Head on over to the Décor and DIY section to see how Lennon's 1st Birthday went and for inspiration for your own Teddy  Bear  Picnics!

This past weekend, my sweet niece Michaella celebrated her fourth birthday. The party was an ever so currently popular Minion theme at a local indoor "beach" called 6Pack. There isn't actually any water play involved at 6Pack(unless you include the foot rinsing station) but just lots and lots of sand play, which the kids loved (and its a great option for those kids with winter birthdays- they can actually have a "beach party"!) . My sister Anna (and, who am I kidding, the rest of my family) really loves to throw a party and entertain...and really loves to get ideas from Pinterest (who doesn't). There was definitely lots of Pinterest inspiration at this party and, since I was the official photographer at Michaella's party, I thought I'd share the snaps in case any other Minion lovers would like ideas (just don't judge my photography skills by these photos...I had a 6 month old attached to me most of the time).

The adorable invites were made by Anna using her Cricut machine. The back of the eye included the details of the party. 

Minion balloons were found at local party store Party Express but most party stores and specialty balloon stores should carry these. You can also make Minion ballons by taking yellow balloons and attaching printed Minion eyes to them (lots of printable Minion eyes out there on the internet, see below for example).

If you can't find Minion themed supplies, you can always opt for blue and yellow as was done with the food table. Anna made the eye for the juice container using her Cricut machine but there are many Minion eye printables that you can print out and attach to various objects to "Minionize" them (see below for examples).

The candy buffet jars were just vases from the dollar store wrapped with yellow and blue ribbon. Fill with blue and yellow candy of your choice! Marshmallow bananas are a must if you can find them! BA-NA-NA!

The water bottle labels were also a printable. There are lots of these on the internet. 

The piece de resistance. Anna is a very talented cake maker and makes cakes, cupcakes and cookies as a hobby here and there (I am always telling her to quit her job and open up a shop)! How cute is this cake?! You can see more of her amazing creations on her Facebook page: Blue Daisy Sweets. If anyone in the Vancouver needs a cake for a special occasion, check her out! 

Bananas are also a very appropriate and easy thing to decorate with!

Banana Bread (and anything banana flavored really) is an appropriate addition to the party food!

More of the food....yes, my family tends to go nuts at parties....I made the fruit platter and had to include a photo as I was very proud of it!

Blue and yellow candles and a very happy birthday girl!

The goody bags were made using a yellow paper bag and printable eyes found online. A black marker was used to draw the mouth and hair.

That's one husband proud of his wife's cake (or extremely excited to dig into it)!

Many guests came in Minion themed gear and because it was at a "beach", some wore beach attire. If you wish, you can ask the guests to dress as Minions, wear Minion gear or even yellow and blue like our little Lennon did (see below).

I was incredibly proud of our outfits....well, mainly because they were found at a new thrift store in my neighborhood! The Minion shirts that Perry and I are wearing were brand new with tags for $3.50 each, the BabyLegs legwarmers were brand new in the package for $2 (and I didn't even buy them for the party but as I was dressing Lennon the day of, I saw them in his dresser and realized how appropriate they were)!! I made the bowties for the boys and hair bow for me from fabric I found at a nearby fabric store.....and an aside, those are my pre-pregnancy jeans!!! woohooo!

Lennon found a crocheted Minion toque in his goody bag! As you can see, he LOVES it and looks way too cute! He also found some Banana flavored baby Mum Mums in his goody bag (great idea for the little guests).

The indoor beach really is a great idea for those that are born in the cold or wet months! This was Lennon's first time playing in the sand! Of course it consisted mainly of him trying to eat it!

That's it for this year's fiesta! What will birthday number 5 have in store for Michaella? Hope this gives some of you ideas for your Minion themed parties! Check back for more party ideas later this week!