Finally….the long-awaited CAKE party post! I know I’ve been a little MIA over the past few weeks; this party is definitely a big reason why (the other reasons will just have to wait for another post), and I can’t wait to share it with you! So, without further ado, I give you Trouble’s 3rd birthday party:
Party Details:
- A cake-themed birthday party wouldn’t be complete without LOTS of cake (and cupcakes and cookies and cake pops….), but that was just way too much baking for me to do all on my own! Three of the cakes–the Coconut Cream Cheese Fantasy, Chocolate Lover’s Delight, and mini butter cake–were ordered from my local Publix Bakery (Airport Road location). The absolutely gorgeous cupcakes and amazing whoopee pies were from Trouble’s very favorite cupcake store, In Your Face Cupcakes in downtown Punta Gorda. Words can not describe how delicious they were!
- The main focal point for the cake-themed party was (of course!) the cake table, which included a lot of small details to pull it all together. The green tablecloth was just a length of inexpensive fabric that I hemmed at both ends, and the letters spelling “CAKE” were cardboard letters I bought (on sale) at JoAnn’s that I spray-painted. I needed LOTS of cake stands for all those goodies. I already had 2 on hand, then I found a couple on clearance for $7 each at Kirkland’s, and the rest I made by gluing dollar store candlesticks to inexpensive plates (also found on clearance at Kirkland’s).
- The party favors were cupcakes–again from In Your Face Cupcakes–on top of mini cake stands, which I made by gluing 3″ wooden candlesticks to 2 1/2″ wood discs, then spray painting them in bright colors. Since the spray paint was conveniently leftover from my Rainbow Family Room project, they cost only about $0.75 apiece to make! (I made the little stands for the flowers at the same time, using larger wooden candlesticks and discs.)
- Rule number one for planning a party is to never let your guests leave hungry or thirsty. We kept the food simple but satisfying, serving Papa Murphy’s Take ‘n Bake Pizza along with some fresh fruit & veggies, chips, string cheese, & Go-gurts. Self-serve beverages included homemade lemonade (from our lemon tree), coffee, and a selection of soda, bottled water, juice boxes, & beer.
- Activities included a simple craft station, where the kiddos could decorate brightly painted wooden frames with stickers or color their own cake or cupcake coloring pages. I strung a clothesline along the sliding glass wall, which provided a place to hang all the masterpieces and display a few photos of the birthday girl. Other kid-friendly activities included swimming–always a hit here in Florida, especially with the fun addition of Trouble’s new waterslide–and later, after the crowd had thinned out, watching Gnomeo and Juliet.
- The entire party was strongly inspired by the cute Sweet Spread invitations I found at TinyPrints.com, but the idea for the party theme directly from Trouble, who, when asked what kind of party she wanted, said “CAKE!” I think she got her wish, don’t you?
Special thanks to:
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Ruth,I thought you might be interested in knowing that Lalaloopsy (the dolls with the cute button eyes) will be coming out with a Little sis named Trouble! I know this is a nickname you use to protect your daughter I don't know if you ever use it with her but I thought that it was soo cute!
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I think she ABSOLUTELY got a CAKE party!! :) LOVE it. You did a fabulous job, and it was so fun to see these pics!! :)
WoW! I love the decoration , really nice stuff, did you paint the cake-themed paintings on canvas yourself?? IT looks so good, well done, I even fell like having a cup cake now... lol I am pregnant so I want to eat everything especially sweet things. Beautiful party!
My teeth hurt just looking at the pictures. It looks like a fun day and a LOT of sugar. How many guests did you have?
We had about 30 kids and 35 adults. It was pretty crazy! :-)
Those cupcakes look SOOOOOOOO yummy! I think Trouble definitely had the right idea for a party! I have driven by that cupcake place in Punta Gorda at least a dozen times but never stopped. It looks like I'll have to try it now!
Oh you should. They are SO good!
Oh my goodness, what a party! The cake table is so beautiful. It looks just like the invitation! I can't imagine how long it took to make all those decorations. How long have you been planning?
I've been pinning ideas on Pinterest for a couple of months but I didn't really start working on anything until after the baby shower a few weeks ago. For 2 weeks I pretty much did nothing EXCEPT work on party stuff!