Star Wars Party!!

So the day finally came, and all my preparations paid off!

The kids got very excited with the table, and the games were a hit!


First we made R2D2s with my homade kit.
Then we finished the details on the lightsabers.

After that, we had Jedi training (I looked at some youtube videos, and this guy helped a lot).

Then it was time to crash the Death Star Pinata.

They bowled with Darth Vader and the Storm Trooper.

And finally they made explosions with Coke and Mentos.

Back inside to eat, I gave them little chicken sandwiches that are made for breakfast, called Banquet Breakfast Foods. I thought they were the perfect size.
I used one of the toys to serve some chips.

And little franks baked rolled in Pillsbury Crescents.

For drinks we had water and apple juice. The illustration in the cups is not my creation, I copied from an artist called Kyle T. Webster, and I used a silver metallic Sharpie to draw each cup.


Desserts went fast too.
Some Pretzel Rods dipped in chocolate, with a Reese's Pieces with it.

I got this awesome chocolate cupcake recipe here from 50 bakers and Counting.
The creamy frosting I got from All Recipes. It was rich and delicious, worth of me skipping my diet.

It went how I planned, and my son was very grateful for my work. We had a great time.

Monster treats are ready.

I started to make this dessert 2 days ahead, just because I wasn't sure how long it was going to take.
First I made a simple white cake using Food Network's Recipe ( I colored the batter different colors). After cooled I crumbled and mixed with frosting, making the same way as a cake pop. With this dough, I made oval shapes and froze them.
Using melted chocolate in a piping bag, I dropped around to make the "fur".

The eyes I made with white icing, with a dot of black food coloring (but you can buy sugar eyes at the craft store too).
The mouth I also made before using melted chocolate, refrigerate to harden, and using white icing to make teeth (with the help of a toothpick). The nose and eyebrows were also made with melted chocolate, using a piping bag.
They all suppose to be Chewbacas, but for me they didn't look like it/him.
So I called them Alien/ Mutant Space chocolate cake treats.

Making it pretty, making it happy.

Star Wars Party: the final preparations.

This week I finished the last details I've been wanted to get ready.
I bought some bottles of water, and labeled them with these printables I found at Topsy Turvy.

I also made Light Sabers using pool noodles. I got them at the dollar store, and cut them in half to make two Light Sabers. At the same place, I bought silver duct tape and black electrical tape, to make the handles. I cut circles with adhesive foam paper to make buttons, to have the kids putting themselves at the party.

My son decided to have cupcakes, so I made a cupcake holder stacking my two circle baking pans.

I placed black tissue paper on top of the bigger pan, and used the black tape on the sides to hold.
The smaller pan I used silver tissue paper, and silver duct tape to the side.
Then the pictures on the sides I had made a couple of weeks ago (I have the links to the printables on a previous post).

I bought a Darth Vader candle at Party City, and it made me wanted to make my own. So I grabbed all my leftover clay to make a figurine.

After baked and cooled, I used black acrylic paint, and silver and red for buttons.

The party is a week away, hopefully it can go the way I planned.

Surprise inside cake: attempt number one semi failed.

My friend Diane gave me a picture out of the paper, and I saw a beautiful cake with patterns inside. I then had to look for it in the computer.
My friend Google showed me some results of my research, and I found out it is called Surprise Inside Cake.
I decided to play a little bit, and see what my results would be...
First, I made my own version of cookie cutters, using an aluminum baking pan. I made a bunny, an egg, and a cloud.

Then I made a recipe of white cake (I used this one), placing in two different baking pans (to make a thin cake), and coloring different colors.

After cooled, I used the cutters and cut several pieces of the same pattern (the leftovers I put in a Ziploc bag for future cake pops).

Next I made another cake recipe, and also separated the dough in different containers and colored different colors. First I poured brown and green on the bottom, then placed all my bunny shape cakes in a line, along all the pan, and did the same with the eggs.

Then used the rest of the dough and colored blue to pour on top of this layer. Last I did the line of clouds, and poured the rest of the dough. Baked according to directions and waited impatiently.
After cooled, I forgot which side the bunnies where (important to know when you have to slice the cake). By accident I cut in the right place, so next time I will make a mark to know where are my patterns.
When I sliced it, some of the patterns were perfectly visible, others not. Second lesson of the day, I should have used comercial cookie cutters, that are sharper and preciser.
When I got to the middle, it was undercooked and not edible. I did not poke the middle to see if it was cooked through, afraid it was ruin the design. I should've poked.
So now I have these few slices that are kind of worth a picture.

It didn't turn out the way I wanted, but I will try again. I just don't know when.

Play with the food before we eat!

Today I was making sticky rice, and remember those nice Japanese lunch boxes with cute rice animals. And decided to give it a try.
So I grabbed everything I had in the fridge that would look nice, and my handy dandy vegetable cutters.

We made some cucumber and carrot flowers.

Then I notice the tortillas resemble paper, so I could use food coloring pens and scissors.

A cut hot dog also looked useful. And with the cucumber skin I cut cut up the skinny legs.

The rice was shaped in a small bowl, so I could place the details I cut with the tortillas.

And we decided to eat outside, since the day was so nice (and also I didn't have to look at the mess we made in the kitchen).

Paper, glue and imagination can turn into a celebration.

School Spring Party!

It is my first time going to my kids class parties. Juice boxes for the kindergarten class, and little bunny graham crackers for the third graders. As I scratched my head to make them more attractive for the parties, I saw some pictures of a panda.
So this is how I decided to decorate the juice boxes.
Using regular white card stock paper, I cut the shape of the body. Then using black velour paper to cut the ears, eyes and arms.
Glue them together and to the juice box.

Then with my Sharpie, I drew the nose and mouth.
I had some Spring stickers, so I gave one sticker for each bear.

A simple idea to make them a little cuter.

For the crackers, I used small 3oz Dixie cups, and placed the cups in a box for transportation.
I cut green paper to make "grass".

Then I decided to make pinwheels to place on each cup (that don't spin).
I used a square piece of paper and cut from the 4 diagonal corners, stopping close to the center.

Then folded 4 alternating corners, overlapping in the center. To attach them, I sewed the center.

Then I glue them in a straw, and glued a pom pom in the middle.

And this is how they will be served.

They took a few hours of my day to complete, but since I have a little time, it is always a chance to make things colorful.

Spring parties are the best.

Up to last year, I always did a birthday for my two kids in the same day. Spring birthdays, and they were little and liked the same baby shows. It was easy...
For their fifth and second birthday, I made a cupcake tower using stickers from The Little Einsteins.

I made birthday hats using instructions from Martha Stewart.

To decorate the table, I used a few colorful plastic toys to place food inside (washed well before). I made some treats using ice cream cones that I dipped in chocolate, used some sprinkles for decoration, and used cotton candy (that I bought in a bag) for ice ice cream.

I made cupcakes and used different colors for the frosting, and placed some M&Ms on top.

Made cake pops with bright colors to stand on the table.

All colorful, just like Spring.