If you are a regular reader (and if you aren’t, why in heavens aren’t you?) you would know that I have been preoccupied with Gilbert’s 9th birthday and planning for his Ninjago party.
Well the party has been and gone and it ended up being pretty awesome, even if I do say so myself.
I managed to actually recreate a couple of Pinterest projects and I’m pretty sure they weren’t a complete fail…although I will be totally devastated if I one day find my own efforts immortalised as part of a Pinterest “Nailed It” meme.
Pinterest inspiration
My own effort – not a complete fail…
Apart from these small, yet significant successes, the main focus of the party was on my boy. And he happened to declare it the best day ever. Which was music to this mumma’s ears.
This was the first time we had invited kids from his mainstream class to our home which was a big deal for all of us. It was also the first party where we had entertained a mix of mainstream kids and kids with autism.
We were worried about all sorts of issues beforehand. Would the kids all get along? Would Gilbert be able to cope with all his friends together at one time? Would it be too overwhelming for some of them? Would we overload the kids with sugar?
In preparation for the party, we made a few decisions to make things easier on us all:
- We limited the timeframe to 2 hours so we had the best chance of getting out without too many meltdowns.
- We planned set zones throughout the house so kids could choose an activity and seek out some quiet time if needed.
- We also allowed them to have free play so they could just be – they ended up jumping on the trampoline and chasing each other throughout the house.
- I also decided to get the cake made – I know my limitations and while I am capable of icing biscuits and adding M&Ms to them, decorating a cake is another matter entirely!
The birthday boy and his green ninja cake – I certainly could not have done it better myself!
I learned quite a few things too:
- I was unaware that my son owned quite so many toy weapons – no child missed out on a gun or a sword as they chased each other around the house. As he rarely plays with toys himself, this was an eye opener!
- You always manage to over-cater for kids parties. At this rate, we will be consuming party food for the next week.
- It doesn’t matter how much planning or money you put into a party, kids always manage to have fun!
It was a really positive experience for all of us and I’m so pleased we took the plunge and had a go. The best part for me was seeing my son happy and among friends – that was indeed a gift beyond price.
Oooh!!!!! Pinterest is dangerous!!! That cake looks AWESOME! I love the m&m’s tray!! I wish we had an M&M world here so we could pick and choose what colours we want 🙂
The cake was great – a local bakery did that for us as I am not a master cake decorator! M&M World….mmmm….! That would have saved me quite a bit of time and then I would have had enough red and yellow ones to have completed my display – apparently there are less of those colours than the others (true story!)
Glad to see you didn’t have any Pinterest fails – job well done Mumma!
I was lucky I didn’t have any fails, although I’m not sure that I would have publicised them if I had! 😉
Great job with the party Kirsty !!!! I am so glad to hear that it went so well and that everyone had such a good time – hope it bodes well for future parties.
I hope that the overnight stay at the zoo was lots of fun and not too stressful !
Love, hugs and positive energy !
Me
Thanks for that! The party went better than expected which was all I could ask for. The zoo trip was huge but absolutely wonderful (I really need to get a few posts prepared as it was so inspiring) I’m even thinking of taking the whole family there during the next school holidays!
“Coooooooool!” I’m quoting my son who is leaning over my shoulder drooling over that awesome cake. What a great party. 🙂
Thanks Aleney. Yay – I must have nailed the target market then!
They look pretty good to me. I’m taking notes and pinning soon for my six turning 7 yr olds.
Happy Birthday Gilbert.
Thanks Trish! And the research phase of the party planning process is so important, isn’t it? Thank goodness for Pinterest, even if it can be the work of the devil at times!
Great party! Lego parties are always fun – my son adored his. We are now in the middle of planning party number 2 – birthdays consume the first half of the year in our house! Hope you have fun at the zoo xx
I’ll have to start planning the next one as well Josefa as Delilah turns 3 next month! But I think we will just stick with a simple family party for her celebration – I have many more years of school parties ahead of me, I don’t want to go out too hard, too soon!
