Henry's 4th Birthday Party

Finally, after two weeks, I am getting around to posting this fun event!

For the past several months Henry has been obsessed with Pirates, just like many other boys his same age...so I only saw it fitting to have a Pirate Birthday Party. The best place to accommodate several of our church and neighborhood friends would be our neighborhood park. I really wanted to make this special for him and save money, so this called for me to tap into my creative juices and the teacher in me, not to mention all the great ideas online.


The pirate napkins, yellow spoons, the balloons, and the turquoise blue table cloths all came from Party City. I found a deal on 72 red plastic cake plates at the Dollar Tree for $5.00.

 

When the kids first got to the party there were pirate hats on the table for them to decorate. I ordered these very cheaply from Oriental Trading Company.

Hugh and Andrew are just ready to get their hats done so they can run around and play...

Jack, Garrick, and Chad are taking a look at all the pirate stickers available for decorating their hats...

Miss Lilli is putting a lot of thought into her hat...

Ellie and Chad are busy decorating their pirate hats...

Hurry James...decorate your hat so you can play with the others!!

A week before the party we made our hats at home, including one for Charles Tucker!! Henry asked me if he was going to be at the party. I said, "I wish!!"

Once each child decorated their pirate hat, it was time to get tattooed! I also ordered these from Oriental Trading Company.

Nana is trying to put tattoos on Henry and Cousin Dexter...who already came to the party dressed as a pirate...

 Mary Taylor's not sure what to think about this tattoo...

Well, she loved them so much, she decided to get three on each arm...there's nothing like a southern girl in a smocked dress with tattoos all over her arm!

I made Henry's appliqued pirate shirt with my regular sewing machine...I have made many of these this summer. You would all be surprised how simple it really is, just tedious. I copied a design I found on the internet. (More on this later)

 

I made pirate fort signs out of left over brown paper from painting the inside of our house three years ago.

 Lilli petting cousin Dexter's dog Abe...

Dominick, Henry, and Chad... oh so kindly stopped to take a picture...

Miss Elie wasn't so sure about this party right after waking up from her nap...but Oh...Sam jumped right in the fun!

Henry and Dexter chill 'n on the sidelines...

Mary Taylor and Kaki decided to take a water break...

Pirate Henry, Pirate Dexter, and Pirate Hugh on the Pirate Fort...

Now that everyone has a pirate hat and a pirate tattoo, it's time for the "treasure hunt" led by second mate daddy, who's first mate? Well...I am of course!!

On your mark, get set, go...off to find the first clue...

It looks like it's at the Pirate Fort...

They found it...

Second clue...

Third clue...

Fourth Clue...they found the hidden treasure!!

The treasure box had the finishing touches to their pirate costumes: necklaces, rings, eye patches, and golden coins...

Thanks Nana for helping distribute all those necklaces..

 

Pirate Mommies....Jenna and Amber!

Henry, all decked out in his pirate gear..ready to blow out his candles...

 

I have always enjoyed cake baking, considering my enormous sweet tooth, but this was my first attempt at making a themed birthday cake. There are so many great ideas on the internet for birthday parties and cake ideas. I copied this straight from a website. It was also considerably easy, but not as inexpensive as you think. Eggs, butter, and sugar can add up quickly. (More on this later too!) 

"Happy Birthday to Henry!"

The awe of fire...Henry is just discovering it...can you tell? Going to have to watch him with matches.

After we cut the cake we decided to play the last game, "Pin the X on the Pirate Treasure Map", same idea as pin the tail on the donkey we used to play as kids. Also found this idea on the inter-web.

Everyone has to be  blindfolded to play the game!

Yes, even the birthday boy!

This game was a great idea for the four year olds and older, but it did not keep the attention of the younger ones, too slow of a game.

And the winner got chocolate gold coins!

Even Henry's teenage buddy, Donevan, came to help him celebrate!

Mary Taylor is living the life!

Henry and Lilli have been friends since birth. So it was extra special that she was their to celebrate!

This is Henry and Lilli at Henry's 2nd birthday party a couple of years ago. Look how cute and little they are! Gosh time really does fly!

Family shot without M.T.

Our family shot from 2 years ago at Henry's train birthday when I was pregnant with M.T.

This party went very well...I even enjoyed myself and I wasn't stressed. The weather was the best it could be at the beginning of August, but we were still drenched in this hot, sticky southern heat!