party for a princess

Mikayla's birthday party with friends was quite the treat...for her and me! We went with a "Disney Princess" theme this year as turning five years old is the perfect age for it! Each of the girls came to the party dressed up as their favorite Disney princess to come help celebrate!

{The Invitation}

for more details, visit HERE

{The Royal Entryway}

With each guest that came through the door, Mikayla would say,
"Welcome to the royal palace." (with a little coaching from me)

This banner was super easy because it was part of a princess party kit I had purchased from the clearance rack on my Stampin' Up website! I decided to hang white sheer curtains with a ribbon (curtains I have yet to put up in Mikayla's room, that is!). I felt like it gave the entryway that extra special princess touch. I also added in a couple of princess balloons. Seriously, I am so impressed with the balloons at the Dollar Tree. Just an FYI...check there first for Mylar balloons before dropping $4 a balloon anywhere else! You'd be surprised at the selection and how long they last.

When each "princess"arrived, Mikayla led them to a table where they got to pick out two rings, a crown, and a wand. There was also some makeup available (lip gloss, lip stick, sparkly eyeshadow, and blush) that I put on the girls if they wanted me to.

{The Princess Photo Shoot}

Next on the agenda after all the princesses had arrived was the photo shoot. The entryway curtain was the perfect place for taking pictures. I took two pictures of each of the girls on their own and then one each with the birthday girl. (Be prepared for picture overload...although I could have added a lot more!)

{Rapunzel (from Tangled) & Ariel}

{Rapunzel & Belle}
{Rapunzel & Ariel}
{Cinderella & Rapunzel}
{Belle & Rapunzel}
{Belle & Rapunzel}
{Rapunzel & her little buddy}

{the princess crew}

After the photo shoot, it was game time...

{Pass the Belle}
Everyone sat in a circle and passed the Belle princess doll around. Whoever was holding her when the bell was dinged, was out of the game. The princess who was left in the end was the winner and she won a princess tattoo (that everyone eventually got to have by the end of the party...have to make it fair for five-year olds!)

{Sleeping Beauty Freeze}
Each of the girls danced around as the music played. When the music stopped, they had to freeze. If a princess was caught moving, they were out of the game. I was so pleasantly surprised at how honest and understanding each of the girls were if they got
"out" of the game.

{Crown the Lost Princess}
A version of "Pin the Tail on the Donkey". Each princess was blindfolded and then had to try to place the crown on top "Rapunzel's" head. It was pretty entertaining to watch and the girls got giggles out of where each of them placed their crown.

Mikayla was the winner!
{Princess, Princess, Frog}
Basically duck, duck, goose...but princess style!

{Bippity Boppity Bubbles!}
Each princess had a wand and tried to pop bubbles with them. We ended up only doing this for a very short while as it started to rain while we were out there.
{The Craft}

After the games and while I prepared the lunch, each of the girls got to decorate their own little "jewelry tin" with a sparkly foam crown and gemstones. I was so excited to find these pink round tins at Michaels Crafts on clearance for only $.99 each!! And the gemstones I found at the Dollar Tree. It was the perfect, but yet inexpensive, craft for the party. My intention for the tins were for the girls to take them home and use them for their princess jewelry. I really wanted to use my Cricut to make each of their names out of vinyl, but it was a last minute thought and I didn't have any vinyl sheets to work with! (I need to work on that "planning ahead" thing.)

{Princess Lunch}
I didn't want to splurge on real flowers, so I used some faux ones I had laying around. I used some sparkly silver & pink stars to "dust" the table (these were leftover from Mikayla's 3rd birthday tea party - I save everything!)

Nothing too over the top fancy on the menu, but I made heart-shaped PB & J sandwiches and added a crown pick (another item included in the princess party kit from Stampin' Up! as mentioned above). This was my second choice, but I decided that it just wasn't worth it to go all over the place looking for a princess crown shaped cookie cutter. I found the plastic "champagne" cups at the Dollar Tree (which I used for last year's Tinkerbell party, too!) and added a pink gingham bow to each one just for a little something extra. I tied pink plastic forks & spoons in a pink napkin and wrapped a little bit of star garland to hold it together.

I did add the special touch of heart-shaped ice cubes.
For dessert, Mikayla wanted Jello (easy!), so I topped each of them with Whipped Cream and added another crown pick.

And, of course...present time!

{Party Favors}
Each of the princesses got to take home a goody bag filled with lots of princess things. (The party favors were probably the only thing I have been prepared for since January! some of the things were bought on after-holiday clearance!)

Each baggie included: fingernail polish, lip gloss, a ring, stickers, small note pad, pencil, and a heart shaped lollipop

And, every princess needs a little snack on the way home...

I had such a fun time planning her princess party. April has been such a busy month that a lot of the party planning was literally happening a couple of days before the party (and with all honesty, most of it was done the day and night before, too!). I think each of the girls had a fun time and Mikayla made sure to tell me just how much of a fun day she had! "It was the best day ever, Mom!"

I love that sweet girl.