Pinned your m&m’s!!! LOL I am a sucker for anything creative.
Why thank you – I feel a bit special having something pinned! Being a non-creative type I’m not usually a source of inspiration or creativity – you have seriously made my day Alex!
Glad it was a success, I did one better for No.1’s party and made it 1.5 hours, we did the 5 party games and it was 25 minutes til pick up so we did the cake and then BYE BYE everyone! You did a super job. xxx
Well, I think I will be coming to you for tips for my next party Em – Delilah turns 3 next month so I may be calling on your services sooner, rather than later! 😉
Anything to help a friend in need! x
Looks great! Pinterest can be so dangerous, but you did really well. Happy boy, happy mumma. And Happy Birthday Gilbert!
Thanks Sophie – Pinterest is dangerous but I have learned my lesson from previous disasters 😉
Well done on the party success lovely. I am so glad it all worked well and everyone had a lovely time. Good idea with the separate areas set up. The toy weapon part made me giggle. Boys huh?
Fairy wishes and butterfly kisses #teamIBOT
Thanks Rhianna – and yes, what is it about boys and weapons? The most amusing part is that Gilbert never plays with them himself (he has never really played with toys, he’s always preferred books) so I’m truly at a loss as to how he got quite so many – I don’t think I have ever bought him any myself…hmmm….
You did a fantastic job! Great lessons learnt and well prepared! Go you! Yay!
Thanks Zita! I certainly learned a lot and it was definitely a step in a positive direction after the debacle that was my daughter’s birthday party last year… 🙂
I did the M and M thing in a giant case last year for a rainbow party. It looked so pretty and made a great table centre piece.
I think you have definitely rocked the pinterest mum thing this week- well done!!
That would have looked awesome Jess – I’m just pleased that we still have some M&Ms left, shows that I do have a little bit of self-restraint left!
Wow, what an effort!
My son turns 4 shortly. I am so glad my Mum and nieces are on hand to help. I don’t bake or any of the rest of it. I take care of the invites (which are usually pretty damned good if I say so myself!). I help set up, organise jumping castles etc. They do the cake and cooking.
Did you do this all yourself?
Becc @ Take Charge Now
Thanks Becc. I iced the biscuits and separated the M&Ms but I got the cake made – so much easier that way and so much better than anything I could have come up with! Good luck with your son’s upcoming birthday – I hope he loves it!
Left over party food – winning! Haha. I’m such a Pinterest addict… although the inspiration can be dangerous for sure! What you’ve re-created looks great!
Thanks Bec. I’m actually proud that we still have some M&Ms left over… 😉
Fantastic effort!! I love Pinterest!!! It is such a great source of ideas!! My boys love Ninjago as well.
Thanks Carla – it was actually quite a good effort on my behalf considering how non-housewifey I am!
Oh those biscuits are awesome! What a great idea. Pinterest is so dangerous sometimes, but it certainly has its place – especially at party times. Enjoy the leftovers 🙂
Thanks Lara – the leftovers were very much enjoyed!
Looks fantastic, I am POSITIVE neither of those will find themselves on any Nailed It meme. Glad your son had a great time! x
Thanks for that Aroha – just the boost of confidence that I needed!
Sounds like a fab party, Kirsty! And I love how you set down some realistic guidelines. I don’t think I’ll ever make the boys a birthday cake…that will always, ALWAYS be outsourced!
Thanks Grace. I tried to make a cake for Matilda’s birthday last year as she had a classmate who was coeliac but it wasn’t the greatest effort ever – I learned A LOT from that party, hence the decision to outsource the cake this time around! I’d rather not have to deal with that particular stress and anxiety, thank you very much!
I know this comment comes a bit late but I’m so glad you’re son had a good birthday! You’re biscuits look yummy!
Thanks Rita – I’m just so relieved it ended up going so well!