Operation Pokemon Party: Success!

Kailani turned eight yesterday. That's right, EIGHT!  My litle girl.....eight years old. Blows my mind.

She had a small party of six yesterday. The six included herself, her sister, three friends and a sibling (*note to self - small party = GREAT idea!*) For awhile she was going with a "Mad Scientist" theme and I was all over it! I had so many great ideas and was looking forward to lab coats and experiments! But somehow Pokemon blindsided me. That's alright. Pokemon seemed easier and I am ALL about easier these days!

First thing - the invitations. I found a website where you can create your own Pokemon card with a picture of your choice and also edit all the details on it. Here's what we sent out:

Is that cool or what? You can make your own at Pokemon Card Maker. 


I also used the Pokemon Card Maker website to create "birthday passes" that were included with the invitation:

Since only a few kids were invited and they were all close friends I already had a picture of them to use on the card. I slid the cards into an ID holder with a lanyard. On the pass it says, "Please bring this pass with you - no pass, no entry!" (It's a VERY exclusive party! HA!)


When the guests arrived we checked to make sure they had their passes and then presented them with a Pokemon/Pikachu hat that I had made and painted their face to look like Pikachu (if they wanted):

I have to admit, the hats turned out SO CUTE! I found a video tutorial on how to make them and went for it. I saved myself some time by not putting a lining in it and not painting on the eyes. I thought the eyes were cute but since I'm not very crafty with fabric markers I passed. And you know what? I'm glad I did because Kailani said the one in the tutorial makes Pikachu look like he has four eyes when you count your own. (*Patting myself on the back - good call, mama. Good call.*)

With the exception of having an issue with the measurements of the hat (FYI - I used 7 x 11" for the kids) it was easy to do and fairly quick. Until I RAN OUT OF FABRIC the night before the party! Thank goodness I found some green fleece in my stash and two kids were more than happy to take the green! In hindsight I think I should've (NOT RUN OUT OF FABRIC?!?) made one "authentic" colored  Pikuchu hat for the birthday girl and give everyone else a different colored one. Purple, pink, red, etc.


We played birthday games and EVERYONE won Pokemon cards after each game. Of course the true winner won a few more. I purchased TONS of cards off of EBay in mint or new condition. The kids loved it! They kept them in a plastic card box with their birthday pass on the front:

I considered using the plastic pocket sleeves versus the box but figured this was the better way to go since I was giving away a lot of cards (I bought 200). The box worked out great minus one thing - Momo, being only three had a hard time opening and closing the box. Other than that it was perfect!


When it came to game time we went with the traditional birthday games which at first I thought might be too juvenile for an 8-year old and her friends. However, the kids had a total blast! We played:

• hot potato: we used a Pokemon ball that I found for 99 cents at Goodwill. SCORE! It even opens and closes. I should've put a card inside of it for the winner/loser:

Momo wasn't a very good sport when things didn't go her way:

• ping-pong ball toss into plastic Pokemon cups
• balloon pop - I blew up 30 balloons the kids had to pop them to find the three with a Pokemon sticker inside
• pin-the-sticker-on-the-poster blindfold game - the Pikachu hats doubled as a blindfold!

pinata - again, using the hat as a blindfold!

Between the games the kids had pizza and some rainbow Jell-o:

And then when it was time for cake I made a giant rainbow Pikachu cupcake cake (please don't laugh!):

I know, I know! The frosting is hideous. You should've seen the back of the cake. It took a beating like it was attacked by a Pokeball or Pokemon (but the kids didn't care!):



But the cute little Pikachus on top of the cake made up for it as well as when the cake was sliced:





You should've heard the "ohhhhhs" and "ahhhhhhs" when it was sliced!

The kids then traded cards and had some free time. It was a GREAT party!

But I wasn't done just yet. The party was yesterday but this morning I woke up to make rainbow cupcakes for her class at school. I attached Pokemon cards into little party sticks and this is how they turned out:

From the sounds of the "ohhhhhhs" and "ahhhhhhhhs" when I walked into the class I think I'm forgiven for not bringing in ice cream!

YES!!! It's DONE! Operation Pokemon Party was a SUCCESS! Happy birthday to my sweet little girl!

Wordless Wednesday: Shot by a Rainbow

Can you make out the rainbow behind Kailani? You might not be able to....but look again....look really close! Change the angle of your screen or the position that you're sitting in.....it looks like the rainbow is shooting right through her back! We were at her school when we saw this rainbow, very close and very low to the ground. Of all times not to have my camera! I ended up taking this picture with my old school camera phone....

For more Wordless Wednesday (although mine this week was wordful) please visit:

Wordless Wednesday, 5 Minutes for Mom, or Seven Clown Circus.

The Mommies Network - Online Auction!

Do you like to shop online? Are you a fan of EBay? Do you like for your money to go to a good cause (even if it is just to justify your spending?) Did you know that Christmas is less than three months away?!? Well have no fear! "The Mommies Network" auction is about to begin!

"The Mommies Network" (TMN for short) is a non-profit organization that was created to help moms from all walks of life find support, guidance and friendships. As a lot of us know that while becoming a mother is a blessing it can also be incredibly challenging as well. At TMN you can find the support you need from people just like you. I have been a member of three of their networks and it has been a totally rewarding experience!

Anyways! TMN is hosting their very first national online auction to raise funds to keep their network FREE to it's users. They will also be donating a portion of the money raised to the "National Network to End Domestic Abuse." A total win-win situation!

The auction runs from September 5th-11th September 5th-18th (?) I have donated a toddler mermaid towel - hopefully it will get some bids and help raise some funds! Check it out! It's on page 7 of the auction down towards the bottom. :)

(Edited to add: I just received an email that since TMN is a "new EBay user" they are only able to post 100 items at a time. Since there are more than 100 items they have extended the auction for another week. Not sure what week the mermaid towel will be up for bid.  The mermaid towel is up for bid this first week!)

Go check it out here: The Mommies Network Online Auction  Good luck bidding!

Also, if you are a mom why don't you check out TMN and see if there is a network close to where you are? Go their home page and click on "find a group" to see!

Sewing Play Date: Car Seat Organizer

We are officially moved in to our new place! I cannot tell you how happy and relieved I am. We turned in our keys to our old place so now we can start settling in to our new one!

Last week I took a much needed break from moving and attended a sewing play date (meaning while the moms sew the kids run wild). It was hosted by my friend Amanda from Patchwork in Paradise through the Honolulu Mommies group. The project was a car seat organizer. Amanda sent out the details about the project and I figured it was simple enough that I probably had enough time to make two of them - one for each of my kids.

Did I have enough time to make two? Maybe. One? Absolutely. But I didn't. Reason being? It was SO MUCH fun to sew with a group of ladies! I ended up talking and laughing more than sewing. I ended up taking the project home and here is how it turned out:

With stuff in it:

And here's a close-up of the print. Very Tokidoki-looking but it's not. Still quite fabulous!

Thanks to Amanda for a fun project and fun day! :)