Erik's Birthday Party

The birthday boy, with the crown he made all by himself.

This year Erik had his friend birthday party a week early so that we could invite some friends that would be out of town after Christmas. He decided he wanted a Transformers birthday. He invited a few friends from church and a few from school. A few kids from church were able to make it. (I think as he gets older we might need to have half-birthday parties since Christmas vacation is a difficult and crazy time for people.)
Erik handed out Transformers invitations, we colored Transformers pictures, played a few Transformers themed games and decorated using streamers the same colors as a few of the Transformers. Very easy and low-key, but all the kids had a good time. Erik kept telling me how much fun he had. That made me feel good.

Some of the decorations, and Daniel being weird. :)

Games

- Optimus Prime says: variation of Simon says. We took turns being Optimus Prime and ended up having a lot of fun. Haley won a few times. Lily kept trying to play even after she was out, but nobody minded.

- Decepticon bowling: I found this idea online. I put decepticon logos on water bottles and the kids got three turns to try to knock down all of the "pins". We went through the line twice and they would have kept playing if I would've let them.

Decepticon bowling. Sorry...too bright to see the pins because it was snowing outside.

- Scavenger Hunt for the Allspark: another idea I found online. I hid clues around the house that led them to the Allspark. They had to find it before Megatron in order to save the planet. Tristan, a second grader, read the clues and the other kids helped him search for the clues. The reward for finding the Allspark were the treat bags. This went over much better than I thought it would.

Where is that clue??

On to the next clue.

The reward

- Decorating cupcakes: Instead of buying a big, elaborate cake this year for his friend party, I decided to just make cupcakes. Then the kids frosted and decorated their own. They loved this too! I know we'll be doing this activity at future birthdays!

Waiting to decorate cupcakes.

Blowing out the candle.

Lily and Haley decorating.

- We also colored Transformers coloring pages that I printed from a free site online. The kids also completed a maze that helped Optimus Prime transform from a robot into a truck. This was a bit difficult, but it kept them busy for a few minutes.

Emily helping Carson through the maze. She did it!

Erik got some miniature Transformers (they don't actually change, which is fantastic!) and a Bumblebee Mr. Potato Head called Bumblespud. Too cute!

Nice smile kiddo!

I loved having such a low-key party and am so happy that all the kids had such a good time. I wasn't stressed about anything, which made me enjoy the day as well. We'll have another family party on his actual birthday and spend the day doing things Erik wants to do. I can't believe Erik is almost 6!!! Where does the time go?

Drew just after his nap. Nice and happy now.