S is for....School Mantle

It's that time of year again!  This year is especially difficult for me because my baby...starts Kindergarden!!! I can't believe it!  I'm going to be a giant puddle of tears come Thursday for sure!  Anyway, July is over and I got tired of looking at my patriotic mantle that I decided I needed something different.  It's too early for my Fall Mantle (sad face) so I came up with this...

It's my Back-to-School Mantle.  It's pretty simple really.  I just added a few of my staples, my old window, a couple of initials for SMITH or SCHOOL, some pictures of my family and my cuties and some candles.  I also added these in the apothecary jars...

Yes, those are some extra school supplies.  And there are my cuties!  I also found a really awesome Chalkboard at Target this year at the Dollar Spot!!

The one on the right is the one I found. Of course, when I realized that I actually needed 2 and went back to get it, they were sold out...figures.  So I found the framed chalkboard on the left at Hobby Lobby and made it to look similar.  Most of the words are permanent so I used a paint pen to create those but left the blanks so we could use them year after year.  I just wrote the rest of the info in chalk.  Can you believe that G is going into 3rd grade this year!?!?!  And M...Kindergarden?!?!?!?!  Again, puddle of tears.  I also added a clock behind the chalkboards to signify that ever so fast ticking away of time. 

 

They will never be this young again...ah...oh well.  I hope you enjoyed this Mantle and are ready for your kiddos to head back to school!  

Power Ranger G Turns 8!!

It's that time of year again!! Birthday Time!! This year G wanted a Power Ranger birthday party.  I still can't believe that these are still popular, but they REALLY are and G & M spend many an afternoon pretending to fight the bad guys as either the Red or Blue Rangers.  G wanted more specifically a Power Ranger Samurai Birthday Party.  Apparently there are more than one "type" of Power Ranger and the Samurai group was last year's big season so of course there was very little available for this particular type of Power Ranger...I made it work anyway...well, let's get on with the details!

Here is G's Invite that I created...

He absolutely loved it!!  I also sell these on my Etsy Site for those interested in purchasing a personalized invite for their little ranger.

And also as is becoming a tradition, here is the Subway Art I created as well.  (Also on Esty)

Now let's move onto more decor!

Here is a picture of the entry way table.  There is another Subway Art but also one of G's school pictures.  He looks so grown up in this picture!

 

For party favors, I found these inflatable swords.  Each child got one.  They were a big hit!  Everyone loved them!

 And there were several pretend Ninja fights breaking out in our home! :)

In the picture above, you can also see my attempt at some interesting room decor.  I took some black plastic tablecloths from the Dollar Tree and taped them on the ceiling to create some interesting looking drapery.  I also purchased some inexpensive paper lanterns and hung them from the ceiling as well.  I did get some lantern lights also, but during the day, they didn't shine very brightly.

For the present opening backdrop I used the same Dollar Store tablecloths and Paper Lanterns to give it a Chinese Vibe.  The Banner is a cheap plastic banner that I wrote on with Sharpie marker.  This year I tried to go a little more minimal than normal due to being sick for over a year with a weird cold.  The balloons are courtesy of Grandma and the boys always love seeing their balloons!

 Here's a closer picture of the banner.

 And the balloons...

 

Back in the Dining Room I decorated the mirror with another birthday banner and some more paper lanterns.  It's a good thing the mirror color matched the Red, White and Black theme! :)

 For the Table Centerpieces, I used some of the boy's Power Rangers Toys.  Using Toys that the boys already have is one of my favorite things to decorate with.  That way if kids start to "play with them" or start to be rough with the decorations, I don't start stressing out.  They're toys!  That's what they are there for and it doesn't matter if it gets messed up!

 

Another shot of the Table Decor

 

Here's what each place setting looked like.  I decided to go ahead and set each child's place setting this year and I'm very happy with that decision. It seemed to make things easier and looked better on the table and didn't take up any more space in my kitchen to find places for the plates/silverware/etc.

Speaking of food...Here's what the food table looked like...

 For the backdrop, I used again the Dollar Store Tablecloths and created the Samurai Symbols to hang behind the table. Some paper lanterns were also hung from the ceiling to give it a little more decor. 

Now I'll take you around the table and let you know what was served!

 The "Power Punch" was just plain old Country Time Lemonade

 Keeping with the Chinese theme, we had Veggie Egg Rolls. I just got them from Sam's and heated them up in the oven.  They were delicious!

 Of course, every Samurai needs a "Sword" made of fruit right?!

 We also had Sandwich Sushi! This was SUPER EASY to make!  Just take white bread, cut off the crust and then roll up sliced lunch meat, cheese and slivers of pickle.  We used mayo to hold everything together and then rolled them up.  Just a different take on a ham and cheese sandwich!

 What Asian themed party would be complete without Fortune Cookies?!  We just ordered these from our local grocery store, but I did find a website that will let you create your own custom sayings for your fortune cookies!  The price was a little more than I was willing to pay, but just know that it's out there!

 This is a kid's birthday party and all, so I guess candy had to be used in some form.  These "Candy Sushi" look adorable!!! It is made of Rice Crispy Bars, Swedish Fish and Fruit Rollup in Green Apple to create the "seaweed wrap."  Again, super easy and adorable!

 And of course...the cupcakes! Gabe asked for cupcakes instead of a cake (which I prefer to bake anyway) so I created these toppers to go on top of them! (Toppers also sold on Etsy)

Well, there you have it!  Thanks for stopping by my Power Ranger Birthday Party!  I hope this gives you some ideas to celebrate your favorite Power Ranger!