celebration supply bin

Months ago I shared a few stories on Instagram of my bin of “Celebration Supplies”. Yes, that’s exactly how my bin is labeled, because I’m prepared to celebrate on a moment’s notice!  While I don’t actually throw parties at the drop of a hat, I do create birthday boxes, special treat & holiday festivities at the drop of a hat.  I dip into this bin at LEAST once a month, depending on the month.

Some of the items are leftovers from parties, or things I have bought on sale or things I have just grabbed on a regular shopping trip that I think are cool & would be a good addition to my bin.

So let’s dig into what’s actually in my bin, in order for you to be able to start creating your own stash!

1. Silverware   I have accumulated a few different colors, and they’re fun to pull out for holiday meal celebrations within our family. i.e. St. Patrick’s Day, Valentines Day, birthdays

2. Garland    If you don’t have a garland or two like this in your stash, add one immediately!  I made this one, and have a few other ones that I pull out for every birthday, or even end of the school year celebrations.
3. Plates     These are also a must for delivering treats to friends & neighbors, or setting fun place settings for holidays. (See silverware for ideas!)
4. Dollar Store Decor    This is one of my favorite places to grab things to add to my stash.  They have REALLY stepped up their game (.99 store is my go-to).  Small foil balloon numbers, DIY tassel garland, cake toppers, etc.
5. Balloons    This seems like an obvious addition, right? You can also blow them up partially and use them to decorate presents, treats & even top birthday cakes.
6. Confetti    I definitely don’t use this all the time, because..yikes. But something to have for REAL special celebrations!
7. Honeycombs    I bought a big pack of mini ones off Amazon that are great to pull out for a specific color theme.  The dollar store also has some & you can also buy REALLY big ones online as well. Cheap, easy and completely reusable for all kinds of celebrations.
8.  Party Hats    Like confetti, this one should be a little further down on your list to add to your bin, but still a fun thing to have for kid’s birthday celebrations.

9. Treat Containers & Bags         These are probably the items I have to replenish the most.  I buy these at Walmart because they do have a good selection for a good price, but Michaels & Hobby Lobby allow you to use coupons, so just pick a spot & get you some!  Treats for neighbors, teachers, holiday treats for school staff, the list goes on.  Grab some cute bakers twine or ribbon to tie them up!

10. Tablecloths    These are great for more than just parties, but come in handy when have family over for dinner or throwing over a pop-up table to make for easy clean up. 

11. Straws    Once again, great for holiday celebrations and also for girls night in or putting out in your kitchen to add as part of your holiday decor. 

12. Napkins     I grab these often in the Target dollar spot!  So grab your napkins, paper plates, straws & silverware at set out for a festive holiday-themed breakfast for your family that will make your kids feel so special and excited!

13. Streamers    I keep at least a few colors on hand because I use them to create a curtain on our kids’ doors for their birthday morning.  I’ve learned that if I don’t just keep some in my bin, I’m having to run to the store late at night or face a disappointed child in the morning!

14. Mini Piñatas     .99 store for the win! I have used these for end of the year teacher gifts/ teacher appreciation treats & they are always a huge hit!  See THIS post for details.

So...what else is in my bin? Mini popcorn containers, photo booth props, a balloon pump, balloon garland tape, and just a WHOLE lot of all these items!  These things have saved my butt more times than I can count and have just made things a whole lot easier on me.  You don’t need to go out and grab ALL these items at once, I definitely did not.  Just start grabbing things when you see them, or save leftovers and you’ll thank yourself later!  Because those holidays & birthdays come every single year, friends.  Happy Celebrating!

Favorite Things Birthday Party

I wanted to share a few details from the little birthday party that I threw for my son's 5th birthday.  I had 2 ideas for it...simple & swim party.  I came up with the idea to do a "favorite things" party, but mostly just adapted that to the favor bags.  

Since the party was small & would be mostly in the pool, I kept myself from doing anything else extravagant or not worth the effort for 5 year olds!  For our invitations, I wrote on some french fry containers from Hobby Lobby, to share the details of the party.

I threw in some favorite color blue paper & stuffed it full of french fries...another favorite!

So we swam, ate ice cream sandwiches, opened presents & swam some more!  Easy, the kids loved it & I was stress free!  The favor bag items were handpicked by the birthday boy himself.

The blue paper bags had a tag attached that read, "Blue paper packages tied up with string, these are a few of Clayton's favorite things".  I threw on some tickets & bakers twine for cute decor purposes!

Picking out the items was a fun event in itself, and made my son even more excited for his party.  A whoopee cushion, a coloring book pack (each one was different), slinky, Lego packs (from Target), M&M's, Z-bar, and of course blue bubbles.

This may have been the simplest party I've ever thrown and I did have to control myself a LOT, but I think it turned out awesome!

Nutcracker Placecards

Last week when I shared a post about making your holiday dinner parties easier, putting together the table settings may have been my favorite part!

The tablecloth was made from some buffalo check print fabric that I stumbled on at Walmart by some miracle.  I only regret not getting more of it!

