I’m sharing Dana’s 2nd Birthday Celebration held on 2 April 2010 as part of the Birthday Blast linky hosted by Beanie N Us. We wanted a casual, relaxed party where guests would be pampered with good food and good fun. We also wanted kids to be actively engaged hence added in the carnival element. 

THE CARNIVAL VENUE

We booked the poolside BBQ pits, prayed for good weather and proceeded to doll up the place. With the help of my cousins, we inflated 50 silvery mylar stars and secured each of them to the roof trellis using fishing lines. I love how they shimmer against the pool…

We ordered balloons in the shades of purple, pink and white from Party Blasters to beautify the party venue. They also suggested placing two gigantic balloon columns for guests to pen their birthday wishes for the Princess which we thought added some novelty.

THE CARNIVAL CAKE

Dana loved dancing to The Wiggles from a young age so we knew she would love a Wiggles Cake. I scoured the web for inspirations and sent them along to the home baker from Pink Ginger by Nee. She did her magic and we’ve a gorgeous 2-layer cake as the centerpiece for the party. 

THE CARNIVAL COUPON

Every single child was given a ‘Royal Ticket’ which I designed using Adobe Photoshop upon arrival (that’s about the only DIY I did for this party).  The kids would use the coupons to redeem treats or their desired hands-on activities at any of these four carnival stations:

A) Balloon Sculpturing
B) Face Painting
C) Cupcake DIY
D) Traditional Ice-Cream(on wheels)

Yes, we engaged an ice-cream uncle who pushed his ice-cream truck right to the poolside to dispense ice-cream potongs, old-fashioned ice-cream blocks wrapped in wafers or bread! All our guests love this nostalgic touch! Some residents even came to buy the ice-cream from the uncle after hearing the familiar bells. The Balloon Sculpturing and Face Painting services were negotiated as a total package (with the venue decor) by Party Blasters. The sisters are very talented and I highly recommended them for your kids’ parties! 

We hired a bouncy castle from Lumineux as a bonus treat for the Birthday Girl and her little royal friends. This activity does not require any ‘redemption’ coupons. Dana had fun bouncing around inside the castle while Mommy and Daddy busied themselves entertaining guests.

 

THE CARNIVAL CATERING

No party would be complete without good food. We usually pay particular attention to the catering as we want to feed the guests well and have them leave the party feeling satisfied. For this party, we engaged Gustos to serve a delectable high tea menu.

THE CARNIVAL BLESSINGS

In total, over 80 friends and family members attended this poolside party. Here’s a shot taken in our home with Dana surrounded by the gifts she received. In the background are the two heart-shaped birthday balloon columns signed with birthday-wishes.  Gifts aside, what we treasure most is the moment to celebrate the special milestone of Dana turning two with those whose closest to us.  Even though she was warded for Kawasaki the next day after the party, we still want to give God the Glory for healing her swiftly and for His hand upon our lives.  He is good, all the time!