Look Who's 2!

Look who's 2!

 

Our little guy turned 2 last Sunday.  We invited our immediate family and a few friends to join us for a birthday barbeque in celebration...although we tried to keep our numbers low, we had almost 25 people for dinner.  You can't really invite a 2 year old to a birthday party and not include their parents - suddenly one guest turns into 4 or even 5 (depending on the size of the family).  The nice thing is some of our closest friends these days are people we've met because of our kids.  When we do find time to get together our kids always have such a blast and my hubby and I look forward to spending some quality adult time with our friends - double bonus!

Although not everyone knew each other, it wasn't long before all our guests were interacting and enjoying the afternoon.  There was very little structure in terms of activities and games (very different from the party we had for our 5 year old last fall).  Instead, I relied on parents to take care of their own kids while my hubby and I prepared dinner and tried our best to be friendly and helpful hosts...easier said than done when you have 10 kids running around -ha!  Regardless, the event was a huge success.  Our little guy had so much fun celebrating his 2nd birthday.  He was so tired the following day, he ended up taking a 5 hour nap!

The Party

Theme 

Paw Patrol

Time

4pm until approximately 7 -7:30pm

Menu

Homemade beef and turkey burgers, salads, Mexican dip, 3 platters pre-made and purchased from our local grocery store (veggie, cheese and fruit), cake, cookies and other assorted treats (candy, popcorn).  I made the entire meal from scratch in order to save some money.  Although it was definitely more affordable, I probably spent between 12-15 hours in the kitchen, baking, decorating and prepping the meal.  With my daughter's birthday just weeks away...my hubby and I are starting to consider alternatives in regards to the meal.  The thought of doing this all over again while 37 weeks pregnant is rather daunting.
 

Cake 

The cake was homemade but the idea came from Pinterest.  Although it looks pretty intricate it was rather easy to put together and took very little time in comparison to most cakes I've made.
 

 

Décor

I purchased almost everything I needed from Dollarama (our local dollar store).  I made a vision board on Pinterest in the weeks prior and handmade several of the decorations.  One of my favourite ideas was buying dog bowls from the dollar store and filling them with candy and other treats.  The kids thought it was absolutely hilarious and the parents enjoyed it too.

Some decorations you'll always see when my hubby and I throw a birthday party:

1. Lots of photos - usually our favourite photographs of the child whose birthday it is: either displayed in a scrapbook, attached to a string, or a poster board. 
2. A Menu - I love decorating chalkboards so we always display the menu for our guests to see.
3. Cookies - baking and decorating sugar cookies is one of my favourite hobbies...although it's extremely time consuming, I always try to make the effort.

 

 

Goodie bags

Each child went home with a sugar cookie and gift card from the local Ice Cream Shop.  We actually saved money on goody bags this time and felt confident the gift card would go to good use.

 

 

Activities

Like I said before. we didn't plan any structured activities for the kids.  Instead we allowed our guests and their families to set the pace for the afternoon.  We did however set up a craft table complete with markers, stickers, paper and other miscellaneous craft items (we stayed away from glue and paint for obvious reasons -ha!). 

 

Some more highlights from the party...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

May and June are such busy months in our family for birthdays and other big events (graduations, recitals etc...) so I'm always looking for ways to save time and money.  In our immediate family alone my youngest son, my daughter and my husband all celebrate their birthdays within a few weeks of each other.  In addition we are expecting baby #4 at the end of June...the thought of yet another birthday and another celebration is a little overwhelming, but at the same it's all very exciting.  In order to host a stress-free celebration and avoid pre-party burnout planning ahead and starting early has always been key - and whenever possible some extra hands to help.  But regardless of how organized you think you are something is always bound to go wrong...and when it does - trying to stay calm is one thing I need to work on.  I also need to remind myself that at the end of the day my kids and hubby are never going to notice all the small details I didn't have time for or forgot to do.  Just spending time with their family and friends is what they'll remember...that being said I'll never stop trying to replicate the amazing ideas I find on Pinterest - that's just who I am and I don't think that's ever going to change.

Enjoy the rest of your week!