Science & Sensory Play

Zoey’s Random but Fun Sixth Birthday

Kyra

Oct 12, 2022 •10 minutes to read

When I started this blog I wanted to share the girls’ birthday parties as I loved the super simple sensory activities and themes I chose to use. Once COVID hit I shared how I found a simple solution to host a party while still sheltering in place. Since then sharing the parties have also became a way to store and share a memory of the day… and without further ado a glimpse at Zoey’s slightly random but still really fun sixth birthday party!

Pinterest-geared image showing my blog post's title, my main URL, and a collage of five photos that can also be found below.

As Zoey’s birthday approached this year we debated what to do and even considered taking Zoey somewhere big instead of hosting a party. Then she was invited to two parties both the weekend before AND the weekend after her birthday and we worried she’d be excited to do something big at first but later be disappointed to not have a party with friends so we decided that we’d host a party.

When asked what she wanted to do for her party she kept telling me dance party as last year the girls were gifted strobing dance lights for their bedroom which Zoey wanted to use again with friends. She was adamant about the dance party portion and over time I added oobleck and a general rainbow theme to the party which she approved of. With the general plan decided we picked a day and time and sent out the party invitations.

Party Preparations

Treat Bags

A week or so before the party I grabbed some white paper bags, used a black paint pen to write the names of the guests, and had Zoey decorate them. Ada wanted to be a part of the action so she asked to decorate Zoey’s treat bag. Once they had finished I made some playdough, bought and gathered up some treat bag stuff, divided them out, and stuffed them all into the bags.

Image show the contents of a treat bag including a mix of homemade (playdough), store-bought (chalk, bubble stuff, fruit rollups), and repackaged (goldfish crackers in a snack bag). The white decorated bags are in the back and the empty packaging (fruit rollup and goldfish crackers) are to the right. — I made two doubled batches of playdough in blue and pink. I chose two primary colors so the guests could later mix part of it together to get the secondary color (purple – Zoey picked) or enjoy the colors separately. I also bought a bubble kit in the party section of Walmart so I could use the wands with bulk bubble mix at the party while using the little bubble mix bottles and bubble pipes in the bags. Some packaged chalk, repackaged goldfish crackers, and two fruit rollups finished off each of the bags.

Food and Dessert

While planning the meal we decided to take it easy and order pizza the morning off. Looking back I’m so glad we did as the power went out right before the party started and we didn’t have to worry about cooking anything. To go with the planned pizza I had decided to cut up some raw veggies and toss together a fruit salad recipe I had ogled in the The Secret Ingredient Cookbook but hadn’t gotten a chance to make yet. I cut and assembled it the morning of the party and it didn’t disappoint. In fact the fruit salad was still amazing days later… as I had multiplied the recipe and made a big batch.

We ended up having a full house of parents and kids so, for drinks, we decided to grab a cooler and fill it with a selection of drinks so everyone would feel more welcomed to grab whenever they’d like. This included juice boxes, waters, flavored waters, ice, and otter pops (by Zoey’s request).

For the dessert Zoey wanted angel food cupcakes again and so the day before I mixed up a box mix of angel food cake and added some food dye to match the rainbow theme. I shared them here if you’re interested to learn more. The colorful interior colors, the rainbow themed paper plates and utensils, and the rainbow sprinkles against the white whip cream created a subtle rainbow theme.

Image shows a cupcake cut into four pieces and spilling from an orange silicon liner. You can see the rest behind it on the cooling rack and cupcake tin. — I cut into one of the colorful cupcakes to check out the color, taste test, and snap a photo for my blog and for Zoey later on.

Image shows Matt lighting up the candles on the cupcake while Zoey watches. — The birthday girl gets the first cupcake with extra whip cream so the candles are secured for the birthday song. She loved the cupcakes and all the kids couldn’t wait to get theirs too.

Decorations

The night before the party I grabbed a piece of computer paper and a back paint pen to create a sign for outside our gate. I left it on the table so the kids could decorate it before we taped it outside. I loved the simple and last minute sign.

