party – The Next Kid Thing

Hosting a #DisneySide Playdate

March 27, 2014March 27, 2014 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

After such a brutal winter cooped up indoors, not only for the crazy weather, but also because of the kid’s ongoing medical issues, we were more than happy to host our friends over for a #DisneySide playdate.

Thanks to the generous party pack provided by Disney, we were decked out with supplies to entertain and enjoy. It doesn’t take much for me to get excited about parties, but when it involves Mickey-shaped food, I’m all in. From Mickey chicken to Mickey-shaped fruit, we were totally in magic mode.

Since we had an after school soiree, the boys played Disney Infinity while the girls did Disney-inspired crafts.

Because we’re all about Frozen, we did a fun Olaf project. After we cut up the Olaf printable, we connected him at the joints with brads and then sang all about summerrrr!

Thanks to Hanes, we broke out the fabric markers and decorated our own t-shirts. Everyone’s shirts were beautiful, but Jack’s Spidey-themed tee was one of the faves. Even our littlest guy designed his very own tee!

From primary colored decor to the awesome HP photo paper to print our favorite photos, our playdate was Disney-fied through and through. And after so many not-so-easy days this winter, a little magic is just what the doctor ordered.

For more ideas on how to post your own DisneySide party, check out Spoonful.com, DisneySide and DisneySide Celebrations. Thank you to Disney and MomSelect for including us in the #DisneySide Party initiative. Samples were provided, but all opinions on NKT are my own.

Partying for Dr. Seuss’ Birthday

March 2, 2011 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Did someone say party? Beyond reading the kid’s favorite Seuss books over and over, we partied in Dr. Seuss’ honor with a Cat in the Hat-themed party.

Complete with Cat in the Hat party hats, a stack of our favorite Seuss-penned books, cupcakes and balloons, the kid and a few pals previewed the latest The Cat in the Hat Knows a lot About That episodes. The new episodes, which can be seen on PBS today as part of the 2-hr long Cat in the Hat Marathon, featured more of Nick, Sally and the Cat’s adventures.

Balloon Time Put a Face on Fun Contest is Underway

September 16, 2010September 16, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

We’re in party-planning mode over here; well, actually, it’s more like mini-party-planning mode since we’re still in the middle of home renovation. But nevertheless, my guy turns three next week. THREE!? I can hardly believe it.

While I’ve been scouring the web for easy DIY party ideas, I couldn’t not mention Balloon Time. In essence, Balloon Time offers helium balloon kits that are available at a variety of stores. There are a number of kids available for DIY balloon creation, including: Balloon Time 30 Helium Balloon Kit, Balloon Time 50 Helium Balloon Kit, Balloon Time A La Carte helium tank and Balloon Time Party Create-A-Face Sticker Kit. I love the idea of having a kit at home to decorate for a party, but I do worry about balloons as choking hazards for little kids, as well as the hazards the stems of balloons might pose on the environment. With these valid concerns in mind, since we’re having a small party with plenty of adults around, I’m thinking Balloon Time might be right up our alley for our mini-celebration.

Check it

Have some funny faces you want to show off? The fourth annual “Put A Face On Fun” contest is now open, and the grand prize sounds pretty sweet. In addition to participating in a professional photo shoot and being featured on Balloon Time’s packaging for the following year, the grand-prize winner will receive a Disney Cruise Line family vacation for four (subject to availability). Fifty first-prize winners will receive a Balloon Time 30 Helium Balloon Kit.

To enter this year’s contest, parents can upload their child’s photograph at www.PutAFaceOnFun.com. Uploaded photographs must be in GIF (.gif) or JPEG (.jpg) format and may not exceed a file size larger than 200 KB. Professional photographs will be disqualified.

Children ages 3 to 11 are eligible for the contest, and entries will be accepted through Nov. 14, 2010, noon ET. Each photograph will be scored by a panel of judges based on the following criteria: smile, age appropriateness, expression of fun and suitability for appearing on packaging. And guess what, yours truly is one of the judges!

And that’s not all, taking a page from all those televised talent shows, parents and friends of the Put a Face on Fun participants are encouraged to join in; a portion of the final tally will be determined by America’s vote.

If you’ve got some funny faces, be sure to enter before November 14th! I want to see an NKT reader take home the grand prize. Now, that would be fun!

Disclosure: I am a guest judge for the Put a Face on Fun contest. I am not being compensated, but will receive product for review. As always, all opinions expressed on NKT are my own.