Meaningful Father's Day Gift Idea Your Kids Can Make-Dad's Special Box

Meaningful Father's Day Gift Idea Your Kids Can Make-Dad's Special Box

One of Worker Bee's favorite Father's Day gifts of all time has been his "special box" that Queen Bee and I made him about 10 years ago.  We started with an unfinished wood box that you can buy at most craft stores.  Then we printed out our favorite pictures of Queen Bee and her dad and some quotes that we liked.  We decoupaged the pictures, quotes, some pictures she colored, and scrapbook paper onto the box.  Finally, We added a little paint and then glued some embellishments on it.  It was a really fun craft project. Queen Bee really enjoyed being creative and making something special for her dad.

Inside the box we decoupaged an outline of Queen Bee's handprint and a little quote about memories.  

Worker Bee uses the box to keep all of his special cards, letters, pictures she's made him, and small keepsakes.  

Graduation Party- Kids Buffet

Graduation Party-Kids Buffet

My favorite thing at the graduation party was that we had  an area in our yard designated as the kids zone with the kids tables, a teepee, crayons, paper, and a clothes line to hang the pictures they drew and best of all-A KIDS BUFFET!  What little kid would choose to have a pulled pork sandwich over dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets?  The kids buffet also had assorted juice boxes, veggie cups with ranch in the bottom, and of course any kids buffet wouldn't be complete without ketchup.  When decorating the kids buffet table I kept with our retro travel and adventure theme with a small globe, retro toy camera, and tiny wagon.  

Why are kids more likely to eat their veggies when they are displayed in a darling red wagon, in their own little yellow cup, with a spoonful of ranch?  I can't explain it, but it's a fact.

To see what the biggest hit of our graduation party was click on the link below.   Here's a hint...How can you go wrong when your guests can roast their very own marshmallows? 

Graduation Party

Graduation Party

I'm so excited to share the pictures of Queen Bee's graduation party.  It was a wonderful event, filled with people who love her and have been a support and inspiration to her.  It was a time for her dad and me to celebrate the amazing girl she is and all of her accomplishments.  Can you tell we are super proud of her?  The quote pictured above on her graduation announcement was the inspiration for the theme of the party.  Queen Bee has an adventurous spirit and a enormous heart.  She has already traveled quite a bit, including participating in a humanitarian program to build a kindergarten classroom last summer in Fiji.  And she plans on continuing to travel abroad and help those less fortunate while pursuing her college education.  I wanted her party to reflect her and the hopes and dreams she has for the future.  She also has her mother's love for anything vintage and retro, so I wanted to have a playful retro vibe to the decor.  

Here are all the details for where I found the things I used to create the party. For the items I found on Amazon, you can click on the link in the sidebar for more information.  On our buffet tables I used a retro globe from Dot and Bo.  I fell in love with these darling bright retro suitcases I found on Amazon.  I also used some vintage cameras and cake plates from my collections.  The globe and suitcases were the jumping off point for the color scheme of the party so I was thrilled to find  these darling Meri Meri Charms and Stripes Hanging Pinwheels that I mixed with these Meri Meri Toot Sweet Pinwheels, they were the perfect combo of colors. The tiered chip server was from Target and I lined it with gingham printed waxed paper from World Market.  Finally, throughout the party, I used scrabble letters to spell out words related to travel.

For more graduation party details, including the amazing kids buffet, click the link below.

Summer Reading Punch Card

Summer Reading Punch Card

It's official, my baby girl graduated high school. We had a wonderful week celebrating her accomplishments and spending time with her.  I am excited to have some time to blog again now that things have settled down a little around here.  I can't wait to share my photos of her graduation party along with some fun party ideas with you.

 Today I wanted to share a free printable for a SUMMER READING PUNCH CARD I made for all you parents out there trying to keep your kids reading this summer.  This is a great way to motivate them during the long summer months to spend time reading.  Each card has a blank space for you and your child to choose the reward they want to work toward.  Your rewards can be something as simple as earning TV or computer time, or something a little more special like going to a movie, a daddy daughter date night, or a family water balloon fight.  It's fun to choose something that lets us spend some special one on one time with them celebrating their accomplishment. What reward you choose will certainly depend on how many books you estimate your child will read this summer, and just how much motivation you are going to need to get them excited about reading.  No matter what reward you choose, the sense of accomplishment they will feel and practice this will give them to learn to set goals will be invaluable.