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Jungle Junction Party Invitations and an Immaculate Winner!

Hello readers, I would like you to meet my nightmare friend, Ellyvan from Jungle Junction, a giant blue elephant on wheels (who thinks of this stuff?):

I only say “nightmare” because my soon-to-be 3 year old LOVES this show (the real nightmare is my oldest son who planted the idea in his brother’s head for a Jungle Junction themed birthday party!).  In case you are unfamiliar (like I now wish I were) with Jungle Junction, it is a preschool show that airs on The Disney Channel. Currently, there is NOTHING on the market in terms of toys, party decorations, cake toppers, you name it.  Nada.  Zip.  Zero.  I have made a mental note that my children are never allowed to watch another show that does not have available “accessories.”

Luckily, my friend Kristen saved half of my “you-know-what” by making me some super cool custom Ellyvan invitations, using her paper cutting machine:

Didn’t she do an amazing job??  Thanks Kristen!!   At the end of this post I will share more cards Kristen has made for me (Star Wars and The Very Hungry Caterpillar), as well as her contact information if you are interested in learning how she makes them (she’ll email you a free SVG file, just tell her Heidi sent ya!).

I used the same cards to make the toppers for the goodie bags:

For the treats I added Aroma Dough Gluten-Free Play Dough (they have several great new colors and scents, including Lavender, Root Beer, Banana, Peppermint, Spearmint, Orange, Vanilla and Bubble Gum).  Aroma Dough does small quantity orders and private labeling for events like birthday parties, etc. I reviewed Aroma Dough back in December, and it was a big hit with my kids (okay, mom and dad too!).

I also added Yummy Earth Lollipops and Gummy Bears to the goodie bags.  If you have not tried Yummy Earth candies yet, you simply must, they are the best tasting lollipops I’ve ever had (and I’m not exaggerating)!  Not only that, check out the ingredient label and what is NOT in Yummy Earth’s candy:

I buy Yummy Earth candies on Amazon (this is not an affiliate link, but you can visit my Amazon store in the right side bar and buy them through there too).  You can also visit the Yummy Earth website to see if there is a store near you!

Now for the winner of the Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Cookie Dough from Immaculate Baking Co.

I used the Random Number Generator to pick the winner and that person is:

Veggievance!

Congratulations, I will email you for your shipping information.

Last fall Kristen made some Clone Trooper Helmet Invitations for Sam and her son’s joint birthday party:

she has made me a few others as well, including a Darth Vader card:

and The Very Hungry Caterpillar card for Luke’s party last year:

Aren’t they cool?

If you are interested in learning more, you can contact Kristen directly at: s-n-khallenbeck2001(at) comcast (dot) net or visit her website, Katydid Creativity & Paper Adventures.

Gluten-Free Link Love:

The Cinnamon Quill posted a delectable looking dessert recipe yesterday for Financiers, which was adapted from a recipe that Sea (Book of Yum), had previously posted.  I have never heard of Financiers before, so thank you to The Cinnamon Quill and Book of Yum for sharing!

My very dear friend Maggie, from She Let Them Eat Cake, posted a recipe for, get this, “Triple Chocolate Pudding Sandwiches!” Oh. My. Heavens.  Luke will hyperventilate when I make these, LOL!  Now, I know what you are thinking, but fear not my friends, these are healthy (and dairy-free)!  So go ahead, click the link and see for yourself.  Go on, click it.

Another healthy summer treat that I am anxious to try are the Avocado Fudgesicles from The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen.

If you have trouble believing that avocados and chocolate go well together, check out this post for Tricky Chocolate Pudding and you will see!

Lastly, the makers of SUSTA Natural Sweetener contacted me today with a coupon code for you!  From now through August, 1, 2010, you can get $1.00 off either a box of SUSTA or bag of SUSTA Bowl (SUSTA’s baking product).  To redeem, simply visit www.sustastore.com, order your product, enter in the coupon code “GFMOM“and you will receive $1.00 off your purchase.  Coupon codes are not case-sensitive, so gfmom, GFMOM, GFMom, etc. will all work.

Last Minute Star Wars

I made Star Wars themed cupcakes for Sam to share with his classmates for his birthday yesterday. Cupcakes are pretty easy and you can find great cupcake picks and liners in stores or online. I found the Darth Vader and Stormtrooper rings on Ebay.

I made it through…I am done with birthday cake until July!

Happy 6th birthday to my little man. I love you Sam.

Star Wars Birthday Party

Wow!  Sam’s birthday was a great success and I am so happy to have that stress behind me!   6 weeks of Death Star pinata making, Light Saber making and Cake sculpting and decorating.  I think I could sleep for a week!

So, this is what I learned the most, cake decorating is HARD work.  Fondant is a nightmare for an over ambitious beginner who cannot seem to accept her limitations!   I have learned to appreciate professional bakers and decorators more than I ever did before.  Watching “Ace of Cakes” is not sufficient training to make a 3-D Clone Trooper Helmet Cake that is not without some heavy duty flaws.  Those guys make it look so easy, but I will never look at another beautifully decorated bakery cake and think, wow, why is that so expensive??? 

Thank goodness my judge and jury were 6 year olds, they are very forgiving and somehow did not see all of the mistakes that I was fixating on!

Sam seemed to be impressed though and if you consider that his only alternative would have been cupcakes or a 9 x 13 “Pyrex” cake, I think he was excited to have this. So, if you have a young child with celiac disease or is gluten free for another reason and you, like me, have zero to very little cake decorating experience, go for it, you can do it too!

The Clone Trooper Party Invitations were made by friend Kristen on her Cricut paper cutter.

You can contact Kristen at: s-n-khallenbeck2001(at) comcast (dot) net for information on how to make these.

Kristen downloaded a Star Wars Font from the internet and used that to print up the party details inside.

Star Wars Birthday Party – Pool Noodle Light Sabers

Okay, I have A LOT of pent up anxious energy over my 3-D Clone Trooper helmet cake next week!!  I know that in the end, it will turn out fine, whether the end product is the actual cake or some really cool cupcakes. However, I REALLY want to make this cake and have it actually look like a Clone Trooper Helmet!

In the meantime, instead of pacing back and forth, I put my nervous energy to work and made Light Sabers out of pool noodles to give as party favors.  Although I am quite sure they will end up as the entertainment of the evening and I think I better pack some Charmin so I can pad myself for protection from 30 swinging light sabers!

These are really easy to make.  Just a bunch of skinny pool noodles, colored Duck Tape (the colors I used are Midnight Madness and Silver Coin), I bought both at Michael’s Craft Store.  For an added touch, I used Scribbles 3-D Paint in Christmas Red to make a red “button” on the light saber handles.

Sam of course thought they were cool, but then he had the idea of making Darth Maul‘s double light saber!

If he could only be 5 3/4 years old forever. 

The Death Star Pinata

Whew…I think I have made a passable (at least to a group of 5 and 6 year olds) Death Star Pinata for Sam and his buddy Garrett’s upcoming Star Wars birthday party.

This is what I used as a guide:

Overall, this was pretty easy.  Especially using what was originally a soccer ball pinata.  It was a ton of fun to watch Sam as I was making it. “Awesooooome!”  Aw, the joys of parenthood.

Now, if I can only be as successful with the 3-D Clone Trooper Helmet Cake next week!