The older two girls haven’t had a birthday party in a while. With October being a crazy month, we had previously let them decide on a place to have a family dinner. And they enjoyed it, but they really wanted to celebrate with friends again.
We’ve had some great birthday parties at the house with bounce houses, pinatas and more fun. But, with a crazy month ahead, I knew I couldn’t do it, so we decided on a party outside of the house. We had discussed a bunch of different options and locations, but while at the YMCA one day, I remembered they do parties there for a pretty good price. I thought I could choose between swimming and rock climbing, but then I saw Zumba and knew it had to be that.
The invite
I used Canva and an image subscription service to whip up the invitation. It turns out, finding a zumba dancing person is hard…especially one that is clothed appropriately. So, I went with this one. In a very classy way, I sent the invitation via text/image message to the children the girls wanted to invite. Yes, maybe that should say klassy.
The favors
I then had to decide on favors for the party. I’m not a fan of the quick ones you find in the store that get tossed in a about two minutes. I didn’t spend huge, either. I went to the Dollar Tree and grabbed some water bottles. I then used my Silhouette Cameo with some permanent Oracle 651 vinyl and the Sortdecai Handmade Script and Bonus font and typed each of the kid’s names into the software, printed it out on the vinyl and they were ready to go.
The kids and parents loved them. Practical, functional and personalized…definitely a party favor win.
The party / The activities
Part of the party fee was having helpers with the kids and a ZUMBA instructor. We were able to put in music requests and the kids had a great time. They danced and exercised their hearts out and kept moving for the full hour.
In addition to the ZUMBA dancing, they did congo lines, a little limbo and even a challenge with the hula hoops. Keeping all of the kids ages 4 and up entertained wasn’t hard and they had so much fun. We had people tell us it was the most fun the kids had at a birthday party in a while…and I love that it wasn’t the same old party that most kids have.
The food
In addition to the water, cake and pizza mentioned on the invite, we also had veggie and fruit trays, protein bars, granola and juice boxes. The kids worked up quite the appetites, too because they were starving after their activities.
The singing
Pro tip: Don’t forget the candles! Thankfully, they weren’t too upset about it because they had all of their friends there to celebrate with them. We all sang happy birthday and there wasn’t a fight over the candles being blown out. So, that’s a win!
And, I’m super thankful to the mom that offered to take a picture of the four of us with the birthday girls (the other two were probably busy eating strawberries by the plateful!)
The gifts
We’ve been in serious purge mode. There is so much stuff in our house and we just don’t need more. The girls and I chatted and decided that instead of gifts, they’d like to suggest if somebody wants to bring a gift, that they bring a donation for our local food pantry as there is serious need this time of year. I’ve put together a list of other alternative birthday gift ideas, some of which we’ve previously used. It was nice to be able to give to our community via their birthday and the girls were happy to help facilitate the donation.
We all had such a fun time at the ZUMBA birthday party. Every time we do a fun party like this (yeah, it’s not a “pinterest party” but it’s fun), I wonder how the next party will go and how we can make it even more fun as they grow up.
Happy 10th and 8th to my biggest girls. We love you!
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It’s time again for Mommy and Me Monday. Pop out from behind that camera and capture yourself in action with your kids. Check out the inaugural Mommy and Me Monday for more information. Need another reason to participate in Mommy and Me Monday? Read my post about why I blog with words from a friends’ husband.
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Krystyn has been blogging since 2005. She is a sarcasm-loving, straight-shooting, jeans and t-shirts wearing, wife and mom of four girls (ages 12, 10, 6 and 5). She blogs about life as a mom and wife and includes anecdotes, funny stories (both mommy and other), family travel and more. She currently resides in the Atlanta, Georgia suburbs.
Happy Birthday sweet girls! The party was so perfect and so much fun! 🙂 The decorative swirls on the cake are rad, too.
This is Seriously the coolest kids birthday party ever. I love everything about it. What great memories for the girls and what a way to teach them kindness and empathy.
So fun! What a great idea. I’ll have to see if our Y does something like that. We had my daughter’s 2nd birthday party over the weekend and went to a farm to pick pumpkins with friends. Fun & easy for me. 😉 Because, like you, my October is crazy!
What a great idea! And I bet their parents were happy that you wore them out – ha! Happy Birthday to your girls!
So cool birthday kids’ party, what a great day. I really like the picture you four took together.
I’m doing a Zumba party this summer for my daughter. Love the water bottle favors. Would you be interested in doing the vinyl letters for me? Cost? Would i be able to adhere them to any plastic bottle?? Thanks!!
Hi Allison! How fun! I bet your daughter and friends have a great time.
I just do my vinyl-ing for a hobby, but I have a friend that does it, Sugar Lane Gifts (she’s on instagram if you are there @sugarlanegifts) or send her an email sugarlanegifts@gmail.com
Or, I would check out some of these people on etsy. I haven’t used any of them, so check their reviews, but I bet you can find one you like there for a great price!
Come let me know how it goes!