9.09.2014

Claire's Mermaid Swim Party

Today is Claire's 6th Birthday! 
I can't believe she is 6. That seems so old! 
Claire requested a Mermaid Swim Party for her 6th birthday.
I totally loved the idea and had so much fun designing the invite.
Claire was very specific...this was not a "Little Mermaid" Party.
It was a Mermaid Party with a Mermaid that looked like her and pink had to be one of the colors.
This is what I came up with:
{Invite will be available in my Etsy Shop when I re-open this Fall}

Decorations:
Last year, for her Tangled Birthday Party, I strung yellow crepe paper throughout our house to look like Tangled's hair. Claire really loved that, so for this party, I decided to hang blue & aqua crepe paper throughout the downstairs to look like an Ocean. I loved how it turned out...and it was so easy! This was one of my favorite parts of the party!






Seriously. I was obsessed with making this "Ocean". Best $5 I have ever spent on crepe paper :)

Other decorations I had were some balloons around the pool fence. 
Claire loves balloons & it was a swim party, so balloons around the pool fence worked out perfectly.
Food:
The party was from 2:00-4:00, so I didn't need to serve a meal. 
I had a variety of snacks for the girls (and the mom's that stayed)
I let Claire pick the menu & all the snack items.
I made coordinating Food Labels that matched the invite!
Pink Goldfish, found at Target :)
Claire wanted Pirates Booty because she loves it and because "mermaids hide from Pirates"
Claire wanted Watermelon (her favorite) but I could not find any watermelon in our town. Summer must be officially over since watermelon isn't in season anymore. We made Fruit Kabobs instead.
And, of course I have to have a Dessert/Sweets Table at my parties. I toned it down for this party...there wasn't TOO many sweets ;)
The backdrop of the sweets table was this ombre tissue tassel banner:
Loved this tassel banner!
  Napkins & Plates (I had a bunch of starfish that I laid out on tables/platters/etc)
I made Sugar Cookie Fruit Puffs (but called them "shells")
 
I used just a raspberry since that looks like a sea shell and I added a bit of blue food dye to the mixture to make them look like the ocean:
I put some Brown Sugar on the platter to make it look like sand & added a starfish.
I loved how they turned out! And, I made the cupcake toppers that matched the food labels & the invitation.
I had some of Claire's favorite candies, which also have a Sea Theme.
Vanilla Cupcakes with Fondant Toppers:
And.....the cake. The amazing cake that my mother in law made:
She made it look like the mermaid I had on the invite/food labels/cupcake toppers which looks like Claire. She did an amazing job with the cake (as usual!)
I set up the Beverage Station outside near the pool:
Claire saw these juice boxes at Trader Joes & had to have them for her party :)
Activities:
It was a Mermaid Swim Party, so I didn't really have many activites planned. 
The main activity was swimming. I'm not going to lie.....It was a little crazy having a swim party with 14 girls who are 6 years old. For the first 20 minutes all of them were in the pool at the same time, that is  A LOT of girls to keep track of in the water.
Kevin was on life guard duty. A few of the mom's stayed, but it was mostly a drop off party.
Note to self: Next time I throw a swim party without parents, invite less than 10 kids.
Luckily, all the girls could swim, but that is still a lot to keep track of.  
(And, I purposely scheduled the party for Luke's nap time, I didn't want to have to deal with him during the swim party. That would have been WAY too hard.)
I also set up a Coloring Station so that if the girls took a break from swimming they would have something to do.
 We set the table up in the shade since it was 90 degrees the day of her party (perfect for a swim party!)
I printed out some Mermaid Coloring Page that I found online.
Favors:
My go-to favor is a cookie! I give these out for almost every party/shower that I host.
I get them at a local Bakery and I always describe/sketch out what I want and she always does them perfectly! 
Claire wanted Seahorses, Starfish & Shells. Loved how they turned out!
The Seahorse was my favorite :)
It was such a fun afternoon celebrating Claire that ended with cake!
 
