Oh my goodness, am I ever excited to share this one with you! It’s that time of year again when somehow, my child is officially another year older and I’m left scratching my head because I swear, we just had him yesterday. I tend to make a big deal of birthdays and as a result, our kids talk about their birthdays all throughout the year. Last summer just weeks after we had hosted his fifth birthday party, Andrew declared that he wanted a waffle party for his next birthday. Ben and I both looked at each other and we knew this was a brilliant idea.
I wasn’t quite sure how to get the “waffle party” concept across in the invitation. Thankfully I stumbled upon this super cute “Rise & Shine” retro print in the Etsy shop Charlotte Pearce, and she happily customized it into this awesome invite for us. These were so fun and got guests excited instantly. I’ve never received such an emphatic response before based on the invitation alone but everyone was enthusiastically on board. I’m telling you, the idea of a PJ party was a huge hit.
I decided to keep the menu for this party exceedingly simple. Waffles with a huge variety of toppings, and that’s it (both regular and gluten free options). I had originally considered including some other side options but I’m glad I didn’t mess with it. There was one large platter of fresh fruit but that’s it. The waffle bar was a stand alone success, no side items necessary. Toppings included:
Sliced strawberries
Sliced nectarines/peaches
Sliced bananas
Fresh raspberries
Roasted cherries
Fresh blueberry sauce
Toasted coconut
Bacon
Granola
Honey roasted peanuts
Caramel corn
Chocolate syrup
Vanilla bean caramel sauce
Peanut butter sauce
Maple syrup
Honey
Whipped cream
To switch it up from the usual food labels, I covered the table with a piece of chalkboard paper and sort of just doodled labels as I set out the various toppings. It was fun and so simple!
Since the party was in the morning, an iced coffee bar for the parents was a must. This was almost as big of a hit as the waffle bar. I filled our drink dispenser with a full batch of cold brew coffee and included a few different flavored syrups.
For the kids, I kept it simple with milk, chocolate milk, and freshly squeezed OJ (hello, perfect excuse to use my beloved juicer!) I had originally planned smoothies of some sort as well but ended up not bothering and just like with the sides, I don’t think anyone missed them.
Side note – yet another excellent use of washi tape was making this 6 for the wall. I used a piece of foam board, drew the number, cut it out with an exacto knife and then covered with alternating strips of red and gold glitter washi. Paired with the colorful paper medallions it was a really fun and festive backdrop.
Since this was during breakfast/brunch time, we decided to forego a big party cake. Andrew requested yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting so that’s what we did. How are there SIX candles on that cupcake?!
And how was I supposed to keep my hands off this cutie? Don’t PJs just make every kid instantly cuter? I can’t get enough snuggles!
I don’t think they had any fun at all :)
Vendors and Resources
Charlotte Pearce – custom invitation
Sucre Shop – Happy Birthday wooden utensils, wooden scoops
TomKat Studio – plates, cups, napkins, paper medallions
Paper Source – Chalkboard wrapping paper (is it just black paper though?!), luxe glitter tape
Amazon – plastic cups with lids for iced coffee bar (recycle if you must use them!)
Target – beverage dispenser, stand
