let s party Birthday party ideas 16
»» Mr. Roboto MOM Blog Editor Krista Klinkhammer used her son Alex s love for robots for his third birthday theme. She found adorable digital robot artwork by Mindy Terasawa at www.designerdigitals.com, and that was the launching pad for a birthday full of all-things-robot. Cake By simply cutting a rectangular cake, frosting it and adding candy accents, Krista brought a plain cake to life using a Betty Crocker cake mix and the instructions found on their site: www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/robot-cake. Favors Cardboard boxes decorated to look like robots served as the favor boxes. Inside was a bag of nuts and bolts or trail mix and a CD of Alex s favorite songs. Playtime Robot freeze tag was the game of choice. Big red stickers with on/off written on them served as the kids power switch. When one child pressed another child s power switch, the child would have to freeze and say powering down until someone else turned them back on. 17
» Swimming party Swimming parties are great for both boys and girls. MOM Editor Melissa Mills daughter McKenna recently celebrated her ninth birthday at the Kroc Center in Salem. She and some of her friends spent the afternoon floating the lazy river and spiraling down the fastest slide around. As an added bonus, the Kroc Center has a rock climbing wall that was a blast. Cake» Cupcakes were made to look like bears floating in the lazy river with beach umbrellas. Blue frosting was used for the water - you can either use blue food coloring or blue drink mix to tint your frosting. Gummy rings were used for the inner tubes and Teddy Graham cookies for the swimmers. Umbrellas can be found at party stores. u Ar e vited to c Kenna s 9th Birthday Where: When: Time: R.S.V.P. Melissa 37 Please make sure they have: swimsuit, goggles towel & tennis shoes (for rock climbing) Invitations A single 8 ½ x 11 sheet was printed out from a home computer with graphics from a word processor. There are a lot of different themes that could have been used including fish, snorkels, life jackets or kids in swimming suits. Dive in to these local pools» Salem Kroc Center, www.salemkroc.org» Corvallis P&R Osborn Aquatic Center, www.ci.corvallis.or.us/pool» Albany P&R Cool Pool, www.cityofalbany.net» Willamalane P&R Splash in Springfield, www.willamalane.org»timberhill Athletic Club, www.timberhillac.com
Playtime Included with the party package were day passes for McKenna and her guests. They played in the pool area and climbed the rock wall. The Kroc Center also has a game room and full gym facilities for the kids to shoot hoops. For more info www.salemkroc.org 19
Glam Birthday Bash If your little girl is into glitz, glam and dressing up, then she will go gaga over a spa-themed birthday party. MOM Blogger Rachel Hsu's daughter Natalie and her four best friends felt like a million bucks after getting manicures, pedicures, and dressing up like princesses. The mini makeovers were followed by Pink Sparkle sodas and delicious tiara birthday cake. by Natalie, age six Photos by Andrea Starr Photography 20
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