To celebrate Owen’s fourth birthday he had his first ever drop-off party! He invited 10 of his best friends over for a cowboy-themed party, and everybody arrived dressed in their best wild west gear. We were really hoping for a nice day and after a week of 80 degree (and hotter) weather, it seemed possible. Unforturnately last Saturday greeted us with lots of rain and chilly weather. Bummer. Instead of having our rowdy cowboy party outside in the backyard we are stuck indoors. But we definitely made the best of it!
Before the party we snapped some pictures of us in our cowboy gear. This picture is the only time that Molly would wear her cowboy hat all day long.
Travis greeted all the children at the door in character…his name for the day was “Pecos Trav”.
When the kids came in, I had them go to the dining room to make their own cowboy vests out of brown grocery bags. We had markers, crayons, and some fun foam wild west stickers.
Here’s the finished product on our little cowgirl. She didn’t mind posing for the camera to show it off!
By the end of our craft, all the kids were there and the parents had made their exit. Pecos Trav came in and announced that someone had robbed the bank and hidden their loot in our basement! All the cowboys and cowgirls made their way downstairs to gather as much loot as they could. Here’s a picture of them mid-hunt.
Then we all gathered to count our coins and see who found the most loot. I think our winner collected 30 gold coins!
Next we divided the kids into three teams for a stick horse relay. Some kids got it, others not so much. Owen being one who didn’t quite get it…he entertained us all with a little stick horse dance.
After this we settled everyone into a circle for a wild game of Cowboy, Cowboy, Sheriff (the wild west version of Duck, Duck, Goose). When the cowboy hat gets placed on your head…RUN!
Snake Bite was next! This is the cowboy version of Hot Potato. I made a snake out of socks, glued on some button eyes and put a plastic Easter egg filled with rice in the tail making it a rattlesnake! Trav was in charge of turning on and off the cowboy music and nobody wanted to get stuck with the snake!
Next we headed over to the big cowboy for a game of Pin the Badge on the Sheriff. Abbey was kind enough to help out at the party and she got the job of blindfolding the kids. Some kids got really close to putting their badges in the right place…
…others were a little off the mark!
After a while, the kids were itching to play with the toys in the basement so we gave them some free play time. I love this picture…the girls playing with the princess castle and the boys playing with Owen’s guys. I was thankful that we have both girl and boy toys so we could keep everybody happy!
While the kids played, Abbey and I took small groups of hungry cowboys and cowgirls upstairs to make their own trail mix. I’d filled upside down cowboy hats with all kinds of different trail mix ingredients (cheerios, goldfish, pretzel sticks, rice chex, raisins, M&Ms, marshmallows, and yogurt covered raisins). Each kid got to scoop their own favorite ingredients into baggies to create their own special mix.
After making (and snacking on) trail mix, it was lunch time! My parents and brother were at the party to help out and they were on food duty. My dad grilled up hot dogs and my mom served up mac n cheese and grapes…kid food! We got the kids all settled at the table and snatched a quick group pic…and almost everyone was looking. I had high hopes of getting everyone to pose together in their cowboy hats but our two hour party was a little too rambunctious for that!
And then it was cake time! My mom and I had fun making Owen’s cowboy boot cake the night before. I’m realizing that the more time I put into these cakes, the harder it is to cut them apart!
Owen thoroughly enjoyed every last bite of his cake and ice cream.
After everyone was good and sugared up, we headed back downstairs for present time. Everyone was eager for Owen to open their present and some even opened them up for him. It was hilarious and he didn’t seem to mind.
While Owen opened presents, we got all the stuff ready for the kids to take home. Each kid took home the vest they made, a cowboy hat, bandana, and a sheriff’s badge.
And then the parents were here! It was the fastest two hours ever. But before she left, we had Owen and Ella pose for a picture.
It was such a fun party. Owen had a blast and has talked about it constantly ever since. We were so thankful for all the help we had…my mom, dad, brother and Abbey. When I was planning the party I wasn’t sure we would need all the extra hands but we sure did! It was so fun, but I’m really glad we have 11 months before the kids’ birthday seasons starts up again!
Looks like Owen had a fun birthday party. Happy Birthday again!
emily!!!! wow, you did such a great job!!! i love all the details you put into owen’s party! i’ll bet owen had a blast! 🙂
p.s. trav’s mustache is awesome! he should grow one out.
We had a great time at Owen’s party – thanks for letting us help out! Wish I had half the energy of all those little buckaroos at the party!! Happy birthday, Owen!!
Wow, what a celebration! It looks like everyone had a great time and I love the cake!!! Happy Birthday to Owen!
I’m a little late seeing this post, but of course I heard about it. It was nice seeing the photos, and re-affirmed what a great party it was for Owen. Great job, you guys!