Camp Wildflower: A Summer Camp Themed Birthday Party

October 22, 2025

Welcome to Camp Wildflower – a summer camp-themed 10th birthday held at home in Aurora, Illinois. To transport guests to camp, most of the activities were held outdoors, tents and camping chairs were erected and there was a summer camp-inspired aesthetic was applied indoors and out.

Once campers arrived, they were ushered to the “campground area” in the backyard. The camp backdrop included colorful panels with camping pennants, balloons, a camp sign, and A-frame arch leading back to flowers and camping tent. A camper photo was taken and then campers were encouraged to build-their-own trail mix and collect their nature hike dossier. The dossiers included a nature bingo card, hike journal as well as a tiny pencil. The camp backdrop included colorful panels with camping pennants, balloons, a camp sign, and A-frame arch leading back to flowers and camping tent. Camp Counselor Amy then led campers on a hike around the neighborhood pond, with a short stop at the playground and picnic shelter so kids could log their bingo finds and hiking notes.

When the campers returned from their hike, they were greeted with a stunning tablescape of wildflowers, camping supplies, custom name pennants and bright blue vintage enamelware. The mess hall then served a late lunch that including choice of grilled cheese or mac n’ cheese and chips, pretzels, applesauce and ice-cold lemonade. After eating, campers moved to the art barn where Junior Counselor Ari taught them how to make god’s eyes and other arts & crafts.

Campers who finished their crafts early went over to the indoor tent to play a couple rounds of the “Happy Camper” board game. When all arts & crafts activities were complete, campers collected their camping-themed favor items, sang the birthday song and ice cream cake was served.

Birthday presents were opened as a group in the outdoor tent and then campers enjoyed S’mores around the campfire before their parents picked them up for the day. The weather was perfect, the campers were well fed and had a full agenda of activities and everyone had a great day at Camp Wildflower!

Vendors:
Experience design, décor design, signage, flowers, name pennants, activities, food, balloons & rentals:
Kio Kreations
https://kiokreations.com/

Photography
Jennifer Kaye Photography
https://www.jenniferkayephotography.com/

Ice Cream Cake
Batavia Creamery
https://bataviacreamery.com/

Camping-themed favors and large pennants from Target Dollar Spot

Hello Kitty Wellness Retreat

July 23, 2025

For Maddie’s 8th Birthday we decided to do a Hello Kitty Wellness Retreat. At this “retreat” guests had a one-hour guided yoga session and sound experience followed by a healthy lunch, art therapy and ending with some spa treatments.

Kids walked in to a tall Hello Kitty-themed balloon display and 2 favor walls. An adorable welcome sign listed the itinerary for the “retreat”.

Hello Kitty linens adorned all of the tables around the house. One table held favors, cookies and cake. Another held the art supplies for the painting part of Art Therapy. And another was dressed with a giant Hello Kitty coloring tablecloth. Live tropical houseplants and adorable Hello Kitty centerpieces were used to bring in a organic vibe.

Yoga at a kids party might be one of my best ideas yet. One hour of party was relatively quiet and chill! That never happens. It was fun and they learned something which is always a great thing. Sam was an amazing instructor and really kept the kids engaged.

After yoga, guests made their way to the kitchen and decorated their own tumblers with Hello Kitty stickers. After this, they helped make wraps and fresh fruit smoothies and munched on veggies, fruits, rice cakes and cucumber water. We followed up the health lunch with some delicious Hello Kitty cake (chocolate cake with cookies and cream buttercream filling and vanilla buttercream frosting).

After lunch, the guests split into two groups and went to “Art Therapy” activities. One room had painting with unique materials and the other had a giant coloring and activity page. After about 15 minutes, the groups switched so everyone got to do both art activities.

We then did 5 rounds of “Hot Hello Kitty” (like Hot Potato but what a Hello Kitty bday stuffie) to give out some Hello Kitty PEZ dispensers to the winners. After giving out these prizes, all of the guests grabbed their favors — which consisted of a clear makeup bag filled with a scrunchie, spa headband, sleep mask + Hello Kitty Lip Smacker. They also got a second Hello Kitty scrunchie and a Spa-themed sugar cookie.

