party planning:: baseball party

on sunday we threw andrew a baseball themed birthday party.  it really was one of the easiest parties we've put together, despite the fact that we had almost 50 people there.  it helps that we have a lot of baseball items around the house and that we've had many team baseball parties already.  when i went to the store to get some supplies i saw all of the 4th of july decorations and decided to go with the all-american baseball theme, lots of red, white and blue.

we held the party at the local park.  we set up a canopy and a few tables for the food.  we had to deal with the wind and the threat of rain.  but in the end it was beautiful weather.  some of us even got sunburned.  we asked guests to bring their own beach/camping chairs  and that seemed to work out great.  we also brought a bbq and ice chests for food and drinks.

the food was a no brainer, hot dogs.  we had beef dogs, polish sausages and turkey dogs. along with the hot dogs we had a variety of chips and fruit, watermelon and grapes.  at the last minute i decided to make a salad with things i had in my pantry.  lettuce, black beans, corn, tomatoes and mexican blend cheese.  we bought salad dressing and tortilla chips to complete the southwest theme.

i put out peanuts, sunflower seeds, licorice and the leftover candy from the goody bags so people could snack while they watched the game.

the cake was easy too.  two 9inch rounds frosted to look like a baseball.  andrew loves lemon so i used a lemon cake mix and spread lemon curd between the layers.  the frosting was simple vanilla.

 i also made cupcakes, chocolate and vanilla with cream cheese frosting and sprinkles.  i bought the cupcake liners and star picks from michael's.

the party favors were cellophane bags filled with cracker jacks, bubble gum, peppermint melt aways (i thought they looked like baseballs), a lollipop and a pencil.  i tied the bags with red, white and blue ribbon.

we reserved a baseball field at the park for a small fee.  we could have just shown up and taken an open field but if you have a reservation you are guaranteed a spot for an hour and a half.  better to be safe than sorry.   bobby brought our baseball equipment, bats, gloves and balls.  kids brought their gloves and we were ready to go.  andrew picked the team names:  the sour pickles and the fried lemons.  we printed out pictures of lemons and pickles and the kids picked out of a hat to determine the teams.

it was so fun playing together.

i love the idea of having a party at the park.  it's so easy and your house doesn't end up all messy.  the hardest part is packing and unpacking.

i know there will be lots of team parties over the next few months.  i hope i gave you some ideas for what to do.