party Decor: PPJ Shop

Cake: CakeCrazy

Balloons: Bargain Balloons

Party Decor: Walmart/Amazon/Hobby Lobby

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jettie’s fashion boot camp party

Hello.

How are you?

It’s so typical of me to talk about posting and then never do it…

Seriously though, I am so sorry blog. My excuse is that I’ve got more paying customers than ever on etsy with important pending parties. Plus I have been doing quite a bit of custom work which basically eats up my precious kid free, try to get everything done, time. Excuses…excuses, I know. But I didn’t forget about you blog. (Or you either hot stuff…aka the person reading this.)

I’ve got things to post though. Good things too. Like this crafty, girlie, super fun birthday party we threw for our Jettie all the way back in May. (Which feels like a year ago.)

Jettie starts talking party themes early – like the candles are still warm from the previous party sort of early. I had mentioned this idea last summer, thinking she would stray from it and want something else. Much to my surprise the calendar turned to 2017 and she was still talking fashion craft party. I honestly was a little all over the place with it…and not finding much online in terms of inspiration. At which point I decided to keep it simple with colors, go bold and super clean. I could not have been more pleased with the way it all came together.

Once the invite was done I was still lost on how to tie it all in. That’s when I decided to simply extend all of the elements from the invite design into the party decor. It turned out even better than I thought it would.

Jettie is all about “stations” – which is totally my doing since her 3rd birthday party and all the kitty cat fun. I knew the girls were not going to actually sew, but I wanted every activity to involve their imagination and personal style in some way. I landed on “Paint a Tank”, “Dress a Mannequin” and “Design a Pillowcase”. I always worry the stations will be a snooze fest but low and behold they never are. The girls LOVED THEM. (I think parents did a little too.)

This one sure kept me, and my wonderful helpers, busy. (Parents too!) I absolutely could not have done this without my mom. She is the best right hand (wo)man out there. It was also very special to have my precious Granny not only help us create the party, but sew pillowcases for the girls as well. My sweet MIL even got in on the action with the fabric selection part of the process. Jettie’s friends have some amazing parents who see me running around like a chicken with my head cut off and jump in to help where they can. (Angels!) And of course Sticky is always there to do whatever crazy thing I ask… except lately it’s mostly been to keep Bing out of the way of party process.

“Sew” to all of you…I say THANK YOU! You made “the cut”. (Sorry, puns and parties go hand in hand in my world.)

Something I basically have only ONE image of (Brandy, someone else NEEDS to take pictures damnit!) is the “Create Your Own Design” station. We helped the girls create their own ensemble out of plastic tablecloths, tissue paper and tape. It was fun, kind of chaotic and there was some crying. Who knew “6” was such a dramatic age?! (Note Jettie’s incredibly fake smile after a major meltdown in the bottom left image. She pulled it together though!)

Jettie Jean I can’t believe we threw you a SIXTH birthday party. Don’t ever tame that imagination beautiful girl. It’s something special, that’s for sure. (And I’m not just saying that because I’m your mom.)

Now, I wonder when I’ll get Bing’s posted…

 

 

 

 

Vendors:

Invitation/Graphic Design/Party Decor: PPJ Shop

Cake: CakeCrazy

Large Party Signs: VistaPrint

Balloons: Bargain Balloons

Party Decor: Walmart/Amazon/Hobby Lobby

Fabric for Pillowcases: JoAnn’s

Jettie’s Dress: River Island

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baileys irish cream scones

Earlier this week I posted these Lucky Charms cereal cookies for the kiddos (and kiddos alike). Never one to leave out the adult fun on St Patrick’s Day, I simply had to post something for the 21+ crowd.

And you guys, this is a really good one.

I have posted scones quite a few times on the blog because a. I love them and b. they are ridiculously easy to make. That being said though, you can go wrong with a scone really fast by overworking your dough. So don’t that. Ever. (Never ever, ever, ever….your scones will have the texture of a hockey puck. Which is never good.)

This dough in particular turned out a little drier than I am accustomed to, which made it a lot less messy to work with. I was worried the scones would turnout dry but alas they did not. These lovely wedges are full of pillowy pockets of butter with bits of chocolate and peanut butter intertwined throughout. Plus there’s booze in them. I mean, who doesn’t want one right now?

Best served with coffee on St Patrick’s Day. Nope, I take that back. Best served with coffee and Baileys on any given day.

Enjoy!

