LilSugar

April Showers: Light Up the Festivities With Candles

LilSugar — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 13:00:00 -0700

Ask any party planner - from partysugar to fashion designer Erin Fetherston and they'll tell you small candles add a hint of elegance and romance to any gathering. One of the most precious baby showers I've ever attended was also the most simple. The hostess decorated with white lilies, gardenias floating in water and about 20 white votive candles.

Liven up a baby shower or brighten the day of mommy-to-be with the silly and sweet Bun in the Oven candle set (four for $9) or a selection of simple small flames. Party goers will glow just like the mom of honor.

Anthousa - $30.00	Cerina Candle - $32.50
Blissliving Home Patina Glass Votives - $30.00	Roost Etched Botanical Votives - $36.00
Ceramic Tray Candle Sets - $12.99	Blissliving Home Soren Double Glass Hurricanes - $40.00
Blissliving Home Venilla Bean Candles - $10.00	Blissliving Home Bergen Plate - $30.00
Blissliving Home Serenity Sphere Candle - $10.00

National Train Day: Whistle Down the Tracks

babysugar — Thu, 08 May 2008 07:00:41 -0700

If your lil one is obsessed with trains as mine is, make sure you have plans to celebrate the first annual National Train Day this Saturday.

The event, celebrates the 139th anniversary of the day the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railways were joined to create the first transcontinental railroad.

To make the anniversary, and inaugurate a new celebration, Amtrak is hosting events at its four largest stations, Washington, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Each location will have different activities for guests, including live musical performances, train simulators, exhibits, VIP appearances and trip giveaways. The Today show’s Al Roker is serving as the event’s national spokesperson and will be at Washington, DC’s Union Station to kick off the festivities.

If you aren’t lucky enough to be located in one of the event cities, Amtrak has provided a number of ideas to help you create your own celebration - to learn about them, read more.

But, don't let geography hold you back from festivities. Why not create your own chuga chuga choo choo party for your child and a few of his closest friends. Amtrak has a number of suggested train-theme activities for your party, our favorites include:

Train model building contests
Coloring contests – you can find printable train images here
Train-themed cake or cookie decorating contests – why not provide them with train shaped cakes they can decorate on their own
Train song karaoke – there are a number of train songs you could use, such as Dan Zane’s "Catch That Train," Laurie Berkner’s “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad,” Gladys Night and the Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia,” and the O’Jays’ “Love Train”

More activities, and downloadable images of the National Train Day logo in poster and sticker formats can be found on the Host Your Own Event page of the site. So get your engines turning and start planning!

Paperless Post Gets Holiday Parties Started

babysugar — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:30:29 -0800

This holiday season, go green, go cheap, and go beautiful! Instead of sending out a tree's worth of paper invitations for your holiday soiree, consider using creative and gorgeous online invitations. While e-vitations have been around a while, few are as sassy, simple, pretty, and well-organized as the custom stationery from the Paperless Post.

A cinch to figure out, and party queens can choose between traditional, contemporary, modern, and casual templates and add the perfect touch with an embossed design, colorful trims, a grosgrain ribbon, or even their own photos. New members get 25 free virtual stamps (good for 25 email addresses) when they sign up and pay an additional fee when they want to send out their notice to more guests. If a hostess wants to blast the invitation out to 100 people, she would only pay the $8 fee for 100 e-stamps as opposed to a $44 bill at the post office. For an extra $5, mama can make the envelope fancy and add a liner. In the end, an $8 stamp fee and $5 envelope liner are peanuts compared to the snail mail option, and she never has to wait in that dreaded line! The bonus is it makes managing the party details as easy as one, two, three. Mommy can tell who has opened the invite, replied to it, and made comments on it.

So the next time mum's throwing a bash - holiday or otherwise - she should consider Paperless Post. The guests will be impressed by her fabulous and savvy eco-friendly ways, and it will give her the opportunity to spend the money on wine and music, 'cause that's what will make her party legendary.

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Delilicious: Sugar Cookie Cut-Outs

LilSugar — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:00:37 -0800

Lisa Barnes, author of Petit Appetit: Eat, Drink, and Be Merry, shares with LilSugar a classic sugar cookie recipe that works for all seasons - though it's especially great for a holiday party, cookie swap or playdate activity. Kids can help dump the measured ingredients into the mixing bowl and turn on and off the electric mixer to help make the dough. Of course the fun really begins with the cookie cutting and icing decorating.

To see how to make this tasty and classic holiday treat with your tots, just read more.

Sugar Cookie Cut-Outs
From Petit Appetit: Eat, Drink and Be Merry

Ingredients

2/3 cup organic unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 large cage-free organic egg
1 tablespoon organic milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt and beat until combined. Beat in egg, milk, and vanilla until combined. Beat in the flour, ¼ cup at a time, until all is incorporated.

Cover and chill dough for at least 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

On a lightly floured surface, and using a floured rolling pin, roll dough out to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes. Place 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 7 to 9 minutes, until edges are firm and bottoms are very lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Once completely cool these can be frosted with your child’s favorite royal or powdered sugar icing. For easy, frosting set out small spreaders and squeeze bottles so frosting ends up on the cookies and not your child, floor, and table. Add sprinkles to wet frosting for even more fun (and mess).

*Makes about 35 (2½-inch) cookies

Print recipe with images | without images

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Kiddie Soiree: Planning a Regal Fete

babysugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:30:44 -0700

It's that time of year again - my daughter's birthday is on the horizon. I've got one month to pull a fabulous fete together and I'm bringing you all along for the ride. A princess adoring darling, I've decided to deck our home out with crowns, scepters, and bejeweled cupcakes. But before I can do anything, I must order and send out the invitations.

