![Ada’s Exciting Eighth Birthday Party at Home](/content/images/size/w2000/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3136.jpeg)
Ada’s Exciting Eighth Birthday Party at Home
As Ada‘s birthday approached this last summer I asked her what she wanted to do. She immediately started describing all the things we did during Zoey’s party earlier this year… so that’s what we did because if it’s not broke why fix it…. and it turned out great!
![Pinterest image showing the post's title, main URL, and a collage of six image also shown below.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_Adas-Exciting-Eighth-Birthday-Party-at-Home-Pinterest.jpg?resize=471%2C707&ssl=1)
Rather than go over the entire party in detail I figured I’d divide it up by topic so it’s easier to find what you may be looking for. And so without further ado here’s the:
Outdoor Sensory Stations
For Zoey’s party our two main stations outside were oobleck and bubbles. For the oobleck I had bought four Tupperware containers but over the next several months lost several parts of them. The bubbles also weren’t easily repeatable as the jug I had used was now missing a lid and was grimy while I couldn’t find any disposable paper cups to hold each kid’s bubbles like last time. I decided in the store to pivot and switch to disposable casserole pans to hold the oobleck and bought some plastic cups I could keep better track of for future parties and let the kids pour their bubble mix themselves from the store-bought bottles. If you want to read more about the method last time you can check out Zoey’s party post here.
![Image shows a package of two EZ Foil casserole pans from Walmart with a cart in the background.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_68194212817__63549A6A-1308-458B-8A02-DDEDA6139475-2.jpeg?resize=750%2C840&ssl=1)
![Image shows the self f plastic tumblers priced at 50 cents each at Walmart.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_2832.jpeg?resize=750%2C606&ssl=1)
![Image shows an outdoor table with bubble wands and bathtub toys laid out.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_2960.jpeg?resize=750%2C408&ssl=1)
![Image shows red water getting poured onto a pile of white cornstarch on the left. The right container is covered in purple water with the odd bit of red and blue making an appearance.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3079.jpeg?resize=750%2C521&ssl=1)
![Image shows the pink casserole partially mixed in while the marbled purple, blue, and white dish on the right shows a more oobleck-like consistency.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3083.jpeg?resize=750%2C557&ssl=1)
![Image shows some foam squares laid out in front of a playhouse with the two (pink and purple) casserole dishes out front and two buckets.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3085.jpeg?resize=750%2C755&ssl=1)
![Image shows the plastic cups, two bottles of bubble mix, and wands laid out on the table with a kitchen set behind to make even more concoctions.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3087.jpeg?resize=750%2C508&ssl=1)
![Image shows the pink decoration hanging from our front overhang with the yard in the background.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3090.jpeg?resize=750%2C551&ssl=1)
![Image shows a section of fake grass with bricks holding the corners down and toys laid out carefully showcasing Ada's vision of the party.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3086.jpeg?resize=750%2C423&ssl=1)
![Image shows the boats and fish organized on the freestanding beams supporting our patio.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_2957.jpeg?resize=750%2C800&ssl=1)
![Image shows the same table as above with empty bubble mix bottles, cups, wands, kitchen set pot, and a pink oobleck coated pinecone.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3109.jpeg?resize=750%2C563&ssl=1)
Indoor Stations and Decorations
Inside we again turned the kids room into a dance party room. To do this Matt moved the smaller furniture around and used blankets to help block off the closet and beds. We then reused the door streamers from Zoey’s party and bought another multipack of crepe streamers for the ceiling. The party lights and home pod completed the scene!
This is the fourth time we hosted a dance party room so if you want more information on how it was handled before you can check out the previous posts: The Year of Our Small and Simple Birthday Parties or Zoey’s Random but Fun Sixth Birthday.
![Image shows the metallic streamers pulled back like a curtain showing up the multicolor crepe streamers hanging from the ceiling and the red and green lights projected everywhere.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3098.jpeg?resize=750%2C563&ssl=1)
![Image shows the metallic streamers pulled back like a curtain showing up the multicolor crepe streamers hanging from the ceiling and the purple, red, green, and blue lights projected everywhere.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3096.jpeg?resize=750%2C448&ssl=1)
![Image shows the two banners placed above and below each other on the wall.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3136.jpeg?resize=750%2C563&ssl=1)
Goodie/Treat Bags
Months and months before Ada had been going completely gaga over eraser toppers and so I had bought, in advance, two bags of erasers for her party. I wasn’t sure what else to put in the bags but closer to the party I decided to make that the theme and shopped through our school supply stash resulting in both new pencils and colored pencils for each kid. I added a ponytail to hold each set of pencils together, two types of packaged Oreos, and put each into an Ada-decorated paper bag and we were ready to go!
