Well this post is only 6 months late, but if that isn’t the theme of 2020 I don’t know what is. Back in JANUARY Olivia turned 2, so it seems appropriate that I finally share her adorable puppy party with you all the week she turns 2.5. AKA When I start planning her 3rd birthday ;)
For most of Olivia’s life she has been beyond obsessed with puppies. She will wave to any puppy over a person when we’re out in public. Puppy was even one of her very first words. So I just new her second birthday had to revolve around puppies. Enter the Puppy Paw-ty.
It all started with the invitations (as it usually does) and then just snowballed from there. I found this cute little assortment of watercolor puppies which I used throughout all of the stationary and signage I designed for her special day.
I stuck to a simple color palette of kraft paper, black, white, pink, and hunter green throughout all of the decor and snacks. Minus the goldfish because let’s face it. You can’t have a toddler party without goldfish at your disposal.
The Olivia sign was reused from her Rainbow 1st Birthday Party, and I picked up the little black houses (which I felt looked like little dog houses) at Target from the Hearth and Hand collection during the holidays. I made the kraft paper banner by typing up letters and hollowing them out in photoshop, then just cutting them out and stringing them on some light pink yarn.
For the balloon arch I did a lot of research before tackling this. I saw all of the pre-made kits you can get online, but none of them came with the exact colors we wanted (plus the paw print balloons). So I ended up getting some 25’ balloon tape and used about 2/3 of it. I picked up a mix of 6” and 12” balloons and bullied my family into helping me blow them up in varying sizes so that it would fill out the arch nicely without looking like we were setting up a prom photo op.
Being a party planning hoarder comes in handy to spruce up toddler parties because I always have cute little buckets, cake stands, and color coordinating plates and napkins on hand. When I found these adorable Meri Meri puppy plates I just knew I had to recreate that little guy for the cake. Which gave me way too much anxiety but I love how he turned out.
I decided to have a cute cake for the table which would be served for the adults, and then cupcakes in the same flavor and icing for the kids. For the cupcakes I just iced on vanilla buttercream and topped them with little plastic puppies I had leftover from my gold animal painting days of yore.
For the food, you know I had to stick with the theme so even for the foods that weren’t obvious to the theme, I made them theme-y. Plus I served everything out of dog bowls of course. I cut out a variety of cheeses with a bone shaped cookie cutter to pair with crackers. I had to include toddler crack (I mean veggie straws) and called them fetch sticks. The goldfish crackers were cat food lol. We had puppy chow (my fave), scooby snacks (which are basically just bone shaped cinnamon graham crackers, who knew?), and I used the same bone cookie cutter to make my family’s famous sugar cookies. Which most kids took one bite out of and set back on the platter. Toddlers am I right? I also included some toddler faves like pouches and Honest juice boxes.
For the party favors I picked up a zillion of these golden retriever puppies for each child to adopt on their way out. There were even adoption certificates where they promised to take care of their new furry friend. I also had a little station where they could name their puppy and make it a cute collar to wear. I’m sure the parents loved this ;) Olivia still sleeps with her puppy every night and named him Roo Roo after my parent’s dog Rupert.
Olivia’s outfit was so HER. It was cold out (her party was the first weekend of February) so she sported her I love puppies tshirt over a watercolor dress that perfectly matched the party palette and leggings. Oh and rain boots because she would wear these 24/7 if we’d let her. Also that random dino favor bag was given to her at another party and she hasn’t set it down since.
I wasn’t sure how to entertain a gaggle of toddlers in the dead of winter, but it ended up being such a beautiful day, so I hired her old Little Gym teacher Mr. Barry (IYKYK) to come sing songs, blow bubbles, and entertain the little ones while the adults had a chance to visit. I called it the Dog Park.
After a while we went back inside to have cake and sing “Happy Yo Yo” as Olivia calls it, and snack a little more before everyone went home.
Please disregard our hideous brick and “stained” front door. We had just moved in a week before her party and didn’t have time to paint the exterior yet. More on that soon!! I also owe you a home tour. Anyway, back to the paw-ty. I printed up this fun sign on the door to welcome guests to the paw-ty.
Olivia had so much fun hanging out with all her buds and grandparents, and I was so thankful to be able to pull this whole thing together the same month that we moved into our new house! All right after the holidays and before quarantine. What a start of the year! Now that the dust has settled a bit and we’re halfway through the year, I have several blog posts lined up, so stay tuned! I’ve listed the sources for all of the party details below, but if there is anything you have questions about let me know.
Sources
Invitations - DIY using these watercolor puppies
Happy Birthday banner, Adopt a Puppy banner, Woof banner - DIY
Olivia letters - DIY using these and painting them coral
Balloons - 5” black, 12” black, 5” white, 12” white, 12” matte blush, 12” paw prints, balloon tape
Cake - I make cakes, did you know?
Cake topper - DIY using glitter paper
Tassel banner (made from recycled paper!)
Signage - DIY