Princess Protection Program Party Pics at Long Last!

I finally got the party pics freed from the sleeping computer. Sorry this has taken so long. I really meant for it to be quick for those of you doing your own party, but hopefully it will still be great inspiration for anyone wanting to buy the DVD and throw their own bash.

First, our "secret agent" arrived at each girl's house to take her into protective custody. They were whisked away from their families in our undercover vehicle, cleverly disguised as a plain blue SUV.
I had decorated the house with small tin buckets of treats, in honor of Carter's part time job in the bait shop. I couldn't find gummy worms, but Swedish Fish and Tootsie Rolls were fine with the girls. Of course we also had the cute shoe favors. Then there was my last surprise, which of course required a marathon sewing session right up until the morning of the party. Each princess got to take home her own frog prince, made from this simple and adorable pattern from Me and My Sister Designs:
The girls played out in the back yard, learning how to act like "normal American girls," while we waited for the pizza to arrive. After our yummy dinner, Gracie opened her presents. Then it was time for make-your-own ice cream sundaes.

While the countdown clock ticked away, we went outside and the girls found their "inner princess."

Finally it was time for the main attraction. We counted down with Selena and Demi to 8:00 and then, suddenly, there was near silence for almost two hours. We all watched the magic happen, loved the story, and sang with the songs. What a wonderful night!

As I dropped the last girl home, Gracie thanked me over and over for a great party. It was one of the easiest and least expensive I have ever done, but one of the happiest and most appreciated. It just goes to show that you don't have to spend a lot to make wonderful memories - but you knew that already, didn't you?

I hope you make some magical memories this weekend.

better thUrsday? - back on the wagon

Oh, how I've missed you all! And I'm so sorry that I just vanished like that and never followed up on the Princess Protection Program Party - the snapshots are still stuck on the other computer, which isn't cooperating.

I have so much to tell you that it will take several posts. For now I am trying to crawl back up onto the betterU wagon and get my rear in gear.

The bad news, of course, is that I've hardly exercised at all and Daisy hasn't gotten her first good walk (with me - she loves to run with the boys). But that isn't all that much bad news as it turns out.

The good news is that I still have had no fast food or diet Coke. I did walk on the beach and swim and play a lot on our vacation and have somehow managed to lose another half a pound, despite eating birthday cake and pizza and everything else in sight. That's five pounds total since I started. Not exactly a world record for six weeks, but I'll take it.

I am starting with fresh new goals and rewards.

• Goal: I will do some form of aerobic exercise six days a week. YIKES. I am scared just to type that. You'll learn why in a later post, but I'll bet a lot of you already know.
• Obstacle: I hate exercise and am lazy as hell.
• Solution: Keep using motivational rewards to drag me kicking and screaming into better health.
• Reward: A day with my girls. Two of my best friends couldn't make it to the birthday party, so a day out with them getting our toes done and having lunch will be the perfect carrot to dangle in front of my face when I'm sweatin' like an oldie!

That's it for this quick hit and run. I promise there is more to come - interesting stuff, maybe I'll even mention quilting! Oooh! Aaahhh!

Have a great day.

Princess Protection Program Party Countdown

Only 2 days to go!

Gracie has selected ice cream flavors and pizza toppings. She's chosen her outfit. And yesterday she and I made the paper shoes that the favors will go in.
These are so cute I could just squeal like a 9-year-old girl. It was so much fun to choose all of the pretty scrapbooking paper and make them.

Here's the link to Ellen Hutson's blog in case you missed it. I love this pattern, and so many of the other creative things on her site.

There aren't a lot of detailed directions, though, so here's a few tips from me:

• I wanted the shoe to be large enough to tuck a few favors into - a lip gloss, a nail polish, emery board, and toe separator (all from the Target Dollar Spot!). I enlarged this pattern 129% (standard upsize on a copy machine) onto 11" x 17" paper. Now the pattern fits beautifully onto 12" x 12" scrapbook paper.

• I chose matching scrapbook papers for each shoe. This is one of the most important parts, so take your time.
  

For instance, I love the papers on this shoe, but I think it could have used more contrast.
Like this:
A real bargain can be had if you find a double sided paper that you really like. I found this one for the same price as all of the other single-sided ones. It saves you a whole cutting/gluing step and looks a little more finished because no white shows at any edges. It was also a little thicker, so it holds up just as well, or better, than the two papers glued together.

• Carefully cut out your templates. I found it much easier to work with one out of thicker paper or cardboard; just be careful to trace and cut accurately. I still used the paper template for my folding lines. The only adjustment I made was in the liner. Do you see how the white edges show inside this shoe? This was my first try.

After that one, I altered the liner pattern to match the same section of the shoe pattern so that the white wouldn't show. Doesn't this look much better?

