Giveaway: Valentine Party Pack from Confetti Sunshine

If you haven't been over to Confetti Sunshine yet, read the rest of this post and then click over immediately after! You will love what you see. All last week Sara featured an ADORABLE Valentine breakfast that she created complete with free printables, and DIY instructions. The rest of the basics for this party are available for purchase from Sara's online shop. 

And GUESS WHAT? You can create this adorable party too, because Sara is offering one lucky Elephant of Surprise reader a party pack with tons of her cute Valentine party supplies! I am so excited, and I hope you are, too. Read on for the details.

To win this package complete with heart straws, valentine cupcake liners, red and pink polka dot balloons, and adorable wooden forks and knifes (my favorite) simply 

• Leave a comment on this post so I know you want some Valentine Party love 

And . .  if you'd be so kind

• Become a follower of The Elephant of Surprise
• Become a follower of Confetti Sunshine

You have until Saturday at midnight to enter. I will notify the winner over the weekend, and post it on Monday here! Tell all your friends!

Cookies

Valentine's Day is fast approaching! I have lots of fun stuff going on around here, including an AWESOME giveaway from here, so stay tuned all week.

 I LOVE my little white IKEA flower pots, and find their uses are endless! For these Valentine bouquets, I dipped and embellished Oreos, and did Peanut Butter Blossoms with heart shaped chocolates. The same concept could be used with other cookies, rice krispie treats, whatever. Think how cute a variety of these would be at a classroom party. Or you could give a bouquet to a neighbor or friend.

After your cookies are ready, carefully pierce with a wooden skewer. Place floral foam in your pot and arrange your skewers. After they're where you want, add coordinating basket shred to tie everything together. EASY!

Thanks for stopping by! Come back tomorrow to enter an exciting Valentine giveaway, and all week long for Valentine inspiration!

All photos this week were taken by my talented sister, Leslie Leavitt

My {AWESOME} Friday Find

I feel like I got an insider's scoop yesterday!  A friend of mine sent me a message about a new site that her cousin's wife just started. Confetti Sunshine! Check it out--seriously so cute. From there you'll find links to Sara's party supply shop and etsy shop, as well as downloads for adorable free printables, ideas for using her products, and even little recipe how-tos to go along with her projects. This blog is so cute and fresh. Here's what's going on at Confetti Sunshine for Valentine's Day.

Donut Valentine's Idea + Free Printable 

Valentine's Box + Free Printable 

Basket Liner Valentine's + Free Printable 

All pictures are from Confetti Sunshine. Click on the link under each project for instructions, the free downloadable printable, and links to buy the other cool stuff like the gable boxes and basket liners. 

I am in love with those cute little paper-wrapped cookies! Sticker = Free Printable, Paper = available from her shop, and cookies = how-to on the blog. AWESOME, and you're welcome for sharing!

Potty Party by Creative Juice

Before Christmas I had a little Mommy Cookie Exchange/Baby Play Date party with some of my mommy friends (soooo bummed my camera wasn't working). I LOVED it. I think mommy/baby combos make the perfect party guest list. You can keep it small, you can do it in the afternoon, and you can keep it short and sweet. 

This Potty Party by Creative Juice is the perfect example of the kind of guest list I'm talking about. And it is so dang clever! Mindy invited all her daughter's friends who were also "in-potty-training" and their "personal trainers." LOVE IT. We are still a little ways out from potty training around here, but I can only imagine what a motivator this would be! And fun for the moms! (Misery loves company.) Check out more details of this cute, cute party here. 

Photos from Creative Juice

Cupcakes Gone Wild!

That's right. We're getting crazy around here today. 

When I was planning my baby's first birthday party, I knew I didn't want a grocery store birthday cake. I knew I didn't want to pay a fortune for something elaborate, and I knew I wanted it to go with the Hungry Caterpillar theme. I also knew my cake decorating skills were lacking. So, I went as far as my cake skills would take me, and I did cupcakes. You've seen this idea before, but I simply arranged the cupcakes to look like the caterpillar from the book. I made a small "smash cake" that served as the head of the caterpillar, and the cupcakes for the guests were used for the body. 

Here's the point: ANYONE can make a simple, special, and cute birthday cake. It's as easy as baking and frosting cupcakes, and thinking a little outside the box.

To prove my point, I've rounded up a few of my favorite and SIMPLE (you can pretty much figure them out just by looking) cupcake ideas that would make the perfect birthday cake substitutes. If you want something budget friendly, easy, but ADORABLE for your next celebration, this is right up your alley!

I LOVE this simple idea from Parenting. How cute would these be for a Back to School party, or a garden or bug themed birthday party?

I'm kind of obsessed with this idea from Sheek Shindigs. This just proves that all it takes is a little THOUGHT to make a big impact. Think about the theme of your next party. Could you come up with a clever arrangement of simple cupcakes to go along with it?

Another idea from Parenting. What a cupcake makeover! Seriously, you could totally do this!

I can hardly handle this corn-on-the-cob idea from Martha Stewart. Picnic themed parties? Summer barbecue? ADORABLE. 

You've probably seen different Sesame Street characters turned cupcakes, but these are my favorite. Cupcake and cookie in one? Yes, please. Dang cute and delicious. Check out Bird on a Cake for a simple how-to. 

Here's another example to show you the power of placement. Easy peasy. Thanks again, Martha. 

 Another caterpillar idea from The Two Savvy Sisters. Why didn't I think to put cupcakes on their sides? Duh. So cute.

Instructions for each of these ideas can be found by clicking on their link. Hope this was a helpful tip you can store away for later. After looking at these, my mind is racing with possibilities. They are endless. I would LOVE to see what creative arrangements or cupcake makeovers you come up with!

Resolution

I have been one bad blogger-lady. I could blame my lack of motivation on holiday-burnout, a camera malfunction, and a new house with remodel and decor projects out the wazoo, but I won't. Or I will. The important thing is that I have adequately reprimanded myself, set some new goals, and I am getting back in the dang blogging saddle again! A New Year can be so refreshing, right? So stay tuned for more regular content. My thoughts are to stick to a loose, non-restrictive schedule something like this:

-Tuesday Tips: A simple, usable idea you can implement at your parties. Maybe no-nos I've learned the hard way, short cuts for big impact, you get the idea.

-Friday Finds: Simple. Something party-related I've found around the web that I love. I'll feature others' parties, projects, etc.

In addition to these constants, you'll find my occasional real parties and other projects interspersed throughout the week.

Stay-tuned! Here's to keeping New Year's resolutions!

photo via Geronimo Balloons