Little A's Birthday Balloon Invitations

Back in December, the glorious birth month of Little A, we had a small family party to celebrate. But because of the size of the Valdez clan, our family parties are never small. We all squeezed together and had a great time although I did realize one of the downsides to having a birthday party in the middle of winter (and especially when your house is the size of a shoebox) is that there is nowhere to have it.

Anything outdoors is obviously out and since Little A was turning one, things like bowling or bouncing or skating were out for now. So we had a little party at our small restaurant. It was fun and we were very thankful for those who were able to celebrate with us.

Because we couldn't decide where to have this grand event, the invites were kind of a last-minute deal and went out mostly to just his youngest guests.

I liked the idea of using a balloon in/as the invitation, so after rounding up some blue balloons and left over heavy stock metallic paper, I (with the help of a lovely assistant) made some.

Step 1. Find a lovely assistant (preferably one who is full of hot air: see above.). After realizing that the recipients of this balloon invitation will likely blow up the balloon themselves, use the air filling tube to a seldom/never-used yoga fitness ball so that said lovely assistant's mouth is not directly in contact with the balloon itself.

Step 2. Once the balloon is filled with air, use a (red!) Sharpie to write the party details - what, where & when - on the balloon.

Step 3. Deflate the balloon. Once a bazillion balloons have been inscribed with the grand event's details start sticking them (printed side back, so that it's kind of a 'surprise' when they're blown up) using Zots onto card stock on which a little poem you've created has been printed and then cut to size of a pretty (red!) envelope.

Step 4. Mail them out to adorable little family members. Let the celebrating commence!



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