Party Inspirations from Children's Books

Our homes are filled with books of all kinds! What better way is there to find inspiration for a party than in the charming illustrations and events of your child's favorite stories?

Over at plumpudding, Megan blogs about her unusual carrot cake inspired by the delightful book Shall I Knit You a Hat.

She draws all sorts of ideas from her bookshelf, listing the work that inspired each one, ranging from bite-size cookies, a face-painting station, a pinata, to, of course, a book corner! Plans were in the works for a craft project, and I think it was a fantastic idea. I only wish I'd had a party like this when I was a little girl!

To read more about Megan's party and her many book-ish inspirations, click here. Her blog, plumpudding, is a crafty resource on its own, so be sure to add it to your regular reading!

This reminds me of a party I didn't attend but only heard about: a friend threw a Dr. Seuss-themed first birthday party for her son, Sam, complete with Dr. Seuss books as party favors. Of course he wore a custom tee with "Sam I Am" on the front, from the infamous Green Eggs and Ham. A similar idea could work well for twins, especially if you get those "Thing 1" and "Thing 2" onesies and perhaps make a Cat in the Hat Hat cake.

Some of my favorites children's books that I think might make great party themes:

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Real Mother Goose

Where the Wild Things Are

The Little Engine That Could

The Tale of Peter Rabbit

Not to mention the many books for older kids that could spark imaginations, from Harry Potter to The Chronicles of Narnia. I could write a whole series of posts on this. Perhaps I just might!

What favorite books would you use for your kids' party themes?

HT: The Motherload.

Jamie Lyn's First Birthday Balloon Cake

My longtime friend Jamie Lyn sent me a series of amazing pictures from her children's birthday parties. She is especially talented at making her own cakes! I'll start with the first and include more pictures and ideas in subsequent posts. Believe me, you are going to love her latest frugal kids' party ideas! She reminds me that the first birthday is easy, but by the second, the kids usually want to have some say in their theme!

This balloon cake was for her son Will's first birthday three years ago:



Simple, cute, but also very creative! The balloon "strings" are actually licorice strands. She tells me she found affordable balloon napkins and plates at the Dollar Store. I could even imagine making a small balloon cake just for the birthday boy or girl...though they would probably have too much fun with the licorice to even get started on the cake! And wouldn't this be cute for triplets or other multiples?