Play-doh 4th Birthday

I could plan parties for Lucy all day....and as I am starting to think about her 5th I had fun remembering her 4th.  This girl LOVES Play-doh...and when I say love I mean the type of love where she will literally spend all day long sitting at the table playing with one can of Play-doh.  So it only made sense to make her theme a Play-doh party. 

 

Our sweet girl all ready to party!!

 

 The invitation was custom made by an Etsy shop called LovelyDivine.  I couldn't find any Play-doh themed invites and she worked with me to create this.  She was fast and easy to work with!

Quick and easy mantle decorations using the Cricut and old pictures from her other birthdays.

The cake was made by a local lady and she created exactly what I had in mind.  Lucy requested strawberry cake and it was delicious and so moist. 

 

 

We moved all of our furniture to the sides of the room and set up a table for the little girls to make lots of special Play-doh creations. 

 

 Every girl had a personalized laminated placemat to create on. 

 

 

 I also gave each little girl an apron with a flower pin I made.  These are cute on the aprons but would be super cute after the party on a denim jacket or headband. 

 

 

The girls were give the recipe and ingredients to make Kool-Aid playdoh at home.  A fun easy favor!!

 

 

 Tea, punch, and pink lemonade of course...never too much pink!

 

 

 Hawaiian Roll Sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, fruit and dip, pasta salad, and chips and raspberry chipotle dip were on the menu.

 

 My sweet friend Brittany is super creative...she always wraps presents to coordinate with the theme.  Lucy thought this one was extra special. 
 

This was such an easy and fun party and could not have better fit our little Play-doh loving girl any more!

Tea Party Fun

Lucy, Rose, and Harper had a play date at our local tearoom, Kupa Tea, this week.  Melissa made a reservation and they had it all setup with pearls, boas, and special tea cups for the girls.  The girls visited and enjoyed princess tea (pink lemonade) while the mommies were able to catch up.

 The girls loved their tea and the muffins.  Lucy came over and whispered to me she would like to order something hot for lunch. 

 I love these sweet girls and love see them learning how to create their own little friendships.

 Melissa was so sweet to take these pictures of the girls.  She always takes beautiful pictures. 

 And Meggan captured the one below on her phone.  It is such a fun picture...the girls are shouting,

 "Woo Hoo!"

 

Brothers

These two are rarely more than a few inches apart at home. 

I don't even think they realize that more than brothers they are best friends. 

Playdoh Love

 Lucy loves playdoh!  Love might even be an understatement.  She can play with a single can of play-doh for 3 hours straight without stopping.  She loves to roll, cut, shape, and design.  She uses her toys to create elaborate plots and sets with the playdoh.  She watches YouTube videos on different playdoh sets and techniques.  She is a playdoh expert!!! 

I let the boys play with playdoh some but was always a bit reluctant due to the mess.  Lucy can have at it pretty much whenever.  Seeing her use her imagination and be creative makes me so happy.  When it is time to clean it up we wipe the table off and whatever is on the floor we let dry and then vacuum it right up.  It really is not a huge hassle to clean up. 

 

We were going through lots of actual Playdoh cans though.  So I thought it would be fun for her to help me make her some homemade playdoh.  She loved every step of the process and has enjoyed the homemade playdoh as much as store bought. 

 Homemade Playdoh

1 cup flour

1/2 c salt

2 TBS cream of tartar

1 TBS oil

1 cup boiling water

Mix dry ingredients first.

 We added the food coloring to the boiling water for easier mixing.  Lucy picked yellow!

 Continue to mix until a soft ball forms.

 I used gel food coloring which gives a more vibrant color.

 Let it cool a bit and then knead it until it is a nice smooth consistency.  Add more flour if too sticky.  It gets less sticky as it cools.  Lucy was able to do all of this part on her own and loved kneading the warm dough.

 It made a really good size amount of dough.  We give her a bit at a time and store the rest in a zip-lock baggie.  It has stayed very moist and she loves playing with it. 

Keep practicing...

You were so excited to play football and Dad bought you a ball as a surprise so you could practice before the season ever started.  I love seeing you out there practicing. 

Practice is where character is developed and determination is learned.  Practice is a skill that will be in important in every aspect of your life.

 Sometimes in practice the balls hit you harder than you expect...

 sometimes you make a perfect catch...

 sometimes you have to dive for it...

sometimes it doesn't seem worth it...

 sometimes you will beam with pride...

 sometimes it will be just out of reach...

 

sometimes you will feel like quitting...

but just keep running...

 and sometimes it will surprise you...

 and just get easier.

No matter what....this guy will be right beside you helping you, guiding  you, and cheering you on.  No matter what it is...practice...and always put forth your best effort.