For Sweet E's first birthday, we had a safari party with a Disney twist! How did we arrive at this theme? Well here's a little background information:
Honey Pot and Little M&M traded in their birthday parties and presents, in exchange for an upgrade to our Disney World vacation taking place later this year. (Experiences over gifts, for the win!) So with the money that would have gone toward parties, we were able to change our reservation from a value resort to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, with a savanna view. With the money that would have gone toward gifts, we bought tickets to Mickey's Not-So-Scary-Halloween Party! I am so proud of them for making this decision. It's going to be incredible! So Sweet E's party theme pays homage to them, and the amazing adventure that awaits us.
Now, let's talk about the party details!
The Outfit
I purchased a safari dress for Sweet E from Etsy. Please excuse where I blurred out her name.
Look at that cute little ruffle bottom! Could you just stay this small and sweet for a little longer, baby?
The Decorations
We kept it fairly simple and budget-friendly, using green streamers and craft paper that we already had on hand to create jungle vines. We also purchased cheap safari hats for each of our young guests, and wrapped them with animal print ribbon from the craft store.
The high chair for the birthday girl, containing animal print balloons and a banner!
Add a stuffed animal with a cute safari hat nearby...
And a clever welcome sign on the front door!
The Food
All food labels came free from Printable Treats, and they just fit the theme perfectly!
First up, The Watering Hole water bottles!
And one of our favorite drinks at Disney World comes from Tusker House in Animal Kingdom, called Jungle Juice. It is made from equal parts passion fruit juice, orange juice and guava juice and is SO good. It also goes by the name POG juice at other Disney restaurants. So we served up a great big bowl of that as well!
Crocodile Eggs.
Tiger Tails.
And we cut up a large sub to look like a giant snake! I think it came out awesome!
Lion Hummus. We also dumped a bunch of pretzel thins around the carrots once this was served.
A spinach salad we called Giraffe Food.
We also served up some Buffalo (chicken) Dip. A favorite snack when hosting.
It's not the greatest picture, but here is Grub. Some slivered up hot dogs meant to look like worms, which we warmed in the crock-pot for the kids.
And I don't have a pic of the chocolate fondue, but here is the dipper part of our Mud Bath food. We dipped pound cake, bananas and strawberries into a yummy chocolate fondue!
The Activities
Giant Coloring Page
I printed a coloring page at Staples that was 3'x4' and it was the best thing ever! What a simple party activity for kids of all ages! Before sending it in to be printed, I added a little birthday message to the top of the coloring page.
It was such a great thing for kids (and adults!) to do throughout the party. They even left personal birthday greetings around the border of the coloring page. We hung it up in Sweet E's room after the party, and she loves to point out all the animals!
Animal Tail Stomp
We had extra animal print balloons, and tied a string to them with a clothespin at the end. The kids each got a balloon tail, and had to pop everyone else's! The person with their tail still in tact at the end was the winner!
It was a wild scene!
Jungle Vine Limbo
A classic game, we made a limbo stick out of twisted craft paper. The kids had a blast!
Safari Scavenger Hunt
This was the big activity of the day! I created a checklist in Photoshop Elements, and printed one for each kid.
Then we hid that number of animals outside in the yard.
Unfortunately it was a rainy day, but that didn't stop us! It just made it a bigger adventure! My husband made ponchos out of garbage bags, and the kids went out on safari! They searched high and low for all the animals!
They had SO MUCH FUN. I think the rain made it even more exciting for them.
Photo Op
I made a collection of photo op props in Photoshop Elements, and attached them to skewers. Isn't it just the cutest? These just scream Disney Safari party!
For the photo, I purchased a cardboard jeep on Amazon, and created a jungle backdrop behind it.
Here's Honey Pot giving it a whirl.
And later, Little M&M joined her. All the kids (and even some adults!) enjoyed posing for funny photos throughout the party. We got some great pics!
Party Favors
I kept the party favors simple this year, with some assorted animal print items I found at party stores and on Amazon. The animal print sunglasses, though, were a favorite with all the kids! Super cute!
Hope you enjoyed our Disney Safari Party! We had a blast!
