It's been a while since I visited this blog. Life is whooshing by at a frenetic pace and I rarely have a chance to sit on my computer and do something that's not work related. Anyway, summer came and (sadly) went in an instant. We had a wonderful one. Lots of sun, fun, and adventures. Including Eamon's big fifth birthday bash--or shall I say
bashes. Because you only turn five once in your life, we threw Eamon TWO parties, one with our family and close friends and one with our friends from Eamon's preschool. The thought of having one gigantic party with up to 40 children under 10 was way too scary for me, so we decided to split it up into a two-day event. And we pulled it off, somehow.
Party #1 was a bug-themed bash. All summer long, we discovered all sorts of creepy crawlers in our backyard, so I thought why not roll with that theme for the party. Perfect for a little guy, right? Setting the stage was this cute invite from Paperless Post:
I then popped on over to Pinterest for some party inspiration and realized you could go in a million and one different directions for a bug party. I opted to keep it simple with one craft (decorate your own bug jar), a game (pin the tail on the bug), some "entertainment" (face painting) and a bug hunt. Not a real bug hunt, of course, but one that would involve the kids searching our back yard for plastic insects.
As luck would have it, the weather looked BLEAK on party day. Rain, rain, and more rain. I tried not to stress as I quickly came up with Plan Bs for all of our planned outdoor activities. Fortunately, we have a basement, so I set up the craft, games, and facepainting there. Not ideal, but it worked.
 |
| The basement, ready for a party! |
 |
| Bug Jar Decorating |
 |
| Pin the Tail on the Bug |
 |
| Facepainting |
 |
| Bugs from way back. |
About an hour into the party, the sun broke through, and we decided to hold our big bug hunt outside. Before the guests arrived, Aunt Mo and Mark went out and hid about 300 plastic bugs throughout our yard. Then, the kids took their jars and ran wild seeking the bugs out. They were all so cute and excited, and it was an awesome way for all of those little ones to expend some energy!
 |
| Nora showing off her find. |
After the hunt, it was time for cake. And not just any cake. Since I basically massacre any type of dessert I attempt (at least those that are supposed to be "pretty"), I usually stick to cake pops, because they're simple and you can make them cute with a couple of sprinkles and candy eyeballs. I decided to re-created Nora's first birthday caterpillar cake pop creation, and it was a big hit with the kiddos--and the birthday boy
.
 |
| Love the look on E's face. Pure joy! |
We also had some delicious bug-themed cupcakes made by Erin and Grandma, and I couldn't resist whipping together some classic Worms in Dirt.
 |
| These grape caterpillars were also a hit with the kids. |
For favors, I quickly threw together a "Bugs and Kisses" goodie bag with Hershey Kisses and more plastic bugs. Because who doesn't need 50 fake roaches, millipedes, and mantises in their house?!
 |
| The kids took these goodie bag homes, along with their bug jars. |
We loved having all of our friends over to celebrate Mr. E. I'd say our little bugs had a pretty fab time!
