I’m so excited to be the guest hostess today (and next Friday too)! My name is Kim Byers and I’m the owner/creative director/blogger over at The Celebration Shoppe. When Shannon first asked me to be a guest I thought of a million things I could share and honestly I thought of my youngest son’s wild west birthday party until Shannon reminded me it’s already been featured here. {wink} So then I finally settled on the deep blue sea birthday bash I threw for my oldest son at the local splash pad.

Let’s start with the invitation (I love the little wide eyed crab!) and placesetting. I used blue crepe placemats and cut them out in the shape of a simple fish. The placecards are just wooden crafts from the craft store (pre-painted). I picked them up for about $.59 each and wrote each child’s name in the center with a Sharpie. Do you like the fish tank centerpieces? I promise no fish were harmed in the hosting of this party. {wink}

I got the idea for these shark cupcakes from the Hello! Cupcake book (with a few modifications).

My youngest has severe milk allergies so I like to make non-dairy goodies and my old standby is the rice crispy treat (made with Smart Balance Vegan butter). We made flip flops with the number 5 (instructions) for all his little friends to take home as favors along with personalized beach towels.

The flip flop pops were displayed in sand pails and

the chips (lunch was served) were displayed in a little beach wagon.

Here’s a shot of the beach towel favors we worked up. I have the benefit of a very talented mom.

And last but not least, I enlisted my wonderful hubby to create this toss game. If you have a willing handyman around, or you can sling a hammer yourself, here’s a list of materials and step-by-step instructions.

Hope you enjoyed our splish splash birthday bash! See you next Friday.