I’ve always had a tendency to go a bit overboard when it comes to my boys’ birthday parties. It’s partly because I like choosing a theme and seeing what kind of creative ideas I can tie to it. It’s partly because I love seeing how impressed kids are with the food, games and decorations. But mostly it’s because when the party is over and everyone has gone home, I get to see the look of utter contentment on the face of my children.

This year, my oldest son turned nine and we decided to have an outer space birthday party. I started with the Space Blast Ultimate Kit from Costume SuperCentre to take the pressure off of decorating. With themed plates, napkins, cutlery, streamers and a fun balloon cluster, it had the outer space look I wanted at a great price.

After that it was time to move on to the food. I turned hot dogs into rockets with a simple swirl of puff pastry, a triangle cheese top and a cupcake liner bottom. I also made fruit rockets with pineapple, watermelon and strawberries. Chips, vegetables and dip rounded out the table. And for extra fun, I couldn’t resist making a batch of sugar cookies decorated to look like planets! [Read more…]