We finished the party with “Spa Treatments” that included Hello Kitty eye gels, face masks and hand lotion used for hand massages. All of these spa items were purchased at Ulta Beauty. Luckily for me, Hello Kitty has licensing partnerships with several beauty brands including Lip Smacker, Pixi, and The Creme Shop so there are a lot of products to choose from.

This party was featured as PARTY OF THE DAY on Catch My Party!

VENDORS:
Planning, Signage, Balloons, Flowers – Kio Kreations
Photography – Matthew J Odom Photography
Yoga & Sound Experience – Sam Lenert of The Space for Balance
Cake – Flour & Flowers by MK
Cookies – Just Breathe Custom Cookies

Malibu Maddie’s Beach Barbie Birthday

June 7, 2024

Maddie is a Barbie girl through and through so for her 7th birthday we went full on Malibu Barbie! Not the all-pink look most people do for Barbie parties, we wanted beachy bright colors and fun beachy things like surf boards and beach balls to be in the mix!

The party was BYOB (Bring your own Barbie) so all the guests brought their favorite doll and picked outfits and accessories for them, and had a Barbie doll fashion show. I made the coolest Barbie-sized Boutique + Surf Shop with 2 pools and a sandbox (filled with kinetic sand) and surrounded by fresh flowers and foliage. The girls loved using it for their Barbies and it also functioned as part of the decorations too!

To the right and left of the Barbie-size play area, 2 colorful panels and 2 favor walls were decorated with balloons, inflatable dolphins and beach balls and cut-outs. Favors displayed on the walls included pink heart sunglasses and Barbie scrunchies + croc charms on cute Barbie cards. Other favors included inflatable Barbie pool toys, Barbie clothes + accessories, beach balls and the cutest custom-designed sugar cookies.

The girls also colored on a giant Barbie-themed coloring table cover, played “Barbie, Barbie, Maddie!” (a derivative of “Duck, Duck, Goose!”), “Keepy Uppy” with their beach balls, Barbie Uno, watched an episode of ‘Barbie Life in the Dreamhouse’ and made doll clothes out of tissue paper and pipe cleaner.

The space was decorated with beachy tablecloths and fun florals. Our favorite piece was a Barbie boat floral centerpiece which looked like it was in motion!

The cake was a masterpiece — combining waves and beach together (with edible sand!) and when we cut into it — a surprise — it was PINK velvet cake!

No party is complete without some yummy food — the guests ate from baskets filled with McDonalds nuggets, cheese burgers and fries and drank pink strawberry lemonade. They also enjoyed Cuties oranges, pretzels, chips, popcorn and some watermelon and strawberry Sour Patch gummy candies.

All of the girls had such a great time. It was a fun + unique party and I am so happy I could make Maddie’s Barbie party dreams come true!

Vendor Love:
Cake: Flour & Flowers by MK
Cookies: Just Breathe Custom Cookies
Photography: Matthew J. Odom Photography

Malibu Maddie and her friends had THE BEST time! Cannot wait until our next birthday bash!
This party was featured as the party of the day on Catch My Party!

Cruella X House of Aria 11th Birthday

August 11, 2023

My daughter Aria and I loved Disney’s 2021 Cruella movie. It was such a witty, visually interesting, exciting movie filled with fashion, chaos and fun. It was the perfect inspiration for a fabulous party, darling.

A a fashion-inspired black & white motif was chosen for this event. Of course, pops of red had to be included as well as a nod to movie. Taking another cue from the movie, we named our fashion design house “House of Aria”. When Aria chose this party theme, I knew immediately that I wanted to fashion some sort of gown out of balloons and fresh flowers — so I got a dress form and made something truly unique! Ti Leaf, anthurium, baby’s breath, carnations and plumosa foliage accented the bodice and balloons. The balloons and floral touches flowed from the dress form across the room and into an arch in the doorway of the adjoining room. Cruella fabric was used for table runners and Dalmatian-print fabric was made into tablecloths for the food table. Lady head vases, white marble and white ceramic containers served as vessels for all-red arrangements of roses, carnations and anthuriums. These little touches of red perfectly popped around the event space.

