On December 3, we celebrated Hannah Kate's 4th birthday with a baking-themed party. I can honestly say this was one of my favorite parties. It was a lot of fun planning everything, and Hannah Kate absolutely LOVED it. It's going to be super hard to top it next year.
We had sandwiches cut in the shapes of H and cupcakes . . . chips and dip . . . cupcake bites . . . chocolate dipped pink marshmallows . . . and, of course, birthday cake. My sweet friend made the cake. It was in the shape of a huge cupcake. And the top half was nothing but icing . . . a child's dream and a parent's worst nightmare! And, for thank you goodies, each child was sent home with M&M cookies in a jar and instructions for baking.
When everyone arrived, we first got ready to bake. All chefs need a chef's hat! I had printed each child's name on iron-on transfer paper and ironed it to the brims of the hats. So their first task was to make a flower for their hat using cupcake wrappers.
And here are all the little chefs!
After the hats were finished, we set to "baking." I gave each child half of an English muffin. They then made their own mini pizzas using Hannah Kate's favorite pizza toppings - cheese, pepperoni and black olives.
Once the pizzas were finished, I popped them in the oven. Then each little chef was given a cupcake and various sprinkles and colored sugars so they could decorate their cupcakes.
After everyone enjoyed eating their creations, Hannah Kate opened her gifts.
There were so many wonderful gifts from family and friends . . .
And then, of course, the BIG moment came. I had set aside Hannah Kate's big sis shirt as the last gift she opened.
I really don't think that in that moment she realized what was going on, what was going to happen. And I'm also pretty certain it was a shock to everyone at the party. The first reaction was, "How cute . . . Julie made her a shirt." And then the message on the shirt began to set in. There were squeals and cheers all around. And I think Hannah Kate was still a little confused at that point.
We had sandwiches cut in the shapes of H and cupcakes . . . chips and dip . . . cupcake bites . . . chocolate dipped pink marshmallows . . . and, of course, birthday cake. My sweet friend made the cake. It was in the shape of a huge cupcake. And the top half was nothing but icing . . . a child's dream and a parent's worst nightmare! And, for thank you goodies, each child was sent home with M&M cookies in a jar and instructions for baking.When everyone arrived, we first got ready to bake. All chefs need a chef's hat! I had printed each child's name on iron-on transfer paper and ironed it to the brims of the hats. So their first task was to make a flower for their hat using cupcake wrappers.
And here are all the little chefs!After the hats were finished, we set to "baking." I gave each child half of an English muffin. They then made their own mini pizzas using Hannah Kate's favorite pizza toppings - cheese, pepperoni and black olives.Once the pizzas were finished, I popped them in the oven. Then each little chef was given a cupcake and various sprinkles and colored sugars so they could decorate their cupcakes.After everyone enjoyed eating their creations, Hannah Kate opened her gifts.There were so many wonderful gifts from family and friends . . .And then, of course, the BIG moment came. I had set aside Hannah Kate's big sis shirt as the last gift she opened.I really don't think that in that moment she realized what was going on, what was going to happen. And I'm also pretty certain it was a shock to everyone at the party. The first reaction was, "How cute . . . Julie made her a shirt." And then the message on the shirt began to set in. There were squeals and cheers all around. And I think Hannah Kate was still a little confused at that point.I just love surprises so it was a lot of fun to pull this one off. It was a great time of celebration for so many reasons. I feel like that, even now, the party continues!