My niece Gracie turned nine this year. Her birthday is actually in February, but with the blizzards that month brought and the fact that elementary school kids tend to spend the entire month trading viruses, it seemed like a good idea to hold off on throwing her party until the weather had warmed up a bit and everyone was healthy enough to attend. When the big day finally arrived, we had a celebration that was worth the wait. Take a look at what we put together for her party!
The main attraction for the party was the swim time booked at the local high school pool, so a luau was the natural choice for the theme. While the kids were busy swimming, I was down the hall transforming the drab high school cafeteria into a festive tropical paradise.
Gracie chose purple and pink as the colors and hibiscus flowers as the element to tie everything together. Ukulele music filled the air as the kids entered the room.
Paper lanterns spelled out “Happy Birthday” against a grass table skirt.
The sand castle cake had ice cream cone towers, graham cracker turrets and chocolate hazelnut seashells as accents.
Water bottles with custom labels paired with packets of hawaiian punch were offered as refreshments.
The party invitation and a printed sign welcomed the guests and personalized purple lollipops displayed in a tray of sand served as favors.
Here’s the guest of honor, posing proudly with her cake.
The kids couldn’t wait to get close to the table and check out the sweets.
Everybody lined up with their leis for a group shot before enjoying some pizza – not your standard luau food, but at a party, you’ve gotta give kids what they like!
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