Gymnastics Party
Lilly started gymnastics at the beginning of first grade. She got in a full semester and a few weeks until the the world shut down due to Covid. And then, like many other things, it was over a year until she returned. Beyond missing friends and a fun activity, she worried she’d lose her newly learned skills. But to all of our surprise, she actually improved. There was a lot of time to practice. Her grandparents got her an octagon tumbler and mat, we moved our dining room table and our once dining room became her gymnastics studio. Soon she was doing (assisted) front handsprings and backbends. This January, she finally returned to class and there’s been no looking back. She now cartwheels more than she walks. So when it came time to throw her 8th birthday party, there was no question what the theme would be.
She was supposed to have her first sleepover birthday at 7, but we had a Covid-style car parade, which ended up being one of my favorite celebrations of all time, and a My Little Pony play date a few months later. So for this birthday, we were going big(ish) to make up for having more subdued celebrations the year before.
What that looked like was a lot of girls (7! It was supposed to be 8 but one couldn’t come because of quarantine.), some new gym equipment, gear and games.
Lilly loves a rainbow so I knew many colors had to be incorporated. I started with white leotards with each girl’s name (I had my local embroidery place put vinyl letters on the ones I bought, but you can have letters made here and do them yourself or have an Etsy shop do the entire thing.), which set the tone and informed the rest of the palette.
I love gifting favors at the beginning of the party so guests can use, wear and play with them throughout. (I also like using them as decor like I did for this party as well as school and costume swap themed events.) And when I found these personalized water bottles, I knew they’d be perfect. No dirtying dishes, need for endless paper products or trying to figure out which cup was theirs. (Maybe I should get them for adult parties and fill with wine and booze too?!) They were a huge hit. The girls are now using them for their bottles to and from school and at sports as well.
These hair ties are so cute and many wore them at the party too. I love that they come with a custom thank you card.
What’s a gymnastics party without some good old fashioned ribbons? Bonus points if they’re rainbow. The girls had the best time with these. I loved watching them run through the grass, feeling so free and dancing with them. I will forever remember that moment.
Like her mama, Lilly loves a good photo op. She’s obsessed with our instant camera and I knew they would make for such a fun souvenir on rainbow film, naturally. I wanted the kids to have a special backdrop to shoot in front of, so I decided to DIY one with the rainbow ribbon theme in mind. I bought individual rolls from a local party store (but they sell them in packs or you can get a pre-made one). It was a little time consuming, but super affordable and fun.
And I love the way the photos turned out.
The girls had a blast playing the Vault Challenge and Fantastic Gymnastics games. We also played a round of a pin the medal on the gymnast.
When it came to dessert, Lilly decided she didn’t want cake (even though I’d emailed the bakery all week with different ideas) and opted instead for cakesicles that were decorated with rainbow ribbons and sugar cookie dough that we colored and let the girls pick their combo and sprinkles.
As for the main attractions, we had a brand new gymnastics bar (Lilly’s big gift) and rainbow balance beam, along with her octagon and mat and we did a big relay race using these custom cards.
And we cleared out the entire play room and played An American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars which was a big fan favorite.
I’ll be honest, as much as I love planning parties, celebrating my girl and seeing her so happy, there was a part of me that was dreading getting myself into the mess of hosting six other children for a sleepover.
