Chase's 3rd Birthday {Part 1: Family Party}

Chase's 3rd birthday was so much fun. He had two parties, a small family party and another the next week for his playdate friends. I had a lot of fun with the pirate theme and I found pinterest to be a fun addition to my planning this year. I thought for sure I'd be talking like a pirate after it was all said and done!

I'm dividing the party into a couple of posts for each party as I took a million a few photos.

First off, the food!

We served Honey-Bourbon pulled chicken on Hawaiian rolls and Lawnmower Slaw, which were called Shredded Shark and Seaweed, respectively. Pirate food, get it?!

We had veggies and fruit, hummus and pita chips too and then some other pirate themed stuff too. And you can't have a pirate party without Pirate Booty!

The invite to the party set my planning in motion: red and white polka dots, black, white and stripes.

Erin with One Stop Design Shop has done Chase's party invites every year. Her price is great and includes design, printing and envelopes. She will work with you until it's PERFECT!

The welcome sign and banner were made on my Cricut with cardstock that matched the red, black and white party colors.

For other decorations, I used a roll of dollar store craft/shipping paper and some acrylic paints to make a giant treasure map, used my old treasure chest from my classroom, and made a sail from two dow rods and and some red and white striped fabric found at Hobby Lobby. Burlap, gold/silver beaded dollar store necklaces, gold coins (Hobby Lobby), Hershey's chocolate nuggets, and fishing nets added to the decor and table decorations.

The pirate face cookies I made from scratch, yes - even the icing. I have a love/hate relationship with them. Love the final product, hated the process of making royal icing. I don't remember them being this difficult last year when I made them! And then I don't even think they tasted very good. Oh well, at least they are cute, right?! The idea for them was found here. (And please don't even compare mine with hers, HOW embarrassing! ha ha)

The Cake!

Classic Cakes of Carmel made the cake. I pulled different elements from a few cakes I saw online and they worked with me to make it just right! I was so thrilled the day we picked it up!

A funny story about the cake: Chase happens to think Captain Hook is pretty cool. The inspiration behind the whole party theme was Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Chase came with me to pick up the cake, and he was so excited! He had mentioned a few times that he wanted Captain Hook on the cake, but I knew with copyright issues, they couldn't. So I planned to place his toy hook on top (middle photo).

On the way home with the cake, I hear this pitiful voice in the backseat say out of nowhere "Oh, that cake doesn't have a Captain Hook on it. Awwwwwww!" He wasn't whining, he was just kind of stating the obvious. It broke my heart! I didn't have time to look for a Captain Hook figurine. I called my Mom and low and behold, she told me she had gotten Chase a little set of pirates for his birthday and there was indeed a Captain Hook in the set. Mimi to the rescue!!

Me, Wes and Captain Chase (and Captain Hook!)

The cake was delicious and Chase LOVED being sung to.

Chase had SO MUCH fun with his grandparents, Aunt and Uncles, our friends and of course, his cousins!

 I had a few games for them to play:

Treasure Hunt!

The pirates had to put on their pirate loot to start the treasure hunt. These items were placed in a trunk at the entry. They included a pirate sash, an eye patch, a foam sword and a hat. They looked so stinking cute!

 The little scallywags had their own treasure map that led them to their pirate treasures: ring pops, necklaces, gold chocolate coins and a golden nugget. Ahoy! 

Next up, we walked the PLANK!

  

I also had a photo booth set up to take photos, here's a sneak peek at one that makes me giggle!

We had a blast celebrating our boy. He is such a blessing to us. Thanks to our family and friends for making the day extra special!

I'll be back in a few days to share the playdate party as well as more photo booth shots!