I'm pretty sure she loved her party :)


I wasn't sure I was going to pull this party off.
Claire's birthday always sneaks up on me because it is right during the Back to School craziness.
And, it was just a couple weeks ago that I had Luke's 2nd Birthday Party!
So, I was majorly slacking with planning her party. I had a lot of ideas in my head that I wanted to do.
I came down with a sinus infection last week, so I had no energy to do the party prep I normally do the week before the party. We are also doing a little remodel in our house, so part of the downstairs is under construction.
Needless to say, it's been a crazy few weeks leading up to her party, butI stayed up until 3am the night before the party getting things cleaned and done for it. Good thing I am a night owl & good thing I love throwing parties.
It was actually therapeutic for me staying up late the night before getting things created & made for the party! Procrastinators unite! :)
The party was fun & I was happy with how it came out.
The most important thing was Claire had fun & felt loved!

Happy 6th Birthday, Claire Bear!

*****************
Claire's Parties throughout the years:
5th Birthday - Claire's Tangled Party
4th Birthday - Claire's Candy Shoppe Party
3rd Birthday - Claire's Cowgirl Party
2nd Birthday - Claire's Ladybug Party
1st Birthday - Claire's Ice Cream Party

15 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness! Another HUGE party success Mel!! I always love your kiddos' parties and this was no exception! Fabulous theme!!

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  2. Cutest mermaid party ever! I loved all the details. What program do you use to create the invitations? Thanks!

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  3. Your parties never cease to amaze me. Love all the thought and details!!

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  4. How cute!! I love the crepe paper ocean, the ombre tassels, and the mermaid food labels. Adorable :)

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  5. This is so adorable!! I love all the decor and the printables are great! Your MIL is awesome with cakes - can I have her in my life?

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  6. Oh my everything turned out wonderful!! I had a mermaid party for my daughter a few years back and loved it. You are so talented. I think we lived a little closer to one another we would have fun throwing parties together...

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  7. Absolutely perfect!!! I love everything you do at each of your parties! You seriously could just become a full-time party planner.

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  8. Well done Mel!! You are a creative force, so talented!! I am inspired by your parties and I love how for your kids' parties you really make an effort to incorporate their desires and have the girls be part of the planning as after all it is their day! And so true the meaning of your party that Claire had fun and felt loved. Like you I am a Night Owl and find I'm most creative at night - and it's so relaxing and quiet, definitely get how therapeutic it is!

    I'm co-hosting a Baby Shower for an office colleague and I was inspired by your Tickled Pink and Peach Baby Shower -- we are having the same colour theme called "Shades of Pink and Peach". I'm excited to be planning and I am making a Shower flag banner for the first time and baking.

    I enjoy reading your blog - you and your blog are really a one-stop-shop for everything - party planning, photography, printables, gardening tips, house-remodelling, motherhood, being a mom with a career, cooking and baking and generally just "keepin' it real" - it's nice to see a blog that is not glossing over the challenges but sharing trials and lessons to learn for next time and also upbeat!

    Also must add your blog is wonderfully designed - it's so tasteful, easy to read font and text colour and good use of White Space (it's so annoying when blogs are written in hard to read font or the background clashes with the writing making it an eye strain to read).

    I love all your blog posts and have enjoyed baking with your recipes! So far I've made your Banana Bread, Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Bars (my favourite! But sadly I can't buy Pumpkin Butter in Asia), Candy Cane Kisses Cookies, Chocolate Chip Snickers Cookies, Chocolate Chip Zuchini Muffins, Yours and Two Peas and Their Pod are my go to recipe sites!

    Thanks for updating!

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  9. Love this party! You are so creative.

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  10. Hi!! Do you have any suggestions for best party venues in Houston where we can party hard with my friends? I am new to NYC so confused in choosing and reserving best venue.

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  11. That is a rather well-executed mermaid-themed pool party! The colors that you used are so refreshing! I just like how the snacks and all the other little articles match so well! But the best part here is her smile at the last image. She’s so cute! Cheers!

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  15. What an enchanting article about Claire's Mermaid Swim Party! The writer beautifully captured the magical ambiance and exciting activities that made this event truly memorable. Reading about the mermaid-inspired decorations, pool games, and the joy on the children's faces made me wish I could have been there. https://www.hydebeachpoolparty.com/ , is an excellent resource for discovering more about these fantastic themed events. I love how it provides all the necessary details and allows visitors to plan their own unforgettable pool parties. Claire's Mermaid Swim Party sounds like an absolute dream come true for any little mermaid enthusiast. Kudos to the organizers for creating such a captivating experience, and a special mention to hydebeachpoolparty.com for being the go-to platform for all things related to pool parties. Well done!

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