 

 

baileys irish cream scones
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • For the scones:
  • 1½cup all purpose flour (plus more for dusting)
  • 1½tsp baking powder
  • 1tsp kosher salt
  • 2tbsp sugar
  • 5tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small cubes and chilled
  • ½cup half&half
  • 2tbsp Baileys Irish Cream
  • ½ cup morsels or chips (I used chocolate and peanut butter)
  • 1 large egg beaten and blended with 1tbsp water
  • 1tbsp sugar to top scones with before baking
  • For the glaze:
  • 2tbsp Baileys Irish Cream
  • ¾cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1 to 4tbsp milk or cream for thinning
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven 425ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Place the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a food processor and pulse a few times. Add the butter and pulse 5 to 6 times....until butter is about pea size. Add the half&half and Baileys and pulse a couple of times until it's just incorporated. DO NOT OVER PULSE. The dough should look crumbly - not formed into a large ball.
  3. Dump dough onto a lightly flour surface. Pour the morsels/chips on top and lightly toss them together with dough a few time. Next start kneading the dough - 3 or 4 turns, until it comes together. Shape it into a large disk, about 1" thick and cut into 8 wedges. Place wedges on prepared baking sheet. Brush with egg wash and top with sugar.
  4. Place scones in oven, on the middle rack, for 12 to 15 minutes or the bottoms and tops begin to turn golden. (Be sure not to over bake.) Remove from oven and place immediately on wire rack to cool.
  5. While scones are baking, prepare the glaze by mixing the powdered sugar and Baileys. If it is too thick add 1tbsp of milk or cream. Too thin add a little more sugar. Once you have the consistency you like drizzle over the cooled scones. Serve with coffee and enjoy!

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lucky charms cereal cookies

Now through the end of March I am declaring random recipe posting month – I have been shooting recipes, teasing you with the “coming soon” on my insta stories (which aren’t all that exciting – but I am giving it a go), and all the while not finding the time to actually post them.

Disclaimer: I could of been posting those recipes instead of watching back to back episodes of “Grace & Frankie” buuuuut that show speaks to me on a out of this world level and I needed it in my life. [I may have a dirty martini obsession now but it’s okay.]

Sadly, I am all caught up with G&F so onto productive things….productive things like these breakfast cookies. Which are not the kind of “breakfast” cookies that are loaded with whole grains, dried fruit, oatmeal or good for you protein powder. No, you are not consuming those things here. Not even a little.

What you are getting is a cookie that tastes like your childhood. And that is 100% worth the sugar crash you’ll experience 45 minutes after you eat one.

Never having made a cereal laced cookie before, I really wasn’t sure how the taste and texture would turnout intertwined in my typical go to chocolate chip cookie recipe. [Found on Pinch of Yum – I am not sure what it is about their butter melting technique, but it creates perfect, puffy, slightly crispy on the edges, chocolate chip cookies every single time.] I did have to make a couple of ingredient adjustments, since I was adding ground cereal, but I gotta say these were winners the fist batch out.

Soft and chewy with that delectable golden bottom. The white chocolate is the milk in your 5 year self’s bowl. And oh boy when you catch a crunch of mallow…it’s like Saturday morning and you’ve got your cartoon lineup to watch sort of good.

Alright guys, St Patrick’s Day is this Friday so you have no other choice to make these bad boys these week. You, your fam, your friends…basically anyone you give a cookie to (including yourself) will thank you immensely. My husband suggested washing them down with a shot of Baileys. (Man, he really does have the best ideas sometimes!)

Enjoy!

 

 

 

lucky charms cereal cookies
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Serves: about 2 dozen
Ingredients
  • 8tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1cup Lucky Charms cereal only (marshmallows picked out)
  • ¾cup granulated sugar
  • 2tbsp packed brown sugar
  • 1tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg, room temperature
  • 1¾cup all purpose flour
  • 1tsp baking soda
  • ½tsp kosher salt
  • ½cup Lucky Charms cereal, no marshmallows, coarsely chopped
  • ½cup Lucky Charms marshmallows only
  • ½cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Preheat the one 350ºF. Place the butter in an oven safe dish and put in oven. Once ⅓ of the butter is melted, remove from the oven and allow to come to room temperature. (About 30 minutes. DO NOY over melt your butter, ⅓ is all you need melted.)
  2. Place the 1 cup cereal only in a food processor and pulse until it is a coarse powder. Set aside.
  3. In a bowl fitted to a stand mixer, place the butter, egg, sugars and vanilla. Cream until mixed well, pale yellow and slightly fluffy. Add the ground cereal, flour, baking soda and salt. Mix on low until it all comes together. Fold in the chopped cereal, marshmallows and white chocolate chips with a wooden spoon.
  4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a cookie scoop, drop mounds of dough on sheet leaving at least 2 inches in between each. You can place some extra marshmallows on top to ensure the cookie shows them off - just don't flatten the mound when doing so. Bake in a 350º oven for 7 to 9 minutes or until the bottoms begin to turn golden. Allow to cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet until transferring to a wire rack. Enjoy!

Posted in cookies, holiday fare, holidays, recipes, something sweet, St Patrick's Day | Tagged | 2 Comments