Asher's 1st Birthday

Asher's birthday party did not have a real theme to it, but I knew I wanted to do something with pinwheels. I thought they could double as decorations and favors for the younger kids. It worked out perfect cause it was super windy that day. I incorporated the birds because I had a ton of leftover die-cut birds from my wedding favors. I know...I'm a pack rat. I feel so guilty throwing certain things away, if I know I could use it for something else some day. I found lots of tutorials for pinwheels, but the ones I tried were really stiff and didn't spin freely, so I ended up ordering a pinwheel kit from Oriental Trading Company. I will post how to make simple pinwheels out of double-sided scrapbook paper later.

For the Banana Cupcakes with Honey-Cinnamon Frosting go here. The fudge cupcakes are from a box, but I took vanilla frosting and stirred a little peanut butter in. It was very yummy.

Aiden's 5th Birthday



I got the idea for this guitar cake from Parents magazine. It was made from a 9 x 13 slab of cake. Cutting, piecing it together, and frosting it was a little stressful, but my son went nuts over it. The decorations are made from candy. I got the instructions from a recipe card that came in the magazine, but when I tried to look it up on the Parents website, I couldn't find it. I did find a really cool version on the Betty Crocker website. You can find the guitar cake here. I love these chinese take-out containers for favor boxes. You can buy these at Michael's craft store. My husband jokes that they look like favors for a vampire's birthday because of the colors. Inside the favor box, I included a candy maraca and a toy harmonica. Tied to the box, is a rock candy sucker. I really wanted custom birthday invitations, but they are so pricey. I usually make my own out of whatever scrapbook paper or card stock I have around the house.