Penguin Party Recap

Only one month later, but not my best turnaround time.  Sorry.

Okay, so you've already seen these... a little card stock and crepe paper.

Here are some black paper lanterns that got tissue paper faces as well.

Here is the gorgeous cake, made by the lovely ladies at 'Tis So Sweet.  Note the little sugar-coated marshmallow ice blocks.  :)

We had a penguin waddle race,

musical ice blocks,

and a somewhat macabre bludgeoning of the piñata.

Poor little guy.  You can see the tutorial here.

Here's the food table, complete with one of those really loud toy rollercoaster thingies, where the penguins hop up the stairs and then go down the slide, over and over, with obnoxious carnivalish music playing.  DS loves it a little too much.

SO ANYWAY, I put fish sticks and hot dog squid in food safe metal pails to resemble penguin feeding time.  There were veggies and fruits, too, with emphasis on the orange accent color.

I made a small army of these guys,

and then rolled a bunch of sushi.  Some people call me crazy, but really, my three-year-old asks for sushi for his birthday?  I'm not going to refuse such a healthy request!  And besides, what else would penguins eat???  Well, sashimi, if you are being technical.  Whatevs.  No raw fish this time, though...  California roll is DS's fave.  Shrimp nigiri was DD's request.  Cucumber and carrot rolls were included for the unadventurous.  I love making sushi, and it's really not that hard!

I'm not sure why I don't have more pics of the desserts, but here you can see the birthday boy enjoying his cake with his dairy-allergic BFF eating blue jello cubes intermingled with Swedish Fish.  There were also rice krispie squares, made with coconut oil instead of margarine, of course!

This party was laden with food allergies, which is why we were almost entirely gluten, egg, and dairy free except for the cake itself.  There were a few other small things, but enough choices that everyone had plenty of penguin-related partying.  Allergy-friendly goodie bags are tough, though.  In the piñata, we had enough treats for everyone to get a lot of candy that they could eat,  but the goodie bags were mostly handmade prizes.  The one food item in there was Trader Joe's kettle corn... yummy for everyone, and beautiful packaging, too!

 Here are the recycled crayons I made, inspired by this.  The sticker on the baggie says "Arctic Art."  I got the fish shaped ice cube mold from IKEA, and the crayons were free because we already had them.  The mold is okay to use because the oven temp is pretty low.  I know a lot of people who get crayon molds from the dollar bin at Target.  I will say, though, that once you use a silicon mold for crayons, you probably can't use it for anything else after that.

Then I made play dough and added glitter for "Snow Dough."  (Please note:  play dough is NOT gluten free.  The kids I made it for are old enough to not eat it.  Use caution for younger kids who might "accidentally" try some, or for those who have contact allergies!)  I added a penguin eraser that I got at Party City.  Also in the goodie bag were black and white paper blow-outs.

Did I forget anything?  We are pretty penguin-ed out.  Or maybe that's just me.  I did obtain a penguin game at a yard sale two weeks ago, so keeping the penguin thing going is really pretty much my fault.  O.o

And then the week after the penguin party, DS started preschool, and he got to be the popular kid who brings a treat on the first day.  So this happened:

unscrewed "Joe's O's" cookies for faces and wings, molded orange Starburst candy for beaks, and candy eyes bought from the cake isle at the craft store.  Maybe I am just a little crazy.

Dear Universe, You Are Welcome!

I am still regaining my energy from the party in order to post about it, but in the meantime, I will offer this quick tip:

Please, for the love of all things holy,

USE ORGANIC EXTRA VIRGIN COCONUT OIL INSTEAD OF MARGARINE IN YOUR RICE KRISPIE TREATS!!!!!!

There, I said it.  It is amazing.  You might eat a whole pan by yourself.  Not that it has ever happened that way here, oh, no...

Well Lick my Beaters, it's a Cake Batter Smoothie!

And now, in the midst of birthday hullabaloo, we bring you a mostly unrelated post.  Well, except for the sprinkles.  This smoothie tastes like cake batter, if you like that sort of thing.  Only there is no cake batter, mixes, refined sugar, flour, etc. to be found anywhere.  And it is ever so slightly green, not yellow.  But this recipe has led me to the discovery that, even though DD will drink her smoothie 99% of the time without complaining, the way to get her to ask for MORE smoothie is to add sprinkles.

Cake Batter Smoothie - serves 4

blend:
flesh of 1 ripe avocado
flesh of 2 small frozen bananas
heaping cup of frozen cauliflower
2 cups unsweetened almond milk, plus more to keep the blender moving
1 t. vanilla extract

Pour into glasses and add:
sprinkles, for serving (optional)

Party, Karamu, Fiesta, Forever,...

