Character Parties.

You know who I was before I had kids?  I was that mom who swore my kids were never ever going to wear character clothes.  I thought they were gaudy and tacky and cheap looking.  Nope, not my kids.  My son would wear caps and collared shirts and sweater vests on the regular.

Because I was kind of a pompous jerk.

Fast forward seven years and well, let's just say Isaiah spent about three entire years of his life in shirts with Lighting McQueen on them.  Turns out, if kids really really like something, it makes them really really happy to wear that something on their chest day in and day out.  So I gave in as any loving mother would, and I let him wear his Cars clothes because I liked making him happy more than I liked being the mom with the ever-fashionable kid.

But I still kind of hate character stuff, so I tend to shy away from doing character parties for birthdays because I didn't think I could find a way to do it that would suit both my tastes and be what they wanted.  But guess what, you guys.  It's possible.  And it's precious.  And it's inexpensive.  And it makes my kid really really happy.  It's wins all around.  I'll break down my son's Captain America party for you to see just how I was able to do a super hero party that even I really loved!

I always start with a basic color scheme.  In this case, I obviously went with red, white, and blue.  This helps me avoid cartoon characters on plates that are only covered by cake anyway, and it also cuts down the cost quite a bit.  Captain America plates are $3 for 10.  Blue plates are $1 for 20.  Makes way more economical sense.  Next, I raided my 4th of July decor.  I will admit I got lucky in that Isaiah's birthday is at the end of June, so I found a lot of extra little things at the dollar store, but this idea works well no matter what.  (For example, if your daughter loves Frozen, stock up now on inexpensive Christmas decor that works with that theme!)

Our table cloth was just about 3 yards of fabric from the craft store, and the table runner was simply a blue plastic table cloth I had folded from the dollar store.

Since Isaiah loves Captain America so much, I grabbed some of his own toys to help decorate.  He already had the dress up clothes and helmet, so why not use them?  That's exactly what I did for the precious background.

For our gift area, I just decorated our little rocking chair with some red, white, and blue garland and an American flag.  I also added a new Captain America shield!  This gift totally worked as decor!

I also wrapped all of the gifts in pretty red, white, and blue bags.

We added what really was a 4th of July pinata, and the kids had so much fun with that.

In the end, I think I spent around $50 in all for this party!  (And much of that was on candy...)

I also went ahead and dressed the kids in party-matching attire.  It really added to the whole ambiance.

In the end, I only spent about $50 on this entire party, and a good $20 of that was candy for the pinata.  (Money well spent!)

In the end, I think I love character parties now.  It was so simple to pull together, and it was such a happy birthday!

"T" Party.

One of my most favorite things about having little girls is how I finally get to girly things up.  

Don't get me wrong.  I love Mario parties and construction parties and playing super heroes as much as the next guy, but there's something about doting on my girls and making things floral and frilly that is just so much fun for me, and thankfully my girls love it, too! (And even more thankfully, Isaiah has friends he gets to hang out with while we do girly things!)

I also really really love learning, and so when I see an opportunity to incorporate "school" into girly things, well, that's just about as good as it gets for me.

Izzy is in kindergarten this year, and her year is really just revolving around the alphabet.  Every week, we take a different letter and learn how to write it and what sound it makes and words that start with it.  A couple of weeks ago, I sat down to plan out the next few weeks, and I noticed the letter "T" was coming up fairly soon.  This felt like a great opportunity to do something extra special and fun for the sweet little girls we know and love...

So we had a "T" party!

You guys, this was the most precious thing ever.

At the beginning of the week, Izzy and I made invitations.  This was a really great way to introduce the letter to her, and then she helped me deliver them to her friends.

When all the sweet little girls arrived, they had to get ready before we could have our tea.  I set out all the dress-up clothes and shoes and accessories I could find.

We had so many accessories and dresses!

They got to figure out which pretty things they wanted to wear, and some changed multiple times.  (They are girls, after all...)

They got advice from one another about what looked best.

But all of them were such beautiful "fancy girls!"

After about forty-five minutes, they were all ready to go.

Even this one!

Okay...on to the lunch...

We talked a little bit about manners, so the girls walked as daintily as they could to see their table.

They were so excited to sit at a fancy table and use beautiful dishes!

They sat and ate like the sweetest little ladies I've ever seen.  

And all of their manners were minded.

I kept saying, "This has to be the calmest lunch I've ever seen with kids!" They quietly talked and ate and were as prim and proper as you could ever imagine.

And the tea...oh my word it was just too cute.

They ate so well, too, and always asked very politely if they could "please have some more."

Our menu was pretty simple.  We had strawberries and crackers and these adorable sandwiches for lunch.

And dessert was cupcakes, marshmallows, and donuts.

These pearls are candy, and I thought they added just the sweetest little touch.

I added the letter T everywhere I could without going over the top with it.  We talked for a few minutes about how "tea" starts with "t," and we sang "I'm A Little Teapot."

And we ended our party with dancing because every party with little girls should have twirling involved.

We had such a lovely day with some of the lovliest little ladies I could ever imagine.

And I don't think Izzy will ever look at a "T" the same way again.

(Tap, Tap, Tap) Mom! (Tap, Tap, Tap) Mom!

My kids used to tap on my arms all the time.

And I mean all the time.

In the grocery store: tap tap tap, mom!

While I was on the phone: tap tap tap, mom!

In the middle of church: tap tap tap, mom!

I seriously disliked it, and my mom (the first grade/kindergarten teacher) has said that the tapping was the worst part of her job.  

But let's be honest here.  They don't do it to annoy us.  They do it because they really really really want to be heard.  Everything in their little brains is the most important thought anyone has ever had in the world ever, and it's really important that they let us know exactly what those thoughts are.  It's precious, really, and I want my kiddos to feel like they are being heard.  

But the tapping had to quit.

This is the simplest little trick that I picked up from some really smart mom years and years ago, and I thought I'd share it with you.  I started this a few years ago with Isaiah, and it has worked wonders, and I recently just started with Izzy. They don't always remember, but we try to employ this as often as we can.

They know when I'm in the middle of a conversation or busy with something and they have something to tell me, they simply quietly come place their tiny hand on my arm.  This is their way of telling me, "Hey Momma, I have something super important I want to tell you!"

Then, I simply place my hand on top of theirs.  This lets them know that I fully recognize that they have something to tell me and will be ready to listen as soon as I've finished what I'm doing.

They can feel free to continue to hold onto my arm to remind us both that they were going to say something or take the chance I will forget and they can go back and play.  Either way, no tapping.  No constantly saying "Momma!  Momma!" and no mommy guilt for being slightly annoyed at my kids.