Image shows a white rectangular sign against wood saying "Happy Birthday Zoey!" "Welcome to the party. Come on in!". Surrounding the words there are pink hearts covering the page. — I love the super simple last minute addition of a sign and the lovely hearts the girls drew on them.

While I handled the kitchen prep and the final activity setup outside Matt entertained the girls and set up the epic birthday party room. Last year we used one or two large crepe streamer rolls to decorate the ceiling while this year I bought a multipack of small crepe rolls to go with the rainbow theme and added a tinsel doorway curtain. If you do the same Matt got about six streamers per each roll of crepe.

Image shows a white rimmed doorway with rainbow colored tinsel strands blocking the open door. — I love the rainbow tinsel curtain. Matt used some push pins to hold it up above the doorway and trimmed the excess tinsel so it barely brushed the floor. A couple days after the party we took it down and set it aside for Ada’s. Word of warning the girls did start pulling the tinsel off of it.

Image shows the same view as before but now the streamers are pulled aside and you can see into the room. Hanging from the ceiling are many different colored streamers. — I love all the different colored streamers inside the room. They stayed up for several days before the girls pulled them down and made streamer bundles to play with and/or stick in their hair.

Matt did an amazing job! Which was mostly for naught as our power went out right before the party though the kids did have fun jumping around the dark bedecked room.

Activities/Stations

In addition to the dance party we planned several more activities that the kids could cycle through whenever they wanted. I’m so glad we did as the kids all had a blast outside and even came inside to play within the dimmed rooms.

Our main idea was to create oobleck for the kids to play with. Previous years we used to make it in a flat large storage bin but over the years they became brittle in the sun outside and broke. This year I decided to instead buy four cheap plastic containers and made the oobleck in them. The plan was to reuse them for Ada’s party later on but the girls are still playing with the resulting dried out oobleck outside so we’ll see if the containers last. If you want to make your own I shared about it here along with several variations we’ve tried out over the years. In all this took about six one-pound packages of cornstarch along with the water and food dye.

Image shows three small clear containers with cornstarch and dyed water partially mixed. In the background sits three empty Argo cornstarch containers and a container of food dyes. — I laid out all the materials I needed the night before and, after prepping the veggies and fruit salad, mixed up some colorful oobleck before having the kids take it outside. I used all three primary colors (along with a purple-ish one) so the kids could mix up whatever color they dreamed of.

Another activity I set up outside was bubbles. We had somehow lost our bubble wands over the years but this idea came together when I saw a party pack of individual bubble mix and bubble toys at Walmart. The wands and dishes created a bubble station in the backyard while the small bottles of mix and bubble pipes (germ hazard if shared) were put into their treat bags. For last year’s parties I bought a plastic drink dispenser to hold bubble mix along with a gallon jug of bubble mix to fill it with. Over the year somehow the dispenser had broken and I couldn’t find either the dispenser or the gallon size bubble mix in the stores. Instead I decided to buy smaller bottles of bubble mix and a package of disposable cups. The bottle was small enough for the kids to use themselves, if needed, and I wrote each kids name on a cup so they could control their own bubble mix whether they were at the station or not. Plus with a larger party they could see their name and not have to memorize a cup color like I did last year.

Image shows a pink plastic drink dispenser with bubbly liquid inside and the words "Bubble Mix" and bubbles written on the outside. There are bubble wands to the side. — Last year I bought a drink dispenser from the Dollar Tree, labeled it with a paint pen, and filled it up from our large jug of bubble mix. I grabbed our plastic drinking glasses for the bubbles and cleaned it *really* well afterwards. I paired this with all the leftover bubble wands we already owned. If you’re having a party with smaller guests and don’t want the kids to spill bubble mix we once taped bubble wands to our deck so we didn’t have to worry. I recommend not leaving them up for too long as it’s hard to open and close them when tapped up and hard to refill.