Now that I have that song stuck in your head, let's make a piñata.  This was my inspiration, but of course, I had to invent something penguin-ish, so I improvised.  I will say this, though:  I will never buy a piñata again.  I used some junk I had around the house, and saved myself about $15.  It didn't take much time, as you can see remnants of breakfast are still in the background.  All in all, it was an easy project, and I didn't worry about being too exact because a bunch of 3-year-olds are just going to flog it to death in a couple days.

First, cut a penguin shape out of a corrugated cardboard box.  The beauty of this is that you can make it large or small.  This party is only going to have 6 kids, so mine was on the small side. I freehanded the drawing, cut it out, and then traced my cut out to make the other side of the piñata.

Now, this penguin shape is also the universal symbol of Darth Vader and the Space Shuttle.  In fact, I almost bought the Darth Vader cake pan at A.C. Moore (about $8 with a coupon), but then I realized that I really had too much on my plate for this weekend, and I ordered a cake instead of making my own.  However, for those of you with more time on your hands, a small investment can fuel at least 3 boy birthday parties.

Next I cut the side of a cereal box and used it to make more strips of cereal box the same size (I also cut off the end tabs).  You could make the strips wider to make your piñata thicker, but again, it was a small party, and I didn't feel like measuring.

I used masking tape to build up the sides of the piñata.  You don't need to make it super sturdy, as you want the 3-year-olds to bust through it eventually.  In fact, I even deliberately made some weak spots near the bottom.  Shh, don't tell.  If you are making this for a party of beer-guzzling males, make it stronger.

One place I did make it sturdy was at the top where I was going to put the hanger.  I cut an extra piece of cereal box and taped it to where the opening flap was hinged (where you put the candy in - don't forget to leave this opening!) and poked holes for the hanger on each side of the fold.

I glued tissue paper around the whole thing.  This doesn't need to be beautiful;  it just needs to hide any cardboard that might otherwise peek through the crepe paper.

I glued two strips of crepe paper all the way around the outside.

Next, I glued the crepe paper concentrically on the front and back.  Just keep going around and around, mushing it into shape as you go.

 I added features made from construction paper, and I drew the eyes on.

A wire tie is a good hanger, or you can twist some coat hanger wire into a loop.  Looky at all the candy inside!!!

I glued the flap shut (Keep in mind that this was two days before the party, so the glue had time to firm up.) and then masking taped it, adding a strip of crepe paper to cover the seam.  Done!

Drumroll, Please!

I know we can't be the only family with this problem:  an almost 3-year-old with too many drumsticks.  For his birthday coming up next week, I made DS a drumstick caddy using a tutorial for a crayon roll I found here.

I used Ed Emberley's dragons for the main fabric, which I bought at Hawthorne Threads.  I am in lerve with this print, and I plan to use the rest of it in a quilt for the little man someday soon.  The other fabrics are fat quarters from Jo-Ann.  I had the other materials around the house, including the awesome glittery black hair tie for the closure.  :)

I followed the tutorial pretty much exactly, except I made each fabric piece 16"x16" and I used fleece for the lining instead of flannel.  It's a little thicker and provides more padding and stability for my purposes.  I also made the pockets 2.5" wide to accommodate 2 pairs of drumsticks each as his collection grows.  I hope he likes it!

So I realized that this is my first post in a while... sorry about that.  I've done a few projects, but not much worthy of its own post.  I have some recipes to share soon, though, as well as the upcoming penguin party!!!  Here is a sneak preview:

I'll be making a lot of the decor and party favors, as there is a very limited supply of penguin stuff in the world.  These invites are just cardstock and a little orange crepe paper left over from a Halloween party of yore.  Today I need to make a piñata.  I'll let you know how that turns out... O.o

That's How I Crisp

Don't hate me because I'm not a chocolate person.  Don't get me wrong, the stuff is delicious, but I'd rather have a fruit dessert any day of the week.  And this one goes out to all you Trader Joe's shoppers out there.  It's more of a suggestion than a recipe, but you'll thank me.

Fill a baking dish with sliced nectarines, plums, and/or peaches.  This is two of those little TJ's plastic baskets worth of nectarines in a 9x13 dish.  I set out for plums, but nectarines were a happy substitution.

Toss them with a little flour (I used about 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour, but you could use another thickener if you want.) and maybe a little sugar (My fruit was on the tart side, so I used about 1/4 cup of raw sugar, but use a different sweetener if you want or leave it out altogether.  If you want this to be sweet like a pie, add more like 3/4-1 cup sugar).

