Six {aka the Spongebob party}

Guess what day it is today?

Annoy Squidward day?

No, silly.  That's on the 15th.  TODAY IS CARTER'S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

For the first time ever, one of my sons requested a regular birthday party "theme".

A birthday theme so popular, I could probably find it at the corner convenience store if I wanted to.

Carter is turning six.  And he wanted a SPONGEBOB BIRTHDAY!

I was practically doing backflips to Party City.

Because do any of you remember what kinds of birthday party themes they typically ask for?

Exactly.  

So yes. Backflips, I tell you.

There was just one teeny, tiny problem.

Once I actually went down the Spongebob aisle, and saw the Spongebob decor, I cringed.

It was so.....um....Spongebob-y.

That's when the pep rally started happening in my brain.

You don't need this all this junk! You CAN DO THIS!

Just sayin...turquoise. Chevron stripe. Pops of yellow. It's almost too easy.

Oooohhh! PINEAPPLE! PINEAPPLE! PINEAPPLE!

And so.

Somehow this happened:

Spongebob re-invented 

 

Some may call this SpongeRobert.

Bikini Bottom Bar for adults

Who wants some Spongebob?

So yes, I compromised and did my own spin on Spongebob mixed in with some "commercial" party store stuff that I thought the kids would enjoy. 

Here are my resources and recommendations for you in case you are ever in the Spongebob party market:

~Hit up JoAnn's Fabric (don't forget your coupon that they ALWAYS have).  

I bought two yards of that chevron stripe material you see above and used it as a decorative table runner.   

~The yellow "C"?  I bought those for $1 at Joann's.  They were originally just plain cardboard-ish color.  I sprayed them bright yellow and called it a day.  Carter got a huge kick out of those.  And requested them for his room afterwards. 

~Pineapples--who lives in one under the sea?  You know it.  They were on sale for a ridiculously cheap price at Fresh Market...score.  It's like this city was BEGGING me to have a Spongebob party.  

~While the kiddos had their cooler full of kid-appropriate drinks, I did a Bikini Bottom Bar for the adults.  I mean, come on, McSister was coming after all.  I found a white-washed crate at Joann's for 50% off...double score.  Because hello, 50% off.  And also because I could totally use this after the party....maybe to hold the kids' books in the playroom or something.  For the party, I turned it on its side, put wine glasses inside and threw a decorative fisherman's netting over it for good measure.  

~We played games at the party and unfortunately I put down my camera in order to MC these games so I do not have any pics. But far and away the BEST and most fun game we played was Spongbob Trivia: Kids vs. Adults.  We took two chairs and set them up facing each other, and stuck a small table in the middle, Family Fued style.  My biggest party fail was forgetting to get some sort of buzzer or bell they could hit to ring in with their answer.  (If you do ever do this game, I HIGHLY recommend getting one!) Nevertheless, this game was a blast.  I can't remember the exact link where I got all the questions from but it was similar to a site like this.  

 

Naturally, the kids won but I think the adults were the real winners for the hilarity and creativity of their answers.  The kids were AMPED about the game and for about an hour prior, the kids and adults did a lot of hilarious trash-talking to each other.  Carter started it though. (that's written in maturity font).

~We gave those adorable Spongbob and Patrick cookies as the party favors to the kids.  One day in my instagram feed, I saw a pic of the most amazing custom cookies evaaa.  I happened to comment and say something not desperate at all like: PLEASE MAKE COOKIES FOR MY SON'S PARTY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE.

I heart Cookies By Alexis. 

You can find her on Facebook and follow her amazing creations on Instagram here.

And so to wrap up the longest post ever written,  I never thought I would have so much fun planning a party for Carter with a very "commercialized" theme such as Spongebob but I have to say....I had a ball.  

Most importantly, so did he.

Happy 6th birthday, Cartertini!!