Transformers 8th Birthday Party

Date: Sunday, October 2, 2011
Location: Rinx, 65 Orfus Rd, North York, ON
Guests: 12 children (ages 4-8), 10 adults
Budget: less than $500
Theme: Transformers

* Photos of actual guests are included in this post, but faces are not clearly visible.

Rinx is a huge entertainment complex featuring an ice rink, a roller rink, glow in the dark mini putt, 10 pin bowling, mini bowling, laser tag, and other games. Various party packages are available, at varying costs.
The Silver party package includes: invitations, 2 activities, a party room, a party coordinator on site,  pizza and pop and all plates, cups, napkins, etc, and a t-shirt for the birthday child.

Decorations:

To be honest, I found the party rooms at Rinx to be shabby, very worn down. There wasn't much that could be done to improve the decor quickly. When the staff said everything was included, I had expected them to provide tablecloths, which they did not.  In retrospect, I should have brought some myself. Oh well, the kids didn't mind. I blew up some over sized balloons, and hung up a Transformer's poster of Bumblebee. When the birthday boy saw it, he asked if we were playing pin the tail on Bumblebee. I laughed, but then I thought, we could have played a version with the transformers logo. Oh well, file that idea away for next time.


Guest Favours:
I created the lootbags by printing out a large Transformers logo and adhering it to the gift bags with double sided tape. I chose a red logo over a black, for a more colourful effect.
They turned out really well, and the kids were impressed.

 Inside the bags were various small items from the dollarstore, including a bouncy ball, glow in the dark bracelets (we wore them during bowling), a transformer's candy dispenser,stickers, and these really cool aliens. They are my favourite item. I actually had a hard time finding affordable Transformers items, so I stretched it a bit to include aliens, since Transformers really are a kind of alien.

Aren't these cool? Love the eyes.

Activities:

The birthday boy chose Laser Tag, and I chose mini bowling after some discussion with party staff about appropriate activities for the ages of the guests.

Since, everything is glow in the dark, the lighting conditions were not optimal for pictures.
I have a few, but most are blurry streaks.

Laser Tag was the first activity of the afternoon, the on site staff helped the kids get into their vests, and explained how to play. This activity was a bit daunting for some, but most got right into the game. Two adults volunteered to play with the kids, and I stayed close by to keep an on things. A few children got scared, and wanted out. I entertained them with bubbles and balloons in the hallway. A few 6 years olds loved it, and some 8 olds were scared, so it really depends on the personality of the child, but I would say 8 would be the minimum age for this activity.

Mini Bowling turned out to be the highlight of the afternoon. We had the whole room to ourselves, the lanes are about half the size of 10 pin lanes, and the kids used a 5 pin sized ball. It was perfect for them.

Even the 4 year old could knock down the pins!

Now that the kids had really worked up an appetite, we headed back to the party room for lunch. Pizza and pop was included in the package. I also brought a fruit and a veggie tray, popcorn, chips and salsa, and cupcakes.
The pizza was delicious, and is made in house at Rinx.

 

The Transformers cupcakes turned out great, and they tasted delicious. Two flavours, chocolate and vanilla, decorated with some of the well known characters.  The cupcakes are from the Cupcake Shop

 Bumblebee

 Optimus Prime

Soundwave

Overall, the kids really enjoyed themselves. One boy exclaimed "this is the best birthday party ever!"

And that's what it's all about at the end of the day.

Lady Bug Decorations

A friend asked to help her with some things for her daughter's first birthday. I didn't have alot of time to contribute, but I came up with these two quick projects.

 Directional Signs

The idea for these guys were to be signs to point the guests to the party, without giving away to much information such as the address or child's name. Guests were told to look for the ladybugs. One was at the entrance to the complex, one each on the front and back door. I made them from cardboard and acrylic paint. I painted them freehand, so they are not all perfect, but since they would not be side by side, it didn't matter. They are quite sizable, I used the lid from a paper box. Easily seen from a distance. I think the middle one is my favourite.

Leaf cupcake flags

These little guys are so easy to make and look adorable. 

Materials:

• toothpicks
• green paper
• red dot stickers
• black marker
• glue stick

 Cut out a leaf shape from green paper.

 Add some red dots (the body of the lady bug)

 Draw on the details with black marker.

Add a bit of glue and roll the stem of the leaf around the toothpick.

Of course, try not to touch the pointy end of the toothpick, or wear gloves. It's easy to whip up alot of these in a very short period time. I made a dozen in about fifteen minutes.

If you are considering a theme for a young child's party, especially if that party is in a backyard or park I encourage you to use a ladybug theme. There is so much available online-free printables, games, activities etc. If you can't find ladybug decorations, they are easy to make. Or simply use red/black/green as your colour scheme.