A Wild 7th Birthday

I think it's high time I post the birthday boy and his wild adventure.  This is where the real fun is.

Jack waited patiently for his guests to arrive.  He wanted to be the first to greet them in full safari attire. If your curious about the backpack, I can assure I was to.  But, that was all part of his ensemble.  He filled it with everything an adventurer could  possibly need.  I'm talking from a water bottle to a change of clothes to a magnifying glass.  I kid you not.  He was in full character for this celebration.

At the sign of the first few boys, Jack had his guests out "exploring" the yard.  The boys could hardly wait to finish their "pre safari show" animal masks so they could run around on Jack's pseudo expedition.

I was finally able to round them up, all 15 boys, to sit down for the wild animal presentation.  The 4 girls were already sitting beautifully waiting for the show.

But, once they did, there was finally some civility to this wild day....and they were mesmerized.

Lucy grabbed a set in Grandma's lap.  She made it about a third of the way through the animals and then took a break to go jump on the trampoline.  She came back, but only to leave again and hit the sandbox and then the swings.

Maggie found a perfect spot front row with the only other girls in attendance.  Jack wouldn't think of celebrating his birthday without his dearest friend Sophia.  It was blessing, as Maggie needed some girls with all those wild things running around.

The best part about the show, was the special attention the birthday boy got.  He had the most hands on experience out of any of the guests and he was loving every minute of it.  So much so, he asked for the same birthday party next year just with different animals.

I'm sure you are aware of my irrational fear of snakes.  So these next few pictures are a true testament of my love for this super 7 year old.

After the wild animal show, we enjoyed our Safari snacks and some Jungle Juice.

And then, of course, it was time to sing to the birthday boy!  I had prepared myself to be in tears at this moment, but somehow I held it together.

My sweetest girls enjoyed their cupcakes on the lawn while all the boys headed to the upper deck of the playhouse to devour theirs.

After the sugar rush from cupcakes, jungle jollies taffy, and the jungle juice, it was time to run off some of that energy.  I gave strict directions to those wild things about the Wild Scavenger Hunt list.  I then sent them off with binoculars, safari hats, their lists, and jungle pencils.

I was loving that the little sisters participated too.

After we said our goodbyes and thank yous to our guests, I wrangled in the wildest one of them all for a few family pictures.  Jack was more than obliged to do so.

These are pictures I will cherish forever.  And I'm certain Jack will too someday.

Happy Birthday to the wildest, most adventurous, and lovable explorer I know!  There is no other 7 year old on the globe that I would rather celebrate with.  All my love Jack!

Wild Animal Adventure

We celebrated Jack's 7th birthday this weekend safari style.  My little adventurer in the making requested an "animal adventure" party.  

I was torn with which way to take this.  He was very specific in his requests.  Odd ones too.  Like "I want the table to look like a habitat", "I want wild animals", and I want to "adventure and explore".  

So after many brainstorming sessions, lots of proofs from my dear paper gal at Sweet Peach Paperie, and a little help from the monkey himself, this is what we came up with.

With what has become customary for me, I am going to do this birthday celebration in two posts.  I can only inundate you with so many pictures.

So here we go...

Our friends were greeted at the top of the walkway with this sign.  I wanted them to head right on into the backyard for the wild adventure that awaited them.

The food spread looked like this.  I tried to go for that whole "habitat" look that Jack requested.  I found some artificial ivy, large leaves and moss at the dollar store.  I shudder to think what people might actually buy that stuff for, but it worked out beautifully for this purpose.

I found the copper pots there too.  And the lantern at Tuesday Morning.  The wood plates were all part of a set that Clay and I received as a wedding gift ages ago.  We love them for outdoor entertaining {although those days are few and far between}.  I also used a lot of burlap which I easily found at Michaels.

I debated adding animals to the table, but once I got this much set up, I figured we were good.  I wanted to avoid a cluttered look.

I found the most jungle"esque" corner in my backyard and set the table up there.  It made for a nice backdrop.

I wrapped some boxes with craft paper and tied them up with twine.  This I had to explain to Jack.  He originally wanted to know what exactly "paper bag boxes" had to do with animals.

Tracy at Sweet Peach Paperie made all the paper products for me.  I truly adore her.  This was a labor of love.  We went back and forth trying to make this animal/adventure like and keep it age appropriate. I was over the moon with the final result.  And most importantly, Jack was too!