Image shows an outside table with labeled disposable cups, bubble wands and trays, and a. tall bottle of bubble mix. In the background is a large Jungle Jumparoo for ht kids to hop and swing on. — This year the bubble station was just as self-sufficient but looked different with labeled cups, simpler bubble mix bottles, and more diverse wands.

In addition to the fresh oobleck and bubbles I created several more activities or stations around the backyard based on what we already owned. I tidied up the backyard and set up these stations with Ada’s help a couple days before the party and it was perfect as it was less stress the day of the party. We gathered all the toys to a cleared off space, moved the chalk closer to the sidewalk, put the hula hoops and skip ropes by the playhouse, and made sure we had a space for picnic blankets for the kids to eat outside. We also made sure there were fun vehicles in the living room if people wanted to play inside. I didn’t; however, get any photos of this until hours after the party but here are some shots of the aftermath:

Image shows an opened plastic suitcase filled with chalk next to the sidewalk with some white and pink doodles. — We gathered up all the new and old chalk next to the sidewalk so the kids could draw and doodle to their hearts content.

Image shows multicolored interlocking foam squares with pink oobleck spread out on it and the containers, shovels, and toys to the right. — We laid out the oobleck on the foam squares by their playhouse and, during the party, lots of the plastic animals and other characters were brought over to join the fun. After the party the girls went back outside and played with the oobleck for hours. I snapped this picture after they had gone back in again. Even now, weeks later, the oobleck is still outside and getting played with and rehydrated occasionally.

Image shows two buckets. The one on the left has pink oobleck at the bottom. The blue one on the right is tipped over and you can't see if it's clean or not. — A bit after the party started I realized the kids had nothing to wash their hands with. I grabbed some sand buckets and filled them with water so the kids could dunk their hands in. They then found smaller buckets and a plastic play watering can and transported water from the buckets to the oobleck. Hours later the buckets themselves were empty of water with dried out oobleck stuck to the bottom. I guess I call this a sign of success.

Zoey’s Birthday

We hosted the party before Zoey’s birthday so we could enjoy the day without worrying about hosting anything. The day before her birthday I took the girls to Costco and planned to visit Dairy Queen for Zoey’s requested ice cream cake. When faced with the cakes at Costco; however, Zoey changed her mind, several times, and finally settled on the same one as last year as she remembered how amazing it tasted. Rather than worry about it in the trunk I carefully belted it into the front seat and snagged some photos with the girls when we got home.

Image shows the side of Zoey's head and a hand placed on the passenger seat next to the belted in sheet cake. — Safety first with the tuxedo cake!

We had bought a boogie board for the wall so I used it to write an extra special message to Zoey to go along with the balloons, Zoey’s choice of meals, presents, and the Zoey’s choice outing the next day.

Image shows a black board saying "Happy 6th Birthday Zoey!" — I wrote a quick birthday message on the boogie board for Zoey to find that morning .

Image shows a red and yellow birthday balloon taped to the left chair and a matching green one on the right chair. In the background you can see kinetic sand and toys on the table. — Zoey wanted two helium balloons tied to her chair and one on Ada’s. The local Dollar Tree was out of helium so I used regular *Happy Birthday* balloons instead.

Image shows two balloons hovering in the air in front of a painting and above black fan. Both are a bit blurred although you can tell the yellow one is spinning faster as it's more blurred. — At some point the girls realized they could adjust our small black fan to point up and make the balloons hover and dance in the air. They were both able to get two balloons up there consistently.

Overall Zoey had an awesome birthday party and loved her birthday!

I’d love to hear if any of these ideas helped you plan your own party. Feel free to let me know if it did in the comments below. Hope you’re having a great day and have an awesome party.

If you’re interested in getting any of my future blog updates I currently come out with a new one every second Wednesday and share them to my Facebook page

Browse Related Topic(s)

Science & Sensory Play Birthday Children Dollar Tree Oobleck Playdough Preschooler Sensory Activity Toddler Walmart Craftiness Dance Box Mix