Hey everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend! We had a big birthday bash for my oldest and middle daughters, on Saturday!
In my introductory post, I spoke of my three girls. Brielle is my oldest. She’ll be 6 on September 19th. Gemma is my middle. She turned 4 on July 13th and Eva is my baby. She turned 1 on May 6th. Seeing as how they’re all 2 birth months apart, I thought I’d save myself some stress and do a joint party for Brielle and Gemma. We decided (when I say we, I mean I did some serious Pinterest searching, showed them adorable pics and promised them a petting zoo,) on a cowgirl theme. “Not our first rodeo.” When I picture these parties in my head, I like to pretend I’m Mindy Weiss, planning an elaborate celebration for an A-list celeb and 300 of her closest friends, with an unlimited budget. In reality, I’m a crafty mom with a Cricut, with an Amazon Prime membership and a SAHM budget. I love going all out. Crafting and planning is therapeutic for me and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love when I get complimented on everything I’ve planned.
I love to find an idea on Pinterest and see how I can put my own spin on it. My favorite part of the girl’s party, was the “popcorn bar,” I put together. I used my Cricut Explore Air 2, to make a banner and cut “directions,” out of vinyl and put them on a chalkboard. I upcycled old jars from the spice rack I had to have (but sat on my counter collecting dust,) when I made my wedding registry, labeled them and put in different powdered flavorings. I used my Hamilton Beach air popper, to pop a bunch of popcorn… (way too much, if I’m being honest. I tend to have an issue with excess…) and put it in metal buckets and apple baskets. I wanted to give it a bit of a trail mix vibe, to go along with the country theme of the rodeo, so I also added peanuts, M&M’s, white and milk chocolate morsels, pretzels and mini Reese’s, as an extra treat!
In addition to the popcorn bar, I contacted a small petting zoo, to come as entertainment. They brought bunnies, a giant rabbit, goats, a pig, chickens and a duck! It was adorable. The animals were so well behaved and the kids loved it.
Saying I saved myself from stress, is probably a lie. I decided to cook this party, instead of having it catered. It was mostly slow cooker food… pulled pork, homemade creamed corn, mac and cheese, etc. My mom and aunts always volunteer to help make a dish or a dessert, which I’m super thankful for, so in the grand scheme, it wasn’t that bad but it still involves a lot of running around. It’s hard to socialize with guests, when you’re making sure there is enough food and trying to remember what menu item was forgotten in the fridge, (this time it was the salad,) but all in all it was a successful day. Their cakes were gorgeous and delicious, the girls had a great time with their friends and cousins and they were beyond lucky to receive an unimaginable amount of presents, which I am so grateful for.
At the end of the day, the hard work is worth it. Brielle told me this was her best party yet and that alone gives me motivation to do it again next year… no matter how many times I threaten them with a sheet cake and party pizza. (Which they’d probably be just as happy with but their mama is EXTRA and just can’t help herself.)
Wicked Girl Mom 