![Image shows the yellow basket for the school supply stash, the empty colored pencil boxes, and a row of piles of writing instruments and a small ponytail tie.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_2951.jpeg?resize=750%2C519&ssl=1)
![Image shows the two bags of erasers (one unicorn and one food related), a pile of fireworks Oreos, a pile of double stuffed, and the packaged writing pencils.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_2953.jpeg?resize=750%2C577&ssl=1)
Food
We had decided to keep it simple and order pizza… but as we approached the party I wanted to have a larger selection of food for everyone while the kids played and the parents visited. I decided to come up with some food I could prepare ahead of time, so I could be present, while also being something unique they might not normally have. A that time our current favorite was bacon wrapped dates stuffed with goat cheese and an almond. I figured I could prepare them the day before and, when people start arriving, quickly lay them out and bake them in the air fryer. I wanted something healthy to go with this and thought of the Fruit Salad with Lemon Dressing in the recently reviewed The Secret Ingredient Cookbook that I hadn’t gotten a chance to try yet. Figured it would be both adult and kid friendly and so I added it to the list. Some of the guests were vegetarian and I loved the don’t-tell-anyone-it’s-vegan swiss chard caesar salad with hand-torn croutons from the, also recently reviewed, No-Fuss Family Cookbook. And thus the menu was planned. At the last minute, just to make it more obvious, I grabbed some pink post it notes I had and wrote down the foods so they’d be labelled.
![Image shows a plastic cutting board with some goat cheese and almond opened dates in the front, empty and cut open dates in the back, and closed stuffed dates in the container to the left. To the right sits the package of bacon waiting to be used and the empty glass containers waiting in the back for the finished items.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3072.jpeg?resize=750%2C303&ssl=1)
![Image shows a small black cookie sheet with a grid of wrapped dates laid out. On top lays a basket tray about to be decorated. To either side sits two containers with more dates inside.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3102.jpeg?resize=750%2C300&ssl=1)
![Image shows three pink flowered notes lined up on the counter with the name of the recipe, any add ins (croutons and dressing for the salad), and any potentially problematic foods (cheese and almonds on the bacon wrapped dates).](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3103.jpeg?resize=750%2C388&ssl=1)
Dessert
Years ago Ada came up with the idea to mix pineapple with brownie mix resulting in our yearly pineapple brownie cupcakes. If you want to hear more about it you can check out our original pineapple brownie cake or the experiment between using pineapple or coconut and chocolate chips in the mix for our Halloween cupcakes. This time around I used a 565 gram can of crushed pineapple, measured 1/3 cup of pineapple juice from it, and then dumped it all into the brownie mix. Other than skipping the water I otherwise followed the directions from the box. We baked them the day before and, once cooled, packed them away in a large lidded container in our fridge so they’d be ready to pull out and decorate with whip cream and sprinkles during the party.
![Image shows Ada using a spatula to scrape the pineapple can contents into a stand mixer bowl. Below you can see an egg sitting there already.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3043.jpeg?resize=750%2C1000&ssl=1)
![Image shows two trays of brownie in colorful liners in the small oven with two extra ones laid overtop.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3044.jpeg?resize=750%2C528&ssl=1)
![Image shows the two cupcake liners with a single empty liner between it and the contents cut into four. You can see a chunk of pineapple in one of them.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3051.jpeg?resize=750%2C531&ssl=1)
If you’re looking for something else this year we also tried our hand at making our own ice cream cake on Ada’s actual birthday. We loved how it turned out and I shared a post dedicated just to it if you want to hear more.
![Image shows the actual final cake coated in pastel colors, pink and red Xs and Os, and the birthday message.](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3240.jpeg?resize=750%2C504&ssl=1)
![Image shows a small black outer bowl with ice cream and fruit salad (grapes, strawberries, and pomegranate seeds).](https://www.simplykyra.com/content/images/wordpress/2022/08/compressed_IMG_3188.jpeg?resize=750%2C593&ssl=1)
I absolutely love how Ada’s party turned out and how fun it was to visit with everyone while the kids played. I wanted to share the parties here both for me and for you if something in it can help you plan your own. If it does help I’d love to hear how in the comments below.
Hope you have a great day… and a great event!
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