Behind the BackDrop: Mad Scientist Party
We are thrilled to kick off a new series of posts: Behind the BackDrop! I want to share stories, inspirations, and creative journeys when raising my children. I’ve told you before that I am a social worker, so my theory is that these parties were fun creative outlets for me outside of work.
While my job as a balloon artist is to make your party picture perfect, I want to remind you that most of my treasured memories are from the least perfect moments.
To kick off this series, I’m sharing the story of the UGLIEST but most fun party I ever hosted. It turned out to be one of the most loved by all the kids!
For my youngest child, Megan’s, 9th birthday, we hosted a “Mad Scientist” theme party. I’d love to be back in that very room, surrounded by all the little mad scientist wanna be’s. I had parents tell me for weeks that their children came home wanting to do science experiments. SO FUN! From balloons being stuck with skewers without popping, to volcanoes erupting, there was something for all!
First, let’s look at a few of the pictures!
I have to admit, I had the advantage on this one. My sister is a college science teacher and one of our long time family friends, Poppy McDonald, is a retired science teacher. She pulled out ALL THE TRICKS for these kids!
They each had a clipboard with a printed task sheet to complete. They all took this VERY serious!
We provided gloves, mad scientist glasses, aprons, and all the gadgets that they needed for the science experiment. They had pseudo scientist name badges! Again, all very inexpensive touches!
Peep …Walt the cousin…he’s a faithful attender…
A mess was made but the smiles were big!
One of their tasks was to place a skewer through an inflated balloon.
Yes…that’s me…the “Natty Professor” with the birthday girl and science teacher. I was just there for moral support at this point!
Our local cake lady, Jenny Williams, made her cake!
Every detail was covered down to the drink mix!
As I said before, this was the UGLIEST party ever hosted, but one of the TOP parties in our books.
We hung black tarp on the walls of a carport and also covered the tables with it. There were several black lights and all other decorations were neon. It gave the feel of a true science lab. We wanted to do this outside so that we didn’t have to worry about explosions! Haha!
Can I give you a little hint for any theme? PLAY MUSIC! It adds such a special touch for your guests to walk in to. For this one we played bubbly noises over and over again!
I really didn’t have alot of money in this party. I told you that I had a small advantage, but you might too…I borrowed the aprons, bottles, and other tools from a local school. The other decorations came from the dollar tree. I believe that I also borrowed the black lights. My costs were associated with the ingredients that were needed for the experienments (vinegar, baking soda, skewers, balloons, etc). I had WAAYYYY more time in the planning, than I did in money paid. I’ll be honest, it did take significant planning (but I leaned on my pros in science heavily!).
As you can tell, parties do not have to be picture perfect. Have fun with your children while you can! Making sure your guests have fun and feel welcomed…now that’s a perfect party!
