A pirate party

Nicholas had a pirate party to celebrate his 6th birthday. We had fun planning and preparing for it. He didn't realise it, but Nicholas gave his parents a creative outlet with this party. I was hesitant at first when he requested to have a celebration at home. The past two years we’ve had it at a park since the last time it was at home, it was quite hectic and we were pooped by the end of it. But this time it worked out surprisingly well and was a much smaller party.

Weeks ahead, we searched shops for a pirate piñata, toy coins, treasure chests, lollies, prizes, craft supplies and pirate accessories. Pirates must be the latest craze as it was easy to find pirate-themed items. Finding cheap toy pirate figures for the birthday cake was the most challenging. We weren’t willing to spend $200+ for a complete Lego pirate set. We were lucky to find out days before the party that a friend happened to have a toy pirate ship set and he kindly lent us his toys. I also found pirate candles at a local party shop. Although it was still quite amateur looking, I was very happy with how the birthday cake turned out. Phil helped me decorate the cake and he wrote the birthday message on the sails. The cake was alternate layers of chocolate and vanilla with store-bought (sickly sweet) chocolate frosting. The important thing was that Nicholas was very impressed and thought it was “cool”.

From Pirate Party

We organised a few party activities: fishing, treasure hunt and the piñata. The treasure hunt was the best. Phil made treasure maps the day before and wrote clever clues. The kids (and adults) went around the house searching for the ultimate treasure “in a chest, in a chest, in a chest”. They had the greatest reaction once they found it. The party was a success. Nicholas had a great time and really enjoyed having his family and friends around to celebrate. He complained that his actual birthday would be boring after that. 

On the actual day, Nicholas had more presents to open in the morning, followed by waffles for breakfast. Then he went to school where they had cupcakes (baked by Phil and Nicholas) and his classmates sang “Happy Birthday”. Grandparents later came over for dinner and we had pasta and more cupcakes for dessert.