Tuesday Threads: Mr E's Third Birthday!

Yes, you read that correctly...it's Tuesday. I am featuring this week's Thursday Threads post early. Mainly because I am too excited to wait until Thursday!

We were so excited to celebrate Mr E's third birthday last weekend! I absolutely love planning the kids' parties and Mr. E was thrilled to have a TRAIN party! Once he chose the theme, I summoned the creative juices and gathered inspiration. It was such a joy to celebrate with close friends and family. Everyone had a blast!

I got the idea to feature a REAL train ride since the Indiana Transportation Museum is nearby. The party was held at a park and everyone climbed aboard for a special caboose train ride! I chose a basic color theme and decorations that were easy to set up before the party.

This was the first year, Mr. E was excited to invite all of his friends. I was thrilled to be able to plan some fun activities for the kids to enjoy. Coloring pages from Cake Ink and fun paintable wooden trains!

Then there is the food! A must for an outdoor party! I decided to put together a variety of box lunches. Hosting a party outside the home makes it difficult to prep in advance. The less you haul, the better!

I {foolishly} worked at the hospital the day before E's party, which meant I woke up at 5:30am Friday, took care of kiddos, left for work at 2pm, and made it back in my bed at 1:30am Saturday morning. I was exhausted! So, I tried to plan ahead and do as much prep work as possible. I made 30 deli sandwiches Friday morning and prepped single serving cups of grapes and baby cucumber slices on Thursday. The sandwiches were added to each box lunch right before the party so they remained cool on our 97 degree day!

Each box lunch held a sandwich, chips or crackers, grapes, and cucumber slices. The bakers boxes were personalized with an 'All Aboard!' sticker and a 'Choo choo' joke on the inner lid. To stay cool, the guests enjoyed blueberry lemonade and cold water! The table decor included a vintage suitcase, oil lantern, and 'Fuel Up' sign.

Mr. E wrapped up the Happy Birthday chorus by blowing out the candles on his fun train cake!

After lunch, crafts, cake, and a few gifts, favors were handed out before our train ride. Each child received a train cap personalized with their name, a wooden train whistle, train sticker, and some Chugga-Chews crackers. The adults grabbed a chocolate chip cookie on the way to the station. It was great to see the kids enjoying their hats and hearing them toot on the whistles!

We rushed to the nearby train station just in time! Two red cabooses were lined up and ready to take us on a special birthday ride! We also enjoyed touring the museum's mail train car and dining car. The ride was hot {and a little lengthy for the kids}, but we experienced a very authentic trip through woods and over the creek. So fun!

It was an amazing day that was fun to plan, but MOST importantly we had fun celebrating Mr. E! He is my little man who is so full of energy and wit.  

Hope you had a wonderful birthday E!!

More Details:
Invitations: Love My Bear Designs 
Paper sandwich bags: HeyYoYo
Cake: Pat-a-Cakes and Cookies Too
Coloring Pages: Cake Ink
Tissue Fan Decor: Devra Party Corp.