CANDYLAND Party!

Maddie's 5th Birthday party is one of my FAVORITES!!! We did a candyland party since we were living in a house with a BIG backyard! started with the invitations which I made on my computer. You can find candyland graphics on google images. They read "come join us for a walk through candyland for madilynns 5th birthday.  I set the yard up in different sections to look like the candyland board. I cut cardboard into squares and spray painted them. (I have seen pics of people who have done this with posterboard) I used red and white streamers at the start and hung a sign that said CANDYLAND. I made cards that read a little story to the kids at each station. I also gave the kids a bag to collect their candy in.

 We all started together and walked to the first station which was the gingerbread tree. I made the gingerbread tree out of poster board and hung it up. The card here read "All the gingerbread men have lost a few things can you help them get back together.  They decorated a paper gingerbread man with different color and shape stickers. Then I gave them a gingerbread man cookie for their bags. When we were done we moved on together again down the colored squares.

 Next was Mr.Mint. the card read "the gingerbread kids are at it again and have made a mess of Mr.mints mints lets help pick them up".I decorated it with the big candy canes you put in your yard at Christmas. I used buckets and had kids drop wrapped peppermints from their teeth into buckets beneath them. They got a handful of peppermints in their bags.

 Next was the "Gumdrops mountains"  I collected empty milk and soda soda bottles for a couple week. Cut the bottoms, spray painted them and sprinkled with glitter before they dried. They looked like Big Gumdrops. I placed them in the grass. We played Pin the gumdrop on the gumdrop. I made the game with a posterboard, construction paper and glitter. I cut Big gumdrop shapes out of  purple and green paper. Rub them with a gluestick and covered them with glitter. I glued them on the posterboard. I then cut little green and purple gumdrops. I blind folded the kids and gave them a little gumdrop they had to place it on the Big Gumdrop with the matching color while blindfolded(you can use a tie or get a sleep eye mask). I used double sided tape. Then they Got a little box of DOTS candy to put in their bags.

 We continued our walk but was stopped by "LORD LICORICE" for this I used a baby wipe container. (you could use a shoebox or anything similar) I covered it in red and black construction paper. Striped. The kids put their hands through the whole in the top of the wipe box not knowing what was in there. It was Red licorice. I let them eat in on the way to the Peanut acres

At the peanut acres the card read "Gramma nut needs help cracking her biggest peanut on the acres so she brought it to us" It was a Peanut Pinata. This is how I made it. It has a few steps and takes about a week to make. I blew up 2 balloons and tied the ends together so it kinda looks like a figure 8. Then I made paper mache. Which is a flour and water mixture that makes a paste. Cut strips of newspaper dip them in the paste and wrap them around the balloons till the ballooons are covered let them dry for about a day. Then do it again but make sure you create a band around the middle where the 2 balloons connect just so that it becomes 1 whole part and not 2 seperate parts once the baloons are popped. Repeat this process a few times. They more layers you do the stronger it will be. Do at least 3 and use extra layers around the middle each time! After it was completely dry. I painted it with a light brown paint (peanut shell colored) once dried again, cut a small whole on the top to put candy in. I bought a bag of circus peanuts and put 2-3 in little baggies and filled the pinata with that. (you could also use real shelled peanuts but beware of peanut allergies). we connected some twine to the top and then hung it up and let the kids hit it. They put the circus peanuts in their bags and we kept on going down the colored squares in the yard.

 Next was the Lollipop woods. My dad made these beautiful Giant Lollipops made from wood. we put them all in the ground and had dum-dum suckers all over the ground the kids got to put as many as they could find in the bag. The card read " the gingerbread kids are at it again, they have been playing in the lollipop woods and knocking lollipops out the trees. Lolli says if you find them you can keep them"

 Next was "Snowflake lake. I hung snowflakes from the tree hanging above a big white sheet I put on the ground. I had all the kids sit on the white sheet. The card read "Princess Frostine wants to invite you to snowflake lake have a seat and enjoy some yummy sweet candyland snowballs. I froze mini marshmellows and gave a little cupful to each kid. when they were done we moved on down the squares again but
OH NO Lord Licorice stopped us again, with another red and black box but this time filled with black licorice. The kids ate it on their way to the chocolate swamp.

 The chocolate swamp was a wall and a bridge painted to look like a chocolate river with a bridge over it. I also had Big styrofoam squares painted brown to look like chocolate squares and my dad made hershey kisses out of wood. we made fishing rood with clips on the end the kids threw them over the top of the wall where my sister and dad attached mini chocolate candy bars onto them. they put them in the bag. and kept going till we got to.....

 The "CANDY CASTLE" this was our play house I put clear packing take in long strips, sticky side up, All over the house. Then placed candy up and down the strips! The kids got to take all the candy off. They LOVED IT!!! Then we ended with cake and ice cream. It was a great party! If you are lucky like me. Her birthday is in november so I got all the candy after halloween on sale! This party only cost me about $80 but it did require ALOT of planning and ALOT of preparation and time!