I attached the sign to a branch I lovingly scavenged for.  It took a fair amount of sticks before I found just the right one.  I added it to the pot and topped it with some of that dollar store moss.

Since this was a 3:00 party {our first ever}, I took it easy on the food.  But I could not resist these Wild Jungle Animal Crackers I found at Oriental Trading.

Nor could I resist using my lion and elephant cookie cutters to make safari sandwiches.

I'm a stickler for a healthy snack too.  So I skewered green grapes for the Gorilla Grapes.  The sun was beaming for this photo so it's difficult to read the menu tent.  And clearly there was no time to take another picture of the grapes once the party started and the sun simultaneously hid behind the clouds.

But, my most favorite of all {and I'm pretty sure the kid's too} was the watering hole.  I used blue jello cups and topped them with small jungle animals.

Similarly, I topped the cupcakes with more animals and these precious cupcake toppers.  Jack's favorite read "Jack of the Jungle".  He specifically picked out a gorilla for his.

This little safari cutie was my right hand lady.  She helped to place all those animals just so and claimed the zebra as hers.

And somehow in one of those brainstorming sessions, this idea popped in my head and I just could't let it go.  I searched high and low for this exact shaped bottle and found them at Shop Sweet Lulu.  I used the twine to tie on the "Jungle Juice" tag and filled it with green juice that under normal circumstances I would never serve my kids.

The main activity of the party was the wild animal show {which you will see in the following post}.  But, I knew I had to find something to keep those wild adventurers under control while that was being set up.  So I found these cute animal masks at Oriental Trading.  I added a box of crayons and we were good to go.

Post animal show, snacks and cupcakes, the guests participated in a wild scavenger hunt.  Jack helped me prepare the list and I smiled all the while he verbalized his ideas.  It included a variety of animals {which I hid around the yard}, items in nature {green leaves, a raging creek, ivy growing on a tree, a rock, etc.} and of course, an adventure map.

All the kids were given a safari hat, binoculars, an animal pencil and their lists.  They were off in no time and had an absolute blast doing it.

After they completed their lists they were rewarded with a burlap goody bag.

The bags were filled with an animal notebook and pen, a compass, and some Jungle Jollies taffy.  I figured that paired with the safari hat and binoculars would make a nice wild animal adventure kit.

So next post up, you are going to see some really WILD kids, a few exotic animals, and one very happy birthday boy!

Stay tuned, this adventure will continue.

Jack Is Seven

When I went to wake Jack this morning something amazing had happened over night...he turned SEVEN years old!  I knew right away by how smart he looked and how much he had grown.

We all greeted him with an extra loud Happy Birthday song and loving hugs.   And wouldn't you know, he was expecting us and all the cameras, because he was fully dressed and ready to party.

By first baby is 7 years old.  I'm having to let this one sink in.  But not for too long...I've got a party to get ready for!

Happy 7th Birthday monkey!  It's going to be a great day and year!

In Their Element

I caught a few snapshots of my little ones in their element this afternoon.  Just outside playing being their cutsie selves.

Jack was doing all things "Jack".  Pretending to be on a safari adventure, sword fighting with sticks, and climbing trees.

All the while, Maggie was mothering "baby Belle" because "she had a fever".   My Maggie who is usually primarily concerned with which tutu to wear has recently shifted gears to care for all her babies.  I am loving the transition even if it is only temporary.

I have been donned as the baby swaddler.  If I don't get it absolutely perfect I am corrected in an instance and the swaddle starts all over.  I've had to assure Maggie that I know what I am doing as I've religiously swaddled three LIVE babies in my lifetime.

And this littlest one has taken over tutu duty.  We call her "Lulu in a Tutu" these days because that is all she wants to wear.  From the moment she wakes Lucy makes a beeline to Maggie's tutu collection and insists we put it on her.  I can't deny I'm adoring this as well.  To think I may just have a another girly girl on my hands! {sigh}

I do find this all a bit ironic though, considering Maggie is usually all dolled up and Lucy is normally carrying a baby doll.  Regardless, I can find no other word to describe my girls except...preciousness.

See what I mean...

And if that weren't enough to fill your cup.  Look who celebrated a birthday this lovely Spring afternoon. Our favorite canine turned a whopping 12 years old.  And believe it or not, he hasn't slowed down a bit.  Mellowed yes, but slowed down, not at all.

Happy Birthday sweet Cosby!  Thanks for putting up with my threesome in their elements.  We absolutely LOVE you!