Every year I swear I'm not doing a big fancy party for Miss Ella, and every year she talks me into it. This year I even gave her the choice of a family trip to Great Wolf Lodge or San Diego zoo, and she still chose a party. What kind of nut job would pick a home party over pandas, I don't know, but apparently I'm raising one!
The theme she chose? A sleep over. Well, being only 6 years old, I felt a full sleep over might be a little premature, so we compromised with a Pancake and Pajama Party. For 3 days of intense decor making and food prepping, I think it came out pretty cute. She and her friends had a blast. I didn't get many photos because that's how I roll, but here's a few highlights.
We managed to get the invites out a few weeks before the event. I went with a slightly rustic vintage look and picked the colors for the rest of the decor from the images in the invite. I'm thinking about making this available in the Etsy shop for download because this theme seems to be a popular one right now.
The dining room wall was transformed with paper medallions and a large 6 to serve as a backdrop to the table. The medallions were made from scrap book paper and Kraft paper, all of which I had on hand. The 6 is foam core with ombré dyed coffee filters glued to it. The pancake images used on the invite were also included in the "Happy Birthday" banner.
Centerpieces were handmade felt pancakes and pajama tops inserted into a jar of Fruit Loops, set on a table runner of Kraft paper. Colorful and delicious!
I made a quick placemat for the kids to color, because all good pancake houses have a coloring page! They got to choose their seat at the table and mark it with their own creations.
The birthday girl and her "pajama top", which was really an on-theme t-shirt from Target. I made matching pajama pants but failed to get a good shot of them!
My girl and most of her crew! Plus, it's the only shot I got of the cake! Again, mom fail. But the cake was several thin layers of cake sandwiched with butter cream to give the impression that they were actually pancakes. Topped with a "maple" colored icing, a dollop of butter cream "whipped cream" and sprinkles, her pancake cake was complete. Other food included an egg/hash brown bake, bacon, sausages, pumpkin cream cheese French toast bake, a large assortment of toppings and syrups, and of course, pancakes! Juice boxes for the kids, and mimosas for the adults, makes everyone happy!
It was a successful party, but maybe next year she will chose the trip because mama really wants to see some pandas!
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