More Carnival Fun

Kamryn and Jared at the start of their carnival party.

Jared and Kamryn with their cousin Kyson. They are good friends and get to play together frequently. Kyson told him his mom it was a fun party and he was so excited that he won the "Guess the Gumball" game. He guessed there were 180 gumballs in the jar - there were actually 221.

Brooke and Justin were great to help at the carnival. Justin got out of school early to help me set up. They were both very willing to do the face painting and did a great job with the kids. It was fun to have them there. After the party was officially over they played all the carnival games and competed against each other.

When I started thinking about what to do for Jared and Kamryn's birthday party I was considering doing separate parties so it could be more what each of them would want - all girl or all boy. Then I read about the idea of a carnival party and thought that would be fun for both of them. Carnival parties are very popular and there are a ton of ideas online. Some people talked about how they planned a party for 3 - 6 months - that's crazy!! I had 12 days and that was just perfect. Luckily I got a lot of help from very good friends - from doing the invitations to helping decorate and set up. I never could have done it without such great friends.

We invited 22 kids - it sounds like a lot but you have to remember this was a birthday party for 2 kids. We invited everyone from their preschool - 14 kids besides Jared and Kamryn. I felt very strongly about this - I didn't want anyone being left out. We also invited some neighbor friends and some cousins. A carnival needs lots of kids and we had about 21 here.

We totally lucked out with the weather - it was sunny and warm and a little too breezy. My friend Jenny came over with her kids and helped me set up. I never could have pulled it off without all of her help. She even did Kamryn's hair and it was so cute.

We had lots of games to play on the basketball court - tin can alley, clothespin drop, bowling, ball toss, hole in one, ring of fire, penny pitch, ping pong toss, skee ball and water golf. At each game they got tickets for playing the game. At the end of the party they got to come to the prize center to buy toys and candy with their tickets. One little boy was so cute and asked if he could pick out something for his sister - I loved that.

Justin and Brooke started out the party with face painting. And then the big hit of the party, Bubbles the Clown, arrived. The kids lined right up to get a balloon animal or sword from the clown. Thanks to my great friend Paige for sharing her talents with us.

Everyone, the kids and adults, seemed to have a good time and it was all worth it. Thank goodness we don't have big birthday parties like that every year.