Where do I even begin......let's just put it this way.....things didn't exactly go as planned for this party. I got the idea from Tami Driggers, she has had a birthday party for Jesus the last 2 years and looking at her pictures and reading her blog, it looked amazing and so much fun....a great way for young children to try and understand the true meaning of Christmas! So, I had big plans.....make crowns to wear (for the King), make angels, tell the story with props, and make a beautiful cake......well, we did very little of this plan.....but I think in the end they had a great time and came away with the true meaning of Christmas (at least I hope so)!
I started off by telling the story of the birth of Jesus with these wooden blocks that my mother-in-law made several years ago (I love them cause the kids can play with them without breaking anything). Well, I told the story and barely made it all the way through.....we had a bit of drama going on during the story. I think they understood though because they at least answered some of the questions I asked when we were done.
Then we opened gifts......and we talked about what kinds of gifts we would have taken baby Jesus if we had been around during that time.....most of the answers were clothes and toys!
Every picture I took, she had her tongue out!
Reese thought I needed my picture taken as well.....this was just one of many wonderful gifts I got. My daycare parents really spoiled me this year and I felt truly loved and am very blessed!
After gifts, we had some visitors, so it kind of halted some of our plans. But, it was still fun and I got to hold this precious little gift that was born just the week before.....isn't she a cutie!!!
Then it was time to eat and have cake for Jesus. The cake didn't quite turn out as planned.....so please don't critique me (I am NOT a decorator). I have made fondant before, but it just wasn't turning out at all......it was sticky and runny and when I finally got it rolled out it tore when I put it on the cake.....so I pieced a piece in and went on. If I would have had time, I would have thrown it in the trash and gone to Vogts and bought one, but I didn't! I found an angel outline online and traced it around some pre-made fondant and cut out a star.....stuck it on and called it good. The kids didn't seem to mind and the cake underneath tasted good. I got the idea from several different websites (used different ones and made my own).....each part of the cake has a special meaning.
Shape--the shape is round to represent the World into which Jesus is born.
Chocolate Cake (black)--represents the fact that all men have sinned. This is why Jesus came to earth.
Frosting--pure white, symbolizing the righteousness and purity of Jesus Christ.
Star--like the star that shone heralding His birth and lighting the way to the stable.
Angel--the angel reminds us of the good tidings that were brought to the shepherds that night. It also reminds us of the good tidins, or good news, that we can bring to others. Luke 2:1
12 Red Candles--the red color reminds us of Jesus' blood that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins.
Light the candles--the 12 candles remind us to let His light shine every month of the year, not just at Christmas time.
I realize this cake only has 10 candles, but there were really 12 on the cake (2 were yellow cause I didn't have enough red candles)
We sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and blew out the candles!
Happy Birthday, Jesus!!!
Next year, I will be lowering my expectations of having a "perfect" party.....all in all it was fun and that is the most important part. Oh, and here are our angels that a few of the kiddos made at the end of the day. If you are wondering, the gold tinsel is supposed to be a halo!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.....ours are all over and went WAY too fast.....it actually makes me kind of sad that it's over. We work so hard and spend so much time planning and prepping and then it's over just like that.
This week, I probably won't be blogging much.....maybe one more post to finish up our 25 days of Christmas and what the kiddos made for their parents and then I will be back next week sometime. We are taking a little time to just play this week.....lots of new toys at this house......thankfully some of them go outside.
Tracy
Looks like it turned out great to me! I love the cake idea and that every piece of it had meaning! Might have to steal that idea for next year :). Parties never go exactly as you have them imagined in your mind, but the kids always seem to have a great time anyway and you can tell they are loving it! I'm just impressed you can pull it off with so many kids to take care of!
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