Clear plates, gold dipped silverware & emerald green napkins set the perfect background for the adorable place cards I used!

These little wooden nutcrackers came in a set of 6 from Hobby Lobby.  I purchased them FOREVER ago because as soon as I saw them I knew I could use them for so many things. 

I spray painted them white and cut some plaid paper about 1 1/2" thick to fit on their legs.  After writing the names, I used some glue tape to secure the paper and then trimmed in the triangle end.  While your guests are eating, the nutcrackers can stand guard by their drinks. 

#ad Easy & Delicious Holiday Meal

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayHens #CollectiveBias

One of my favorite parts of the holidays is hosting friends and family.  Throwing a party AND cooking dinner can seem over whelming, but it doesn't have to be!  With Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens entertaining can be not only fun but also easy.  This recipe lets you put them in your crock pot, walk away, and finish prepping for your party.

I stopped at the Fry's grocery store down the street and grabbed 2 packs of Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens.  My favorite part about them is there's nothing stuffed inside them you have to reach in and cringe as you pull it out. 

After defrosting your hens, mix thyme, sage, salt & pepper.  Stuff one sprig of rosemary & one clove of garlic inside of each hen.  Rub the outside with a slice of lemon, then sprinkle on the dry seasons.

Put on cooking sheet lined with foil and put under your oven broiler for 5-10 minutes until they skin gets nice light brown.  Then place in your slow cooker on high for 4-5 hours. 

This gives you plenty of time and free hands to make other side dishes, set the table or clean!

Carefully pull out the Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens and plate with rosemary sprigs & lemon. Elegant, gorgeous, delicious & super simple!

Be sure to check out more delicious cheese recipes at tyson.com. I'd love to hear about your favorite easy holiday dinner recipes!

Ingredients

4 servings

• 2-4 Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens
• 1 Tablespoon thyme
• 1 Tablespoon sage
• salt & pepper to taste

• 1 sprig of rosemary per hen
• 1 clove of garlic per hen
• 1 slice lemon per hen
• Add all ingredients to list

Directions

After defrosting your hens, mix thyme, sage, salt & pepper.
Stuff one sprig of rosemary & one clove of garlic inside of each hen. Rub the outside with a slice of lemon, then sprinkle on the dry seasons.
Put on cooking sheet lined with foil and put under your oven broiler for 5-10 minutes until they skin gets nice light brown.
Then place in your slow cooker on high for 4-5 hours.
Carefully pull out the Tyson® Premium Cornish Hens and plate with rosemary sprigs & lemon.
Let rest 15 minutes before cutting & serving.

Toddler Halloween Party

So yesterday...yes actually yesterday...my son had his first ever Halloween party!  It was so much fun to plan and I think the kids had a great time! So here's a realistic, low-budget, toddler Halloween party.

Plates & forks from Target, cups & napkins from Michaels.

At the entry way there were gift bags, foam dollar store grave stones & vinyl on the floor.

The living got a little extra decor like plenty of spider webs, some hanging garland & paper fans, mini pumpkins & we had a game of pin the spider on the web.

So at the party, we decorated cookies, played pin the spider on the web, decorated mini pumpkins with foam stickers, and colored in little canvas Halloween bags.  There were 6 kids (including mine), and I think it was just the right size and by the end of the party I think everyone was best friends!

Fall Party with Festive Flavors

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. & it's advertisers. All opinions and ideas are mine alone. #CollectiveBias #BakeInTheFun

It is officially September & that means Fall is in the air!!  Some might be sad to see summer go, but I love when fall finally comes. Cooler weather, crisp evenings, pumpkins, colored leaves and most important the the delicious treats that accompany the season!  To celebrate the beginning of fall, I gathered some treats that embody the "fall-flavor spirit".

 I stopped by Walmart to get everything I needed in one place.  I grabbed some M&M's® Pecan Pie & M&M's® Milk Chocolate Harvest, Mott's® Applesauce, Snapple® Apple, Pillsbury™ Moist Supreme® Caramel Apple and Pillsbury™ Creamy Supreme® Cream Cheese Frosting. Be sure to use your M&M's® coupon on your purchase! (And while you're at it, enter the fun giveaway! MARS Bake In The Fun Sweepstakes)

 

They are the perfect festive ingredients & products to help celebrate fall. And then I threw in some other things that screamed fall to create a fun, festive party table full of desserts.

First let's make the cake cups.  I baked Pillsbury™ Moist Supreme® Caramel Apple with M&M's® Milk Chocolate Harvest in the batter. And I substituted Mott's® Applesauce for oil to make it even more moist and delicious. Using a circle cookie cutter, cut out piece of the cake. Layer the cake, then pipe Pillsbury™ Creamy Supreme® Cream Cheese Frosting, then another layer of cake and top with frosting and finish off with a few more M&M's®!

Pecan pie, Pumpkin pir, candy corn, carmel apples, cake cups & Snapple® Apple for drinks made this a perfect fall celebration with delicious festive flavors!

Be sure to check out more delicious Fall-inspired recipes here. I'd love to hear your favorite! What's does Fall mean to you?