A Very Merry UnBirthday Party

Alice in Wonderland is a great theme for a birthday party, especially if you won't be hosting the party on your child's birthday!

Two years ago, Big Sister requested an UnBirthday party in March, since we'd been on vacation in Florida for her birthday in February. It was fun to make cupcakes for this party, instead of a big cake! There are so many things you can do with this theme: the white rabbit, the cheshire cat, the playing cards, bread and butterflies, flowers, etc.

 I always try my best not to host birthday parties at mealtimes, to cut down on food costs (one of my tips for frugal birthday parties), but we had more than enough finger food to nibble on. We had fruit, small sandwiches, sugar cookies and some candy (mostly for decoration). Of course, things were labelled "Eat Me" and "Drink Me"! We put a bunch of tea pots on the table, and everyone had their own fancy tea cup (purchased for another party from a thrift store several years back).

I made decorations by printing photos and illustrations from different versions of Alice in Wonderland on my computer, and using sticky tack to attach them to the walls on the walls (no tape residue left on my walls!). I also framed some of the photos and placed them on tables where we usually have family photos (notice the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Hearts on the food table?). I also drew and cut out direction arrows from cardstock and taped them to black construction paper to give them some definition.

 

We also hung some store bought heart garlands from the ceiling (left over from Big Sister's many Valentine's Day birthday parties), alternating with homemade circle garlands made by sewing together circles of scrapbook paper.

 

I also drew a doorknob similar to the one from in the Disney cartoon of Alice in Wonderland.

For activities, we had a craft table garden, where the kids could play with plasticine and create paint-with-water pictures from Alice in Wonderland. I made the giant flower and mushrooms out of bristol board. It's hard to see in the photo, but there are "bread and butterflies" and "rocking horseflies" on the wall, too!

We also played "Pin the Watch on the White Rabbit" and "Alice Says" (like Simon Says). Between that and the food, the kids were content just to play together, and we didn't feel like we needed any other scheduled activities for a 2 hour party. We didn't have any prizes for games. Each child got to bring home a notebook and pencil as a party favour.

...and of course, we sang the UnBirthday song instead of Happy Birthday!