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Sunday, January 26, 2014

How to Host A Construction Themed Birthday Party!

How to Host a construction Themed Birthday Party! 

My little nephew turned 4 this week and his mother simply out did herself on the party scene! I can't tell you enough how much fun the kids had at this party! I know this party was a success because all 15 boys and 5 girls had a blast! Totally kid approved!
Construction Themed Birthday Party
Let me walk you through it!

Let's start with the Construction themed invitation invitation. You can get something like this on etsy.com from Fancy that Studio. Look for a deal that comes with construction party signs! We got it in the mail about two weeks prior to the party.
How to host a construction themed birthday party
 Now let's move onto the decor. Do you need some Construction themed birthday party designs? Why yes, yes you do. You can find them on etsy.com. Don't forget to hand lots of "caution tape" on EVERYTHING! She also had a real tractor parked in her back yard which you will see pictures of shortly. That is something that won't work for everyone, but hey, if you have the connections- use them!
How to host a construction themed birthday party
How to host a construction themed birthday party
How to host a construction themed birthday party
How to host a construction themed birthday party

How to host a construction themed birthday party

So in decoration summary: Lots of construction signs (she even had one on the bathroom door that said "porta-potty!"), lots of Tonka Trucks, cones of ever shape and size, caution tape and plastic construction hats.

Let's  move onto the entertainment! For a group of four year old's the fun couldn't have been any better.
She created an obstacle course. It was awesome. I will explain it, then show you the pictures! You can adjust it to what works for you.
1. Weave through the construction cones.
2. High knees through the tires.
3. Go through the tunnel.
4. Walk across the bridge.
5. Go under the caution tape.
6. Run up the stairs. (not one of the kids tripped)
7. Cross the finish line.
The weave

Through the tires
How to host a construction themed birthday party



Go through the tunnel

Across the bridge

Under the caution tape and up the stairs
How to host a construction themed birthday party
 Cross the finish line
The kids did this for 40 minutes straight. Over and over again! No one got hurt or tripped or fell, it was a ll just good fun.

Next on the list, a real live Tonka Truck and make shift wrecking ball! This is another thing that kept the kids entertained forEVER! they would run back and forth between the obstacle course and this wrecking ball!
How to host a construction themed birthday party

 Timber!!!!
In other entertainment:
A sand box full of trucks and...
A hammer table! She filled two cups up with gold tees and let the kids hammer them into some foam board with plastic hammers! They LOVED this. My little boy always wants to hammer "stuff!"
How to host a construction themed birthday party


Now for the cake and cup cakes!

How to host a construction themed birthday party


How to host a construction themed birthday party

Party Favors:
Orange and black bags full of goodies that said, "Thanks for making my birthday party loads of fun!"

I had to share this because it was AWESOME! What a great way to make life special! I was so impressed! I would never be able to do all the same things that my sister-in-law did for this party, but there is a lot I could do.

I hope this gives you inspiration for your own party!
XOXO,
 Amy

Thursday, January 23, 2014

DIY: Conversation Shirt!

                                                                                                                       DIY: Conversation Shirt
I hate spending money.


Bwuaahahahaha!
Ok. you got me.
I LOVE spending money.
But only on the things I really want to buy using the money I have saved. I am the wife of a teacher so I gotta be careful about how I spend our funds. Frugality is key. The philosophy for our family of six, "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without." I heard that from an old college friend and I loved it!
DIY: COnversation T-shirt
I love these shirts! They make me happy every time I see them!

One of the things we save money on is pajamas. Our sleep wear usually consists of over sized t-shirts and cut off sweat pants. Nothing fancy.

So when we have pajama themed pancake breakfasts at out church, I get a little stressed out because no way are our p.j.'s acceptable to wear anywhere but between our sheets in the confines of our own home!

What to do? What to do?

Run to Walmart, buy a $3 dollars shirt and a $3 dollar pair of polka-dot legging and create my own "presentable" jammies.

Here is what you need to make your own DIY: Conversation Shirts!
Shirt
Freezer paper
Puffy Paints
Exacto Knife (you can use scissors if you can be really precise)
Hot Iron
Small Paint brush
DIY: Conversation T-shirts

Directions for creating your own DIY: Conversations Shirt
This really is quite easy. I don't like to do hard crafts. I promise you can do it.
First, on your computer, type the word you would like on your shirt in you desired font.

Second, Print it out and trace it on the non shiny side of the wax paper.

Third, cut it out to create a template. I used my exacto knife.

Fourth, Iron the shiny side of the wax paper to your shirt. You should be able to read your word. If not, then you did it wrong. Please start again ant number one.

Fifth, paint on your desired color of puffy paint. Remove the wax paper before before your paint is completely dry. If you fail to do this, pieces of your wax paper may become permanently stuck to your puffy painted word. I won't tell you how I know this to be true, but, you should trust me on this.

Once your shirt is completely dry, you are ready to enjoy your shirt!

Notes:
If you will notice on my above shirt, I used both parts of the template because I got tired of cutting out the words. 

The thicker the font the better. Swirly fonts are hard to cut.

This also got me thinking...this style of  DIY:Conversation T-shirts opens up so many possibilities! This of all the simple shirts that you could are sold for so much money on etsy. Like the cute little birthday shirts that have the child's age on it. You could totally do that. Scroll down to see what I mean.
DIY: Conversation T-Shirt

 There wasn't any reference for this, but you could easily do it with puffy paint.Think how fun this would be to do for a slumber party or a birthday party with kids old enough to do their own cutting. Otherwise it would just be too much work for you!
 
$14.99 at Target and you could make one way cuter and even add a boy for a girl.

From: Pricelesskids for $16.00. Of course, buy it if you don't want to make it!
or this is fun too: Your last name with a decal.
Ok. You get the idea. Endless possibilities. Lots of fun!

Happy Crafting!
xoxo,
 Amy