Race Car Birthday Party
When I asked my now 5 year old what he wanted to do for his birthday party he said "I want to have race cars, LOTS of race cars!" Done. A race car theme is easy, right? Well, maybe. You have to take into consideration that we had just thrown a "By Air, Rail and Road" party for my 3 year old so I would have to get extra creative to be sure that it didn't feel like the same party. Now don't get me wrong, I reused as much as I could - the car sandwich punch to make sunbutter and jelly sandwiches, red, yellow and green stop light plates, and mini checkered flags. After all, this Chick likes to save a few bucks :-)
So how did I mange to make this party fun and unique? I called my good friends at BirthdayExpress.com (how lucky am I to have friends in high places?!?). Boy was I thrilled with the ideas they gave me!!
So let's break it down, we got crafty, repurposed the unusual and threw in the perfect accents from BirthdayExpress.com:
Gettin' Crafty!
With a house full of 5 year olds, it is critical to have engaging activities to keep them entertained. At a race car party, what could be better than making your own race car? All you need are banker boxes (or really any box), pens, crayons and a few stickers. Really, it's that easy.
Cardboard Race Car
Cardboard Race Cars
Instructions:
1. Pick up a package of banker boxes at the office supply store or grab a few plain boxes from your local grocery store's recycling pile (boxes from the liquor store are also free but not quite as appropriate for a little one's party...).
2. Cut the bottom out of the box so the kids can step into it and use the side handles to hold it up. If you're feeling extra crafty, only cut the bottom on 3 sides, leaving one of the longest sides attached. Then fold the flap towards the inside of the box, 6 in up to make a mini windshield. Be sure to tape the flap to the inside of the box so that it stays put while they are decorating.
DIY Cardboard Race Car Craft
3. Collect pens, crayons, stickers, etc. for the kids to use to create their personalized race car.
Personalizing Their Race Cars
4. Create a race track in you driveway, backyard, or hallway. Simply lay down painters tape for your start and finish line. When the kids are finished creating their cars, line them up and let the races begin!
Starting Line (safety first!)
5. For a super fun finish line, add a balloon drop from BirthdayExpress.com. This was a HUGE hit at our party!
Finish Line Balloon Drop
Repurpose the Unusual
You know that this Chick loves to repurpose just about anything. I LOVE to hear someone say "Wow, what a great idea! I wouldn't have thought to use X that way!". It is especially flattering when X was just laying around the house. Free decorations are the best. So what was my repurpose of choice this go around? A race car track of course. Can you think of a better way to display cupcakes and Twinkie race cars than on a race car track? I mean come on, it's perfection!
Cupcake Race Track
I dressed up each cupcake with a toy car that each guest got to keep and I made Twinkie race cars to boot. They are super easy, all you need are Twinkies, peppermint patties, jelly beans and toothpicks.
Twinkie Race Car
Twinkie Race Cars:
- Insert a toothpick in the center of the front and back of each Twinkie (as if they were the car's axles)
- Place a peppermint patty on each side of the toothpicks and cap with 1/2 of a jelly bean
BirthdayExpress.com Must Haves
You know that I don't like to go overboard when it comes to theme decorations, a little bit goes a long way. So when it came time to throw in a few race car decorations I turned to my friends at BirthdayExpress.com and boy did they come through!
Race Car Party Favors
There was the finish line balloon drop which was not only a hit with the winners of the race, but also all of the little brothers and sisters who negotiated with mommy and daddy to take home as many balloons as they could carry :-)
Balloon Drop Finish Line
Little Man Absconding with Balloons
Then there were the racing helmets and pit passes. I mean really, what could be more fun than your own racing hat and pit pass to make you feel like a REAL race car driver as you're cruising in your cardboard race car? I of course had to personalize the helmets and pit passes with cute little name stickers that the kids just loved.
And finally, there were these awesome road cone cups. Yes, cups. The kids went nuts over the road cones (and the parents thought they were pretty cool too). They are easier than you would think to disassemble, wash, etc. and so much fun.
Given what a LEGO fanatic my little man is, I also had to send the kids home with a race car LEGO set. For a number of our guests this was their first LEGO set and the kids loved them. I've gotten quite a few pictures of little ones putting their cars together. Nothing warms the heart more than a text the day after the party with a picture of your guests playing with their favors and a note that says "we had a fabulous time!".
LEGO Race Car Favors
Well, there is one thing that warmed my heart more. At dinner that night I asked my 5 year old if he had fun at his party. His response? "Mama, this was the BEST day EVER!" :-) And that my friends is what it's all about!
Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick #1
p.s. A HUGE Clueless Chick thank you to BrithdayExpress.com for the awesome samples! They all get a Clueless Chick thumbs up :-)
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