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Cinderella's Disco Ball 4yr - Dance Canopy

September 2007

Jen in San Diego, CA, USA

Honorable Mention

I have twins who wanted two different themes for their 4th birthday.  One wanted a dance party and the other a princess party, so I combined them.  I called it Cinderella's Disco Ball. 

I designed a postcard sized invitation on my computer (4 to a page) that looked like the little cards for nightclubs and concerts that you see at record stores.  I put a picture of Cinderella dancing on a lit-up disco dance floor with a disco ball over head on the front.  It featured my daughter's names, the name of the event, the time, place, etc on the front. 

On the back (the non-glossy side) I had the disco ball, but in muted-tones, and a map to our house and details about the party and where to RSVP.  I had placed 4 invitations to a page and had them color copied on card stock at Kinko's.  The inviations only ended up costing about $20 for 40 and they looked professional.   

We had the party in our backyard so the kids were free to run around a lot.  From a party rental company we rented a couple of kid sized tables and few for adults and placed them on the back lawn.  I covered the tables in either disco table cloths or Cinderella ones from the Party Supply store.  I placed balloons on the back of each chair which made the backyard look more decorated than it actually was -- plus the kids got to take them home.   

When each kid came in the front door, they were given either a crown or tiara and then announced to group.  The tiaras and crowns were ordered online for less than a dollar a piece. The crowns were fabric with a faux fur bottom and a hit with the boys because they were comfortable and didn't fall off. The tiaras were plastic, but shiny, so the girls loved them.  We also rented a dance floor (which wasn't that expensive).  We put the dancefloor down on our side driveway, but it could also be placed on a lawn or patio. 

Because it was at the end of summer, we got a great deal on a canopy/tent that people use for the beach.  It was only about $40, was easy to put up and has been put to good use since.  We put this over the dance floor and on the sides, I hung streamers to give it a dance club effect.  We hung a small disco ball on the inside of the canopy.  On the walls of our house nearest the dance floor, I put up a bunch of foil stars and some pictures of castles and Cinderella to complete the theme. 

On a table near the dance floor, I hooked up my iPod boom box and had a play list of songs for the kids to dance to.  It was a combination of disco music, kid music and princess music. They kids all loved it and everyone was dancing - even the boys.  The party had kids of all ages and everyone enjoyed the dancing.   The parents all loved just standing around watching the kids.  We also hired a Cinderella to come by.  It wasn't very expensive and she played games with the kids (like freeze dance) and Simon Says out on the dance floor.  She also did face painting and stayed to help us sing Happy Birthday.  This could have easily been done by a young blond friend with a Cinderella costume, but it was nice for none of the kids to actually know the Cinderella in question. 

For food I went to a local taco shop and pre-ordered platters of quesadillas, mini-burritos, taquitos, and small tacos.  This was a hit with the kids and adults. It was also really inexpensive -- much less than ordering a bunch of pizza.  Everything was bit-sized which made things easy for the little ones.  We also set up a Juice Bar by the dance floor - which was really just a cooler with juice boxes in it and chairs around it.   

For gift bags, I went to Target and found these pink small backpacks that said Dance" on them in the $1 section.  For the boys I put in pink ballet slipper looking socks (that I also got at Target in the dollar bin) plastic disco ball necklaces iron-on decals that said "If the Shoe Fits" w/ a picture of Cinderella flashing light toys and Princess fruit snacks. The boys also got disco ball necklaces flashing lights glittery yo-yos boy-themed fruit snacks and blow-up microphones or guitars.  "

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