Party Preps Part 1: Maia's 5th Birthday

Time flies, indeed! In just a few months, a new Wonder Woman will rise and the superheroes will unite... and by that, I mean my real life action hero, WonderMaia, will be turning 5 and we're throwing a superhero party.

Maia with her grown-up kickass sidekicks! Yay! She's my hero! :)

Actually, it's her dream to become a superhero. (Check out her superhero videos and see her in action  here.) So we have decided to give her a superhero-themed party. :) Why? Simply because she asks for it. We really want to include her in her birthday party planning and we let her pick her theme and the venue as well. Of course, it was WonderWoman and her chosen venue is Shakey's. After all, it's her birthday. Moreso, the reason why we're giving her a party is because we strongly believe that kiddie parties are where childhood dreams become a reality and where imaginations are treasured. Yes? :)

Party planning for the most special person in my life is one of the things that I enjoy doing. However, it can also be a stressful task. I have to think of something new and unique. Apparently, clowns for parties are so passe, and pin the tail on the donkey has been out of the kiddie party story for, well, donkey kong's years. It's a lot different when we were kids and had a few friends over for some home-cooked spaghetti, the oh so typical hotdog on stick with marshmallows and the old school thing we call "pabitin". The trend has changed for the last couple of years.. from tarps to styro backdrops, clowns to magicians/ventriloquists,etc. Birthday bashes are getting bigger by the day, becoming more elaborate and more bonggacious each year. So if you believe the hype of having the need to go over the top with the parties of our little ones, then it must be because of the trend. Sometimes though, it may appear as if  it's less about the kids, and more about the parents or their guests.

As a part of Shutter Count team, we cover kiddie parties every week and  I've seen all kinds of parties, from a party with pint-sized guests versus the hundreds. I was bowled over when a mom brought in a huge, professionally-made cake worth thousands with a rotating Eiffel Tower on top. I guess some parents are willing to spend an awful lot because they can't afford to disappoint their kids and their guests. But for some moms like me who is working on a budget, there's no need to go over the top. We want to let the kids have fun but we don't want to break the budget, do we? Although, I think I'll be needing my anti-stress and anti-imbyerna shield for the next couple of months. *wink*

That is why party preps are finally underway. I'm planning ahead of time to keep the pressure out in putting on an elaborate and personalized party for our little tot. And what better way to start it by having a checklist and some preliminaries.

Type of Party: Semi-formal or Casual? More fun and casual please! More like a costume party.
Chosen Party Theme: WonderWoman! Superhero-themed party it is! (Just because my daughter believes she is no other than Wonderwoman.)
Budget: Top Secret
Setting the venue, date and time: Shakey's Shaw 500, February 9, 2013, 3:00-6:00 pm (Update: Venue was changed to Shakey's Quezon Avenue at 7 pm.
We have decided to choose a crime fighting superhero training facility where every little boy or girl becomes a superhero, Shakey's! Also, Maia loves Shakey's pizza, mojos and chicken. Best of all, it has Fun Zone which Maia loves the most. I’m liking the venue as the nice, relatively low, white ceiling, as well as the white walls, will provide a bouncers paradise for our dearest photographer. Although, I think the branch in Shaw 500 is a bit cramped and small for my taste. Hmm... we're thinking of changing the venue to a clubhouse or somewhere more spacious, but she really loves Shakey's (and she's the Boss).  :)

Booking the party suppliers: So far, we have booked the ff:

☑ Venue/Food: Shakey's Monster Meal Deals (buffet style)
☑ Photographer/Videographer:  None other than our beloved team from Shutter Count Photography
☑ Party Booths: Craft Camp and PhotoBalloon from Booths Republic
☑ Cake: Delishaes Cakes 
☑ Photo Booth: Picture2Take

Update:
Host/Magician: Wizzo
Facepain/Glitter Tattoo/Kiddie Salon, Nail art : R&A Party Needs
Dessert Buffet: Sweet Creations
Donut Tower: Gonuts Donuts
Buffet Table's Gourmet Arrangement Centerpiece: Fruits in Bloom
Pop!corn station: Taters

Giveaways: Photo magnets, Photo balloon and balloon mask (1 for each child), and a personalized giveaway, Trolli goodies plus Supertokens for Fun Zone

Prizes: We're planning to go to Toy Kingdom's Toy Warehouse Sale on November 2 to get some toys for prizes. Of course, the Divilandia is always the way to go.

Costume: Wonder Woman costume from Australia, an advanced gift from Maia's fab and gorgeous Tita Filma. Thank you so much sister! :)
Superhero capes will be provided for the superheroes! Best dressed/ Best in superhero costume gets a prize too!

