Very Hungry Caterpillar Party

We celebrated Tinker Bell’s 1st birthday with a Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. I  got the tablecloth & plates when they went 75% off at Target. I got material to make her a dress when it went on clearance online!  We got her a Caterpillar stuffed animal last year at Kohls for $4.
For the invitations I used brads to make it open up. When they got it in the mail it was just the caterpillar’s head. But as you opened it up you got the whole hungry caterpillar. Cute, huh!

This was the first stress I’d made since I was a kid & my Mom was teaching me. Plus I made it without a pattern so I was pleased. I even made her a matching hair bow.

I love using fondant for the cake. By sealing the frosted cake with fondant (I use a marshmallow fondant) it keeps it fresh even if I make it a week ahead! I made the caterpillar & food a couple days early to allow them to set before putting them on the cake. I also made this small smasher cake for the birthday girl.

For decorations I made a caterpillar out of balloons to put over the food table.  I made a caterpillar above the fireplace with pictures of the birthday girl’s first year. On the gift table I had a couple balloons, papers for guests to write memories of the birthday girls first year of life, the book it was all based on, and a basket with goodies for the party.

For food we ate what the hungry caterpillar did! I made labels that showed the food as it went through the story. Instead of a green leaf we had salad. I also added crackers to eat with the cheese and sausage.

For activities we:

1. Had one of the Grandma’s read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
2. Decorated the goody bags using Bingo Markers (a favorite in our home). I filled them with Kool Aid Playdoh that I wrapped in plastic wrap to look like the caterpillar. I included pipe cleaner antennae and googly eyes on the caterpillars head. I stapled a Thank you for coming to the party on the top of the bag.
3. Wrapped the kids that wanted to in a cocoon (toilet paper) – then they got to burst out into beautiful butterflies.
4. While the birthday girl opened presents, the kids kept entertained by making caterpillars (I got the kit at Oriental Trading Company).

Here are some more pictures from the party. We had a great time!

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Check out some of our other Birthday Parties here:

       

       

 

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