We’re going on a mission, start the countdown – 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!

Everyone to rocket and let’s blast off

to celebrate Jade and Jakei’s birthday!

Last year, the two little kids celebrated their birthdays with a Jake and the Neverland Pirate themed cake and snacks.  This year, I wanted to make it extra special for them and asked their school teacher if they could have Little Einsteins’ themed activities as well.  Teacher Abby, always so gracious with parents’ requests, gladly granted our request and also played party host.  Due to the procrastinator in me, the activities didn’t go as well as I imagined though. Nonetheless, the little kids had a great time and loved their “party”.   Thankfully, kids are so easy to please and to entertain. 🙂

THE CAKE

First off the list was the birthday cake.  This was the easiest for me to cross off since all it entailed was placing an order online.  The Little Einsteins birthday cake was created by Joel of Woku Cakes.  He baked for us a Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Jam and Chocolate Ganache Filling.  The cake was shaped like Rocket and was then decorated using boiled icing and fondant.  The Little Einsteins characters were also skilfully sculpted from fondant.

THE FOOD & LOOT BAG

Though I wanted to prepare themed snacks just like last year, we had to make do with fast food delivery as I had no househelp.  We opted for a KFC Snack Box which includes fun shots and fries, Zesto Fruit Teas, and mini-cupcakes from Shoppersville.  The KFC Snack Boxes were ordered a few days in advance and were delivered directly to the kids’ school.  Definitely, food prep this year was no-fuss.

The kids’ loot bags were made from A4 sized colored paper folded into a paper bag.  I found some cute animal crayons at National Bookstore and paired each one with a notepad.  I filled the remaining space with jellyace and lollipops.

THE ACTIVITIES

The activities were meant to be fun party activities coupled with lessons about art and music.  Before each activity, I was supposed to give the kids a few trivia about European art and music.  I wasn’t able to properly coordinate this with Teacher Abby though so it didn’t go as planned. (My fault for not setting up a meeting before the event) Anyway, let me share with you our Little Einsteins themed activities.

Meet the Little Einsteins(Film Showing)

Of course, our budget wasn’t enough to hire mascots so we opted for a viewing of one Little Einstein episode.  We chose Go to Europe and this is where the rest of the activities was based.

Crafts: Bean Shakers

For the crafts time, the kids made their own music shakers using plastic plates and beans.  You may read the materials and procedure in my previous post.   A word of caution though – Make sure the plates are laced securely.  The kids and I have done this many times at home without mess so I did not anticipate the “bean spill” that happened in school.  Some of the kids’ shakers were not laced tightly and beans fell out of the shakers.  If you’ll be doing this craft activity in a school setting, I suggest you use bigger beans.

Game: Musical Einsteins (Music by Tchaikovzky & Bach)

This is another version of musical chairs. While playing, the kids become more familiar with music by Tchaikovzky & Bach.  When the music stops, instead of sitting on chairs, the kids step on cutouts of Little Einsteins characters taped to the floor.  The host draws a character from Rocket (decorated cardboard box) and whoever is stepping on that character gets to stay for the next round.  All the other kids leave the game floor.  The last three kids left get to win prizes.

Game: Stack a Tower (Trivia on Leaning Tower of Pisa, Eiffel Tower, Big Ben Clock Tower, and Towers of Gimignano)

This is another very familiar party relay game where players stack blocks or cups to form a tower.  The players of each team take turns stacking and un-stacking the blocks until everyone has had his turn.  The first  team to finish wins the game.  To connect the game with the Little Einsteins theme, I printed out pictures of famous towers found in Europe.  However, I was neither able to show these to the kids nor to share the bits of trivia about the towers I gathered.

Game: A Piece of Master (Art by Van Gogh & Monet)

This jiggle puzzle game introduces kids to the masterpieces of Van Gogh and Monet.  My husband had paintings printed on board paper which we then cut into puzzle pieces.  To play the game, the kids form groups of four and are given an envelope with the puzzle pieces and a picture of the painting.  The first team who finishes their puzzle wins the game.  Due to time constraints, we weren’t able to play this game anymore.

THE BUDGET

Last year, we spent less than five thousand pesos for their celebration so I set the same amount as my budget this year.  Though the expenses amounted to 6,500 pesos, this is still much lower than what one would spend for a kiddie party in your child’s fave fast food.  Here’s the breakdown of our expenses this year (check this post for last year’s cost breakdown):

Food (for 35 kids + 10 adults): P 4,195

                1,100     = Little Einsteins Cake by Woku Cakes(inclusive of delivery fee)

                2,475     = KFC Snackbox (P55 x 45)

                   300     = Zesto Fruit Tea (P6 x 50)

                  350       = Shoppersville Mini Cupcakes (P7 x 50)

Materials for Bean Shakers(for 35 kids):  P 527

                350         = Plastic Bowls (70 pcs)

                  27         = Yarn (2 spools)

                150         = Beans (2 – 500g packs)

Game Prizes: P 576

                176         = Rocket Crayons (6 pieces)

                184         = Clay Mini-tubs with molds (8 pieces)

                216         = Puzzle Sets (4 boxes)

Loot Bag(for 35 kids):  P 926.50

                55           = Red colored paper for loot bag (P27.50 x 2)

                148.50   = Notepads (24.75 per pack of 6)

                462         = Animal Crayons

                187.50   = Jellyace (62.50 per pack)

                78.50     = Chuppa Chups (24.50 per pack)

That’s exactly 6,224.50. If you add the cost of the paper used for the invitations, stickers, and cutouts, the total amount would be roughly 6,500.  This just goes to show that you can throw a themed party without breaking the bank.  Oh, and we’re actually saving so much more because the kids always celebrate their birthdays together.  Have I already mentioned that the kids enjoyed their Little Einsteins birthday?  Their joy is well worth all the effort and expense.

Thank You

A big shoutout goes to Teacher Abby who allowed us to celebrate the kids’ birthdays in school and who gamely played party host as well.  Thank you also  to the beautiful teachers and aides!  Of course, thank you also to Papa for taking time off from work to celebrate with the us!