A Party for my Ballerina Girl

So this party for my little girl all came about because of a cake.  Last winter, she saw this picture of a ballerina cake in a magazine, and from that moment on, she knew she wanted a Ballerina Party when she turned five... cake included!  I had so much fun doing this party!  It's crazy how with a couple of rolls of pink tulle, a few Internet searches, and a few brainstorming sessions, I was able to make this five year old's birthday very special!

The invitations came together because I couldn't find any cute ballerina ones that I could buy (with a price I was willing to pay), and they were my first lesson in how I discovered how a little tulle and hot glue can make anything a little extra special!

I went all pink in decorating for this party!  I used pink and white tulle to make big tulle balls to hang from the light, and then make little mock tutus to hang from the ceiling.  Along with some pink streamers, it was all simple but very girly.

To decorate the table, I used the tulle to tie up the napkins, used pink plates and silverware, and then found a water bottle wrap online to put around the kid's drinks which also became their "place cards".  It was nice too, because it was an easy way to label their bottles.

It was so fun to see it finally all pulled together, and my birthday girl was ready for her guests to arrive!

As the kids came, I had coloring pages for them to work on.  Since Ainsley has some dear friends who are little boys, we decided that they would be the brave knights of the party which they were excited to be.  We started the party by getting dressed up.  For each of our brave knights, they were awarded with a foam sword, a shield, and power bands (aka sweat bands). 

For each of the little girls, we had a pink tutu for them to put on.  The girls were delighted to wear the tutus... and each one had to test how well they could spin around in it!  Then we had our first dance lesson.  The girls could have done this all morning long!  They were so serious and followed each step very carefully.  It was so fun to watch them.... it was like my own little dance class!

After our dance lesson, we headed to the tables to work on our craft.  I had found super cheap bags at Oriental which I added a little tulle and ribbon to in order to dress it up a bit.  The boys just got ribbon on theirs.... didn't think they'd want the tulle!

I had the kids use fabric markers to draw a picture on the back.  The girls mostly drew themselves dancing or a ballerina picture.  The boys were a little more random, but it was fun to see their artistic creations.    

Next it was time to eat!  Since we had a morning party, I just couldn't feed them cake and ice cream. (and I didn't want to have to make two cakes!)  So we picked up glazed doughnuts that were made fresh that morning, and I added a bit of pink to them to make them a little fancier.  It was the easiest birthday cake I've ever made!  So after singing Happy Birthday to Ainsley, everyone enjoyed their doughnuts along with some yummy strawberries.

Now it was time for some more fun with party games!  Our listed included,
Slipper Slipper (Hot Potato with a ballet slipper)
Ballet, Ballet, Tap (Duck, Duck, Goose)
Playing the Freeze Dance with Balloons

There was definitely lots of laughing, shrieking, smiling, and giggling!  I made some dancing ribbons for the boys and girls, so after our games it was dance time!  I had them use the ribbons to dance around the room and then we used them to do the Hokey Pokey.  After that, we did the Chicken Dance, and ended our party with the Limbo!

It was such a super fun morning!  I think everyone had a great time!  I know one little girl who couldn't stop smiling!  :)

Later that day we had our family over to help celebrate Ainsley turning five!  They were the ones who got to see the famous ballerina cake that started it all!

It was actually one of the easiest cakes I've made and it turned out so cute!  Ainsley's favorite part was the cotton candy tutu!

Another different thing we did this year was that instead of dishing up ice cream with the cake, I served mini ice cream sandwiches that I had dipped in sprinkles and then put a little piece of scrapbook paper around them to make them easy to hold (and cute!)!  It was easy to be able to do this ahead of time, and it made handing out the cake and ice cream a piece of cake!

What an amazing and fun day!  Definitely one of my favorite parties because turning five is just so fun!  And because it delighted this little girl's heart... that made it even more special.