A cart with sweet snacks and 2 favor walls sat beside the balloon + floral gown in front of 3 arched backdrop panels in black, white and red. The favor walls displayed the scrunchie favors which were merchandized on custom fashion backer cards. There were also black and white canvas pouches and totes that the guests got to decorate. A custom-designed coloring & fashion sketch table-cover adorned the guest tables and functioned as both an activity and a surface for the other craft activities.

The Cruella movie played during the party while guests ate snacks and designed their pouches and totes.
A build-your-own sandwich bar with toppings and assorted chips were served for lunch along with chic sugar cookies, red bottled Shirley Temple Pop and the coolest ice cream cake you’ve ever seen!

Aria and her friends (who all dressed in black and white) had a truly fabulous time. It was the perfect mix of fashion and fun (with a little chaos thrown in the mix too!) I am so happy that I could bring this Cruella party to life for my tween and her friends!

This party was featured as the party of the day on Catch My Party and on Kara’s Party Ideas!

Talented Vendors who helped make this possible:

Photography
Jennifer Kaye Photography

Ice Cream Cake
Flour & Flowers by MK

Custom Cookies
Just Breathe Custom Cookies

Chair Rental
Funtime Party Services

Let’s Take a Trip to Hogwarts!

September 26, 2022

My daughters are HUGE Harry Potter fans so we knew we would have to make their party pure Hogwarts magic!

We found the perfect venue (Sugar Fox Party) and transformed it into a magical Hogwarts experience for all to enjoy! Hogwarts acceptance letters were sent to all guests and they were also asked to visit a sorting hat website to figure out which ‘house’ they were in (Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw). Once Aria and Vivian (the birthday girls) discovered what house they were sorted into, they dressed in Hogwarts-inspired uniforms for Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.

On the day of the party, new students (guests) arrived to the venue and were instantly transported to an enchanting, Hogwarts-like place with so many things to experience!

The Decor: Sugar Fox Party is the PERFECT location for an event with Hogwarts/Hogsmeade vibes. It features beautiful built-in tables and shelves, rustic stone floors, a lamp post, and a large stone fireplace which was perfect for housing dozens of Hogwarts letters arriving by Owl Post! As guests entered the space, they were greeted by colorful tablescapes topped with Harry Potter themed linens, faux candles and candlesticks and balloon centerpieces with tiny hanging winged keys. The Hogwarts letters from the fireplace flowed onto a large backdrop of balloons with custom signs and textural flowers. Next to this area, a sign leading to Knockturn Alley marked the way to the restroom. A custom sign also denoted the location of Ollivander’s Wand Shop and a colorful treat display with backdrop and balloons welcomed guests to Honeydukes. A beverage display wall provided shimmering Polyjuice potion for guests while the other beverages were located in a vintage-style pink cooler marked with “the Leaky Cauldron” logo. Built-in shelves and tables housed all sorts of Harry Potter decor, including photographs, vintage bottles, faux candles, wands, vintage luggage and other HP paraphernalia.

The Food + Beverage: Guests/students were greeted by a feast of kid-friendly charcuterie, desserts, water, lemonade, and Polyjuice potion to drink! A gravity-defying cake was designed by the amazing Flour & Flowers by MK. It tasted as good as it looked!

The Activities: Upon arrival, each student got a “tie” in their House colors and then attended classes in Herbology, Charms class and Potions class. While attending Herbology, students chose a Patronus and made a little cloche environment with moss and stones to keep it in. They stopped by Ollivander’s where they customized a wand (which were all built by hand by my talented husband Matt), filled out a wand registration card and then practiced spells and charms with it. In Potions Class, students made magical potion bottle necklaces and flavored lip gloss. Hogwarts house-themed coloring pages and a Spells and Charms Matching Game were also provided as a fun activity. After classes wrapped up, students went on a Horcrux scavenger hunt and posed in front of a photo booth with fun props. They finished their visit with a trip to Honeyduke’s where they filled their favor bags with fun Harry Potter themed items and sweet treats!

Happy to report this party was featured on Catch My Party AND Kara’s Party Ideas!