Candy Station: For x-ray vision and super health, a superhero-themed candy/power refuelling station is on the works by SuperMom and SuperDad with a help from our superhero friend/client from Shutter Count, mommy Emz, who will also make the invite. :) I'm thinking of  naming the sweets with labels like green lantern bark, superhero pops(popcorn), some chunks of kryptonite candies, wonder wafers, super shields(oreos), laser lassos, with a lot of  pop!, pow!, bam! and boom! on the side. Plus Wonder-ade (my version of Wonderwoman's Powerade) for the kids' energy drinks! :)

Party program: Perhaps I'll add a superhero parade of kids in their costumes, then giving out training manuals for the kids to complete a superhero training obstacle course and a graduation from the training(distribution of giveaways). Here are the proposed superhero training obstacle course with  ff. superhero tasks:

Step 1. Get your superhero nametag and personalized costume cape at the registration area.
Step 2. Get your picture taken at the Superhero Family Photobooth and collect your photo magnet.
Step 3. Strike a superhero pose at the Photo Balloon Booth.
Step 4. Use your superhero arts & crafts skills and make your own balloon mask at the Craft Camp booth. (Best Balloon Mask gets a prize)
Step 5. Get your super cute face and lovely nails painted at the Facepainting / Kiddie Salon area.
Step 6:  Join the games for some warm ups and strength training games lead by the Superhero trainer, Wizzo, who will also be the Super host and magician.
Step 7. Unleash your superpower by collecting incredibly sweet treats powered by Maia's Candy Power Refuelling Station.
Step 8. Once you've completed the training, each superhero will receive a superhero badge, supertokens for Fun Zone, a crime fighting certificate signed by Wonderwoman Maia and the superrific lootbag/goodie bag from the birthday girl. :)

So THIS is the rough draft.. and it's about as rough as it gets. Haha Will make a revision soon to make sure everyone will have some smashin' good fun!

Speaking of fun, Maia's favorite fun things to do are the activities at the Craft Camp Booth and Photo Balloon from Booths Republic. They have the most unique party booths and giveaways! You can make your kids' parties extra special with iStickers, Photo Balloon and 3D Me.

At the Craft Camp  Booth, they can decorate and color their own balloon masks using different art and coloring materials. Maia loves it and she calls it "Cram cramp". :) I also like the 3D Me booth because of their uber cute 3D Me pens that you can give as giveaways. And that, my friend, is a huge party monster hit and one that your guests will never be able to stop talking about!

Photo Credit: Booths Republic & Photo Balloon Fan page

At the Photo Balloon booth, each kid gets to have their picture taken and it'll be printed on an easily inflatable balloon in a matter of minutes. The balloons are really durable, unique and it lasts for more or less 18 months. Oh , and it's re-inflatable too! Yay! How cool is that?! Visit their fan page here for more deets.

Everything else will be DIY'ed and customized by SuperMom (aherm) and SuperDad Benj! And we'll be calling the superheroes soon via Facebook invites,( a money and time-saver if you ask me) and these invites will be exclusively given for those superheroes who are willing to step up to the challenge and complete the superhero training at the Justice League Headquarters. They will unite to save the day, and for the pursuit of a happy birthday. :)

Here's a sneak peek-ture of my wondergirl, taken at Laiya:

And here is the birthday invite:

DIY all the way! Because we want to have a personal touch in every detail. My daughter loves purple soooo much so the printables have lots of purple with some pink and turquoise!

Birthday invites for her school party

Cupcake toppers/Party circles

Thank you card

Cupcake wrappers

Straw flags

And here's a short and simple 50-second video, more like a movie trailer, that I made for my WonderMaia!
Check this link to watch the video.

Hopefully, we can finalize the guest list next month, and from there we can finally take a break and enjoy the Holiday Season! Yey! Then back to preps mode by January. We also want to celebrate Maia's 5th on the exact day of her birthday, February 6, so we'll have a simple school party as well. The simple plan for that simple party will simply start on January. Yep, it's that simple. Haha My daughter is so thrilled and uber excited for her party and we're hoping that it'll be a stress-free and fun-filled one. :)

Another thing that makes her super excited right now is the upcoming Enchanted Halloween party at Edsa Shangri-la Hotel. She has her costume and pumpkin pail all ready to go and we're counting down the days...

Still haunting for a Halloween party for your little tot? Check out my List of Halloween Events for 2012: Top Places to Take the Kids for Halloween.

If you have done or are planning to do a Super hero-themed party, I would love to hear your ideas and I'd like to know how it turns out!  Do share. :)