• Glue the two pieces together carefully and quickly. I just used Modge Podge that I had on hand, but I'm sure there are better choices. It dries VERY QUICKLY, so work fast and don't lay the piece down anywhere you don't really want it to go. I did this assembly line style, so that each piece had a chance to dry before moving onto the next step.
• Make all of your folds, according to the pattern.
• I glued the wings that hold the sole of the shoe to the sides first. Hold them in place while they dry. It is important that these line up correctly, so play with it a little before gluing.
• Then I put glue on the large part of the heel. Line these up so that they overlap exactly.
• Next I put a dab of glue on one small part of the heel. This doesn't overlap perfectly, but just holds these pieces together for support.
• Last, you could glue the toe of the shoe. I chose to make slits on opposite ends, like Ellen did, to about the halfway point, and slip them together. I thought it made a nice detail on the toe of the shoe.
• When the shoes dry, tuck in your party favors or invitations. Viola!

Isn't that cute? I did six of them in about 3 hours, intermingled with cooking dinner and flipping laundry. Of course, now that I've done a few, I am much faster and my last one came out better and faster than my first. I could easily see doing the smaller version of these to decorate a tiny Christmas tree, or as place card holders on a dinner table.

I hope you have a fun and creative day!

Princess Protection Program Party Favors

The plans for the Princess Protection Program birthday party are in full swing. The menu was a breeze - make your own ice cream sundaes, since my girl doesn't like cake, and pizza has been on the menu since her daddy bought her a pizzeria!

So we moved on to the favors. I was entranced by the idea of these gorgeous invitations that Crystal featured on Sonnet of the Moon for her Marie Antionette themed bachelorette party. Then we changed the invitation style to look like a telegram or urgent alert, but I still had those shoes in my mind.

Viola! Check these out! They will be used as a favor holder, since part of the storyline is also about Carter's (Selena Gomez) transformation, as this tomboy who works in a bait shop finds her "inner princess."

Tied up in tulle in each shoe will be the pedicure set, lip gloss, and nail polish that I found in the Target Dollar Spot!

We also have one more special item in the works, but I am not going to post until they are done. Hopefully they will get done without a marathon sewing session like last year's all nighter to complete the Kit Kittredge doll quilts.

I hope you have a magical day!

Princess Protection Program Party

It's party time again! Gracie's birthday is around the corner, and I am hard pressed to come up with an idea to top the 7 year old Nancy Drew party, complete with a series of clues (mailed so the girls had to decode their invitations) and sleuth kit goodie bags, or last year's American Girl party with cigar boxes full of Kit Kittredge movie themed favors and a handmade doll quilt for each girl. Phew!

But Disney saved us! Leave it to those magical geniuses to have their next fabulous TV movie premier ON HER BIRTHDAY! Yes, Princess Protection Program comes out next Friday, on the actual day Grace was born, 9 years ago. And it's kind of a mystery, which has become somewhat of a trend for us.

In case you are not up on your latest Disney facts (translation: subject to several hours a week of the Disney Channel broadcast throughout your home, complete with music videos and ads for things only available on TV), let me fill you in. The very flimsy premise of the movie is that the Princess Protection Program has been set up by royal families to keep princesses safe. When a threat is detected, one of their secret agents has to move in and take custody of Princess Rosalinda. To protect her identity, he brings her home to his own daughter, who then gets to teach Rosie how to act like a normal American teenager. Hilarity ensues.

So, we have sent the following invites to an exclusive five special girls (the most that will fit in my car):

PPP

ALERT: THE PRINCESS PROTECTION PROGRAM HAS DETECTED A DANGER TO PRINCESS ANNIE. STOP. SHE WILL BE PICKED UP BY OUR UNDERCOVER VEHICLE AND TAKEN INTO PROTECTIVE CUSTODY ON FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2009. STOP. TO ENSURE HER SECRET IDENTITY, ANNIE WILL BE TAUGHT TO ACT LIKE A NORMAL GIRL - EATING PIZZA, PLAYING GAMES, AND MAKING ICE CREAM SUNDAES WITH FRIENDS. STOP. SHE WILL ALSO ASSIST GRACIE TO “BRING OUT HER INNER PRINCESS” WITH HAIR ACCESSORIES AND NAIL POLISH. STOP. ANNIE’S UNDERCOVER TRAINING WILL BE COMPLETED BY VIEWING THE PREMIER OF DISNEY’S MOVIE “THE PRINCESS PROTECTION PROGRAM”. STOP. WHEN THE THREAT HAS PASSED, SHE WILL BE RETURNED TO HER CASTLE. STOP. THIS MISSION IS CLASSIFIED HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL. STOP

My favorite thing about this party is that it will be like an old fashioned birthday party - no expensive entertainers or venues, no hordes of children, just a few friends over for pizza and ice cream and some games to celebrate. It won't feel gluttonous, it won't feel over-the-top, but it will still be exactly what she wants and so fabulous! Plus, since the movie is free and the pizza is cheap (I know a guy!) I can splurge a little with the favors and decorations without a bit of guilt.

I'll keep you filled in on our plans in case you want to invite some friends over to watch the movie yourself.

Have a wonderful day!