A Disney Themed Birthday

When I received an offer for a What Will You Celebrate In-Home Celebration kit from my friends at Disney, I said yes without even realizing that we had the perfect celebration falling in the month of April-- my son's birthday. Since he just took his first trip to Disney with his grandmother in November, a Disney-themed birthday party seemed just the ticket for him. I quickly made plans, sent out invites and waited for my "Mickey In A Box" package to arrive. I was not disappointed with the contents of the box-- it included games we could play, activity ideas, and some decorations, including the balloons below:

The boys enjoyed playing Disney bingo, identifying the different locations in the theme parks, the characters, etc. We awarded prizes that I picked up at the dollar store-- a Mickey beach ball, a velvet Mickey coloring poster, and a Mickey Mouse jumprope. They were thrilled with their first, second and third prizes in Bingo. We were going to play Disney trivia, but we determined that was over their seven year old heads.

Opening presents is always fun.

The wish makers from Disney (included in the kit) were surprisingly fun for them-- I thought they might think it was "girly" but they loved it.

This was my big expense for the party-- a pinata and the candy to fill it. Let me tell you, you can do all the bells and whistles for a party, pull out all the stops, make a big deal out of the entertainment for the kids, etc. But there is nothing more exciting to a little kid than getting to whack something with a stick until candy comes spilling out. Kids, as techological and advanced as they might be, are still kids. And that was a joy to observe.

Blowing out the candles on his cake.

I was going to buy a cake but then I figured, why spend the money?? I made this one from scratch (yes, including the real buttercream frosting) for maybe $5. It tasted better, and I thought my cake decorating prowess was something to behold. Don't tell me any different if you don't agree! Those swirly looking things are candles and I bought the little frisbees from the dollar store. Hey, it looked fun and kept the Disney theme up without me having to extend a ton of effort in decorating it. Works for me!

The best part of the party was the real canvas treat bags we got in the kit to send home with the kids. One child got the most priceless look on his face and said, "Do we get to keep these?" in the most astonished voice. Inside the treat bags were magnets, a coloring book and crayons, a Mickey-shaped crazy straw, and some other things I can't remember. We let them collect their pinata candy in the bags so they were loaded down with goodies. One little boy said as he left, "This is the best party I've ever been to." It was probably also the simplest... but I will take that compliment and run with it! Thanks Disney for helping us make some wonderful memories as we celebrated a very special little boy at home!

Want to throw your own "What Will You Celebrate!" In-Home Celebration? You can get free resources to help you plan your party by visiting www.momselect.com/mickeymomsclub