There's nothing small about turning 8 (Noah said, "It's life-changing.")...unless you are throwing a tiny party. When I asked Natalie what kind of party she wanted, she said, "tiny." Tiny. I love this girl who knows just how to put my creativity into overdrive.
Since Party City doesn't offer a "tiny" collection, I had my work cut out for me. And, I must admit I felt a little pressure to perform. Every year I feel her moving just a tiny bit further away from me and I know my mom-made party days are numbered.
Natalie was pretty insistent about making her own invites.
But, I enjoyed watching her work and create
special cards for her friends. Using trading card-size paper, she dipped
found objects into paint to create funky textures and designs. I used
Avery address labels to type up the party business info using a tiny 8pt
font.
We sealed the invites in several
layers of envelopes -- each one a little bigger than the last.
Party-goers entered via a tiny door we constructed from a cardboard box. Thank you,
Lemke's TV & Appliance!
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The party sign came from a prize she won for selling Girl Scout cookies.
Steve fashioned the handle using a piece of ribbon. |
As the girls trickled in, we played mini Jenga (from Dollar Tree) and Finger Twister (thanks to
Later Gator Crafts templates)
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Natalie and I made a tiny party banner by decorating Avery address labels
with colored markers. Next, we folded
them in half over a piece of twine and I cut each one into a triangle
shape.
The party hats were actually cake
toppers I found in the 75% off section of Michael’s $1 for 12 hats. |
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We played "what's in the box".
Each girl was tasked with guessing what 15 tiny items were in the box.
Such a simple idea but they loved it! |
For crafts we made elf donuts and mini vial necklaces. The donuts were made from Cheerios. We rolled them in powdered sugar and frosted them with a bit of Nutella and rainbow sprinkles. Each girl received an
elf-sized Dunkin Donuts box to tote their tiny treat home. Thank you, Pinterest!
For the necklaces, I ordered mini glass vials with cork tops through eBay for about 50 cents a piece. I brought lots of odds n' ends from my caboodle of craft supplies including sequins, glitter, grass, sea shells and beans painted blue to look like a robin's egg and beach sand (thanks to my FL transplant friend, Michelle). The craft was simple, fill the container with a bit of stuff then add clear Elmer's glue and voila!
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Steve took pictures of each girl sitting on a small chair. We used a black, plastic tablecloth as a backdrop. My brother's father-in-law worked his Photoshop magic to make them appear tiny and regal.
Each girl will receive their tiny photo as a thank you gift.
Thank you, Art! |
For dessert, the girls enjoyed mini layered cakes with yellow cake and
vanilla buttercream. I baked the cake in a jelly roll pan and cut out
circles using a 1.5" cookie cutter. To add to the tiny fun, I served
the cakes with mini appetizer forks.
To run off some of their sugar rush energy, we played a game I called "seek n'find" relay. I divided the girls into two teams. At the opposite end of the room, sat two buckets filled with uncooked rice and half a dozen hidden objects. Each girl received a slip of paper -- on it was written the name of the object she was to find before running back to tag the next person on her team. They enjoyed this game so much -- we played it twice!
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For being good sports, Natalie handed out little medals.
I overhead a couple of girls shout, "I'm a winner!"
$1 for a pack of 8 - thanks again, Dollar Tree! |
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Lastly, I read Thumblelina by Amy Ehrlich.
For many of the girls, it was the first time they had heard the tale and they were mesmerized by the story. |
While the party was tiny, I didn't have to break the bank. It's turns out BIG fun only requires a little imagination.
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