A popular theme to boot, the options are endless. The pink and purple castles would be enticing if we had a jumpy house but alas, we won't. The tiaras clearly indicate the type of party to expect but I quite like the silhouette with the pigtails and crooked crown to the right. It shows the playfulness of a 3-year-old best.

Which of the invitations below do you like best?

Will Your Tot Be Attending a Swine Flu Party?

LilSugar — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:48 -0700

Is swine flu the gift that keeps on giving? While at the park the other day, I overheard a few moms chatting about the recent announcement that the FDA approved the swine flu vaccine. The mamas were debating whether or not they were going to be vaccinating their children and one woman shocked me with an unusual way that she was planning on keeping her lil one protected.

To find out her idea, just read more.

She proudly announced that she wants her child to get the swine flu and that she would take him to an H1N1 party if she could find one. I heard of such parties back when the swine flu hit mainstream media, but I didn't think anyone would actually consider attending one. And in case you missed it, an H1N1 party is where folks seek out the milder version of the H1N1 virus by coming into contact with someone who has the 2009 version of the flu. People are fearing the potentially mutated and more deadly strain of the virus.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends against attending or holding such parties as it's impossible to tell how the flu will affect each person, especially children. Furthermore, if someone has the virus they are urged to limit contact with other people.

I'm going to stick to teaching my tots about good hygiene and handwashing, but what do you think? Are H1N1 parties a good idea?

Tea Party: Hostess and Party Favors

babysugar — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 12:00:58 -0700

Torn on what to give your guests at the end of your tea party baby shower? No worries, we've got you covered.

If you invested in inexpensive teacups for the shower, fill them with goodies and gift them to your party goers. Another idea is to wrap up beautifully decorated sugar cubes from Aida Opera Candies in cellophane and tie them off with a ribbon. Or, toss a few Twinings tea bags and the sugary sweets in the teacups to create an even prettier package.

To see another option, read more.

For favors that reflect the mama-to-be, gather her favorite candies – Skittles, Sprees, Tootsie Rolls, M&M's, etc - and fill big bowls with oodles of the treats in a circle on a table. In the center, fill a basket with pillow boxes from Paper Source.

When all of the petit fours have been eaten and the presents unwrapped, tell your guests to visit the candy wheel where they can stock up on sweets to go.

For the hostess with the mostest, spoil her with a tea set that she'll cherish for years to come. The Bodum Assam Tea Press is a fabulous teapot and is perfect for a single cup of tea. Add a set of tea bags and teacups to make her feel extra special.

Mommy Dearest: Should I Trust the Other Parents?

babysugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:30:58 -0800

Mommy Dearest,

I am entering new territory and could use some advice. My preschool son is starting to make new friends of his own from his classroom. A few of his little buddies have asked him to come over for a playdate, which is exciting and scary at the same time. Thrilled that he is advancing socially, I am nervous to let him go over to a friend's house where I don't know the parents at all. I could care less about snacks or sugary drinks but I wonder what the mom's disciplinary style may be or how she deals with her children. Heaven forbid she's a closet drinker like that woman who drove drunk and killed all of those innocent children. I don't want to be a helicopter parent but I don't want to regret anything, either.

- Scared to Be Helicopter Mom

To see the response from Mommy Dearest, just read more.

Scared to Be Helicopter Mom,

Your concerns are natural and admirable - you are looking out for your child's best interest. An easy way to solve your problem is to have an initial mommy and child playdate where the boys can play together, and you can get to know the other mother. During that time, you can chat and try to figure out where she stands on some issues. If she talks a big game of drinking or partying, it may be an indicator that you need a few more dual-parent supervised dates or that you need to host the playdates. Another idea is to organize a social event for a group of the moms so you can get to know them outside of your children. It will help you feel better about leaving them in their care and vice versa. More than anything, you should trust your intuition. It's always better to be safe than sorry.

- Mommy Dearest

Submit a question for this feature at the Mommy Dearest Group on our new community page.

Modeling After Others Mamas: Do You Fear Influences?

babysugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:30:40 -0800

If Lila Hack wasn't born crawling with a swagger, she is sure to learn it just by watching her mum. Model mother Kate Moss threw her godchild, 9-year-old Iris Law (daughter of Jude Law and Sadie Frost), the soiree of her dreams - a catwalk party. A well-known woman in the fashion world, the leggy Top Shop designer brought gobs of clothes, hairdressers, and makeup galore for the little darling and her pals, which happened to include her own 7-year-old daughter Lila Hack. Done up to the nines, it was then time for the youngsters to learn how to strut their stuff. While it may sound fun and fancy, one might wonder what kind of influence it has on the impressionable youths. One source said:

All of the girls at the bash wanted to be Kate. She brought along lots of clothes for them and the girls had their hair and make-up done especially. . . . Kate also presided over all of the accessories to make them look as catwalk-ready as possible. She was teaching them how to master her famous hip swagger and her "I don’t care look."

My hang-up? I always want my child to care. Would you allow your tot to attend a model party?

Kiddie Soirée: Sweet Spring Treats

babysugar — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:00:00 -0700

The idea of giving every guest a goldfish or a furry lil snow bunny for a party favor sure sounds cute, but is it practical? Not so much. At your Spring chicken's next birthday party, keep with the "new life" theme with frosted cookies and cupcakes to go. Check out the slideshow of my favorite Spring sweet treats that you and your child can make together.

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