The Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party

I have been a little MIA on the blog lately. Hopefully this will explain why.
I apologise in advance, this is a long and photo heavy post.

I dont want to step on any cultural or religious toes with this. Birthdays are a very personal thing and whether you choose to celebrate them or not is completely up to you as a family. There is no right or wrong. This is just our way!

With that being said we celebrate BIG!!!!!!!!

A lot of this stems from my own upbringing. As a child we didn't have a lot of money. My parents worked very hard for what we had but there was not a huge amount of disposable cash around, my parents ALWAYS made a big deal of birthdays. It always felt special to have my parents celebrate the day we came into their lives and now I have children of my own I realise the kind of emotions and memories their birthdays bring.

It was Peanut's first birthday this weekend and I knew I wanted a Very Hungry Caterpillar party almost as soon as she was born!! I loved the book as a child and with all of the wriggling and eating that she did it seemed the perfect fit for our own little caterpillar.

I have this habit of having all of these ideas but leaving it till the day before to get them done, and this party was no different. Which meant that the quiet, 'just us' evening I had planned for party eve, turned into finding jobs for family members who were very calm in the wake of my crazy requests!!!! I am grateful.

The day was perfect. Just as I imagined. Perfect weather, my favourite people, gorgeous kids running around, (insert content sigh here). Yep I was one happy mumma!!!

I like parties with a theme. It makes the process a lot easier to organise and I have a lot of fun scouring the internet for inspiration. There are some amazing Hungry Caterpillar sites and plenty of party ideas, you just have to google and it's all at your fingertips.

This was the food table. I wanted to have the cake as the focal point, so I made sure the rest of the table wasn't too busy.  We had cake pops, chocolate mousse, popcorn, lollies and of course, Fairy Bread. It is the only thing my husband insists on having. Sprinkles on bread! Such a manly treat!!!!

I fell in love with these little baskets but they were so tiny I didn't know what to put in them. Lolly raspberries were the perfect size.

These choc dipped strawberries were a hit!!! Not the prettiest but very popular.
We also had party pies and sausage rolls supplied by my fabulous father-in-law. Another party must-have!!!

Cute chocolate wrappers from Party Mommas Check them out on ebay if you are planning a themed party. I found them great to order through and they were really speedy too.

 

The Cake!!!!!!!!!

The cake was INCREDIBLE!!                                                             

I wish I could tell you I whipped this up myself but alas I am quite kitchen challenged. A few months ago I saw a cake on facebook that had been made for a 30th. I clicked on the photo and was taken to the Covered Cakes page. As I scrolled through the photos I knew I wanted Libby to make Peanuts birthday cake.
I just sent her a pic of what I wanted and she created something better than I could have imagined.
It perfectly suited the table and decorations and was the talking point of the party.
Please check out her facebook page if you need a cake made. She is very talented but also very busy so make sure you book in advance.

 As far as decorations went I had a beautiful felt banner made for her high-chair and a line of bunting with all of the food the hungry caterpillar ate for above the food table. Both of which were made by Sweet Tashie. Also found on facebook. I asked her for something Hungry Caterpillar-ish, and she came up with the ideas. I really like supporting creative people doing what they love. She also made the most adorable party hat for the birthday girl. So cute!!!!

This was just a little wreath I made to go on one of the bare walls. I added one of Peanut's toy caterpillars and it filled the space perfectly.

I ordered all of my balloons from Hullabaloo in Launceston. (I couldn't find a web link for this one)
They created the cute caterpillar balloon and filled a few plain ones for her high chair.

The wishing tree was my favourite part of the decor. I collected some old twigs and put them in a jug. Guests then wrote a wish for the birthday girls future. I had a few tears as I read them later in the evening. Something very special to keep forever.

We didn't play any games just mingled and watched the kids entertain themselves and each other.
My Dad borrowed a jumping castle from a work colleague, and the littlies had a great time on that.

The party bags. So easy to make!

The smash cake was not smashed but the strawberries were delicately picked off.

It was such a happy day resulting in one very tired little one year old.

Now time to start planning Big Sisters party!!!!