Lydie's 4rth birthday party

We had a lot of fun at Lydie's party yesterday. Some of the kids had not even heard of Strawberry Shortcake, but I think they all liked our games. Here's what we did:

First the kids decorated canvas bags to hold their treats. Too busy greeting guests to snap photos, but you can see the girls holding their bags in the picture below.

Then I showed them pictures of each of the characters and explained the idea behind Strawberry Shortcake. Then the kids were ready to go to Strawberry Bitty City for some fun.

Our first stop was the strawberry patch. The kids took turns in groups of three looking in a pink balloon-filled pool for candy. Then we played our Strawberry Shortcake cd and had a contest to see who could keep a balloon off the floor the longest without holding it but tapping or throwing it in the air.

Then we went to Orange Blossom's tree house. The kids tried to throw orange balls in the tree holes for a prize. While they were waiting in line for a turn, the older girls and boys put tattoos on the kids. (Our littlest guest tried repeatedly and unsuccessfully to get a pink balloon through the holes. So cute.)
Then we went to Angel Cake's house for our rendition of a cake walk. The kid each stood on colored pieces of paper that were laid out in a circle. We played music and let them hop from color to color. When the music stopped, I pulled a crayon out of a bag. If the crayon matched their color they were out. The last person standing was the winner. This game was a favorite. We played it several times.

Since we mentioned cake, but the "cake walk" involved no cake, we decided to have cake next. This Strawberry Shortcake hat cake was the easiest cake I have ever made for the kids. Since I couldn't find strawberry cake toppers, I just used stickers! I definitely took the easy route because I had to do all of the decorations, planning, food prep, etc. by myself this year. Andy came in town just in time for the party.

**The boy with the silly face is Lydie's future husband, fyi.*

Then we had a pinata. In the past we have had duds with these string-pulling types of pinatas. But this one worked and I was glad for a calmer, indoor version for this party.

After the pinata we decided to let the kids have fun, while helping us clean up. We gave them toothpicks and let them pop the balloons. Then they picked up balloon pieces and put them in the trash for us. They loved it, and so did we!

Lydie loved all of her toys. She is growing up and getting toys with lots of little pieces! This year she got some Polly Pockets, a first for her. She also got some very fun art toys (stamps, painting), a board game, and a Strawberry Shortcake toy, of course.

The activities ended with 20 or 30 minutes left over for free play. (Just enough time for me to catch up with the other Moms, too.) We were glad it all worked out inside. She opted out of a swim party. And we are just too tired of the heat to have an outdoor party without water! I think it was a great day and I hope Lydie will remember being celebrated on her special day.