How I Survived My Daughter’s Mermaid Birthday Party: Confessions Of A Not-So Crafty Mom

Realistic Expectations

When it was time for my son’s first birthday party, it was very mellow. We just had family and close friends over. It was very low key and classic first birthday. When my daughter was six months old, I was looking up unicorn rentals and how one would go about hiring a mermaid. Yes, you can hire a professional mermaid. During the whole process I had to keep reminding myself, “This is a child’s birthday party.” And while this was her first birthday party, she would not remember it.

Simple Tricks That Worked…Surprisingly

So, I’m one of those people that have great ideas, but something always gets lost in the execution, but I was determined to do much of this myself. Of course, all the images I found on Google were a bit out of my league.

Smash Cake And Cupcakes

After watching almost every baking show there is on TV, I got the idea to try a multi-colored swirl smash cake and cupcakes. Let me take a moment to point out, I allowed myself time to practice most of what I was trying to do. I did have a test-run smash cake and cupcakes. If you want to be impressive and make batter from scratch, more power to you. I used a boxed cake mix…It’s a child’s birthday party. I divided the batter into three bowls and colored them pink, purple, and teal.

For the cupcakes, I used a regular large dinner spoon and poured a spoonful of each color into the cupcake tin. And then, I lightly swirled the spoon handle in each cupcake before I put them in the oven. I did the exact same thing on a larger scale in a small cake tin for the smash cake. I will point out you can probably notice the tunneling in the cupcakes. This happens when something is over mixed. I did notice it during the test-run. You mix the matter and then you mix in food coloring. So, I tried to adjust for that the next time, but it still happened. Luckily there weren’t any picky kids there.

I did invest in some piping bags and a set of frosting tips, and during my test-run I just played around with them and made note of what I liked. If you don’t know how to do the multi-color effect, it’s super simple. Just put a spoonful of each color you want to use in the same piping bag, and just go.

Candy Melts

Candy melts are awesome! I found a set of mermaid silicone molds online. I strongly suggest you go online exploring as soon as you have an idea of what kind of party you’re doing. Candy melts are so easy. You can find them in the party section. Just follow the directions and make sure they don’t get too hot. They take less than twenty minutes to solidify in the fridge.

Mermaid Popsicles

We were planning an outside party in Texas at the end of July. It was going to be HOT. I took vanilla yogurt and colored it like the batter and the frosting. Luckily, I already had a popsicle mold, which I strongly suggest for anyone with kids in a hot climate. I froze the popsicles layer by layer. Piping bags came in handy for this as well. As I added each layer, I hit it on the counter, just to make sure I was getting all the air out. I was super proud of this one.

Decorations

I usually order a decoration kit. The thing is most of the time I end up not using half of what came in the kit. This was my first-time using tissue paper pom poms. I didn’t know that I would be getting an art project. Thank Goodness for YouTube tutorial videos. It took me an hour to make six of them. Luckily the kit only had six.

You Can’t Do Everything

One very important aspect that often gets overlook; who’s taking the pictures? At my kids’ parties, I do not take a single picture during the party. I’m doing enough as it is. I leave that to other people. One less thing I had to worry about, and I’m actually in the pictures with my kids.

Relief

I’m sitting there with my daughter as she’s opening her gifts, and this sense of relief and exhaustion came over me. For all the stress and the worrying, it came together, and both my kids had fun. In the end, that’s all I really wanted.

Whether it’s a mermaid birthday party or a totally different theme, just remember, “It’s only a kid’s birthday party.” If you want to get creative and challenge yourself, that’s great, do that, but remember to give yourself time and grace. And don’t forget to let yourself enjoy these precious moments in time. If you like what you’ve read, please leave a comment and share. For more parenting adventures be sure to follow me at sarahnemo.com and look for Adventures in Creating Little Humans on Facebook and Twitter.