Get out your box of TJ's Ginger, Almond, & Cashew Granola.  You can use another kind, but why would you?  Stone fruit with two kinds of nuts and little chunks of crystallized ginger?  HELL-OH! Dump the cereal on top of the fruit.  Just do it, and don't be shy!  Dot with butter.  Or here, I used coconut oil to accommodate a friend with dairy allergies.

Bake it at  350 degrees until the top is browned and crispity, and the bottom is all bubbly, and your house smells like happy.  This should take 40 minutes or so.  Then stare at it as it cools.

OMNOMNOMNOMNOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

You are so welcome.

Pinteresting Travel

We're going on a road trip soon!  I want my kids to remember road trips as fondly as I do, so I needed some fun things to do in the car besides eat beef jerky.  I got some ideas off of Pinterest, and I actually made them happen!  First, I made a little travel art box from the idea I got here.

I mostly had these materials on hand, although I did splurge on the 97 cents for a new box of crayons to go in it.  I cut apart some sheets of stickers to add to the kit.  Now I will have stickers and post-its all over the car, but that is the cost of travel sanity!

Also, I made one of those fabric marble maze thingies.  There are several blogs about them circulating, but here is my inspiration.  My maze is about 9 X 11, and I used a scrap of an upholstery fabric, and a scrap of flannel to make it even more tactile.  

There are buttons for start and finish, which I should have sewed on BEFORE I put the front and back together, but I forgot.  SO that took longer than it should have.

 Oh, and I used one of those glass blob aquarium jewels instead of a marble, because I was having a hard time finding a marble.  It slides along just fine, and is maybe even less cumbersome than a marble, so I am happy.  And now I have a whole package of glass blobby things to craft with!!!

Hollister Knit Top to Preschooler's Dress PLUS Rosette Tutorial PLUS the Proper Spelling of "Voilà"

Okay, I admit it, I have never set foot in a Hollister store.  I have nothing against Hollister.  I do value being able to see and breathe while I shop, but no biggie.  Oh, and I'm 36.

However, I did manage to snag this cute top while shopping at $5 bag day at a local rummage sale:

Which is almost like shopping at Hollister, I would imagine.

I was so happy when it fit me, but, hey, I'm 36.  And also I did not want to buy a special undergarment just to go under said garment, so I thought it better to make it into a frock for the girl cub.  First, I cut off the sleeves and the back, leaving the nice ribbed collar intact.

Then I turned it inside out and stitched the collar ribbing together where the shoulder seams had been to make a halter.  I cut off the excess and turned it right side out, and then I pinned and topstitched the sides (where the sleeves had been) all the way up and around the halter and down the other side.  I used this opportunity to angle the sides in quite a bit to fit the chest of a 5-year-old.

I cut off the excess fabric, made a little pleat in the back, and folded and pinned the back elastic to the inside and topstitched it.

Holy color enhance, Batman!  Okay, so now the rosette...

I've seen plenty of rosette tutorials around, but I wanted mine to be not so tightly wound and also not have hot glue all over it (for comfort's sake!), so I made my own.  I cut my fabric scrap from the shirt back I had removed, 2.5" X 11" or so.

I folded it in half the long way and stitched one end closed.  I used a long stitch length to make a gathering stitch all the way down the side.  I gathered, especially tightly on the closed end, and then knotted the threads.  At this point, I started singing, "Come on Eileen" because it reminded me of a Scrunchy I had in Junior High.  I turned it right side out with a chopstick, tucked the open ends closed and stitched it shut.  No need to make it too pretty on this end.

Ah, now some hand stitching...

Locating the inner corner of the more tightly gathered end, I tried not to poke my leg.

I stitched down through the corner, coiled it to meet the next layer and stitched through the inner edge, pulling it tight.  After going through a couple more layers, "floofing" it as I went (Yes, that is a technical term!), I made sure to catch the inner corner of the other end, pull the thread tight, and knot it.

And VOILÀ!!!!! a rosette.  And now for a moment of honesty...

I hand stitched the rosette to the dress in a strategic location so as to hide the weirdness from the seam ripper.  O.o

I made an oops the first time I sewed down the side.  I feel better now that I got that off my chest.

DD loves this dress.  I might have to take it up another inch or so in the halter, though, because when she wears it, she says, "Mommy, this dress is too big.  It almost shows This Part!"  (while stretching neckline down and pointing to nipple).  5-year olds.  *shakes head*