{Real Parties} Adam's Sonic the Hedgehog Birthday Party Recap

My little Adam is CRAZY about playing video games!  His favorite game, at the moment, is Sonic the Hedgehog.  The whole idea of the party came about when he told me that he wanted a Sonic, Wall-E, Call of Duty birthday party.  Being that I am not a fan of him playing the last game (we have Dad to thank for that) and that I was definitely not sure how to combine those three all together, I took his favorite of the three and chose a Sonic theme.

PARTY ELEMENTS THAT INSPIRE:

• Golden yellow painted floral foam centerpieces made to resemble the 'rings' in the game
• Plastic gem vase fillers used as Chaos Gems 
• Paper Palm Trees that sit on either side of the sweets table just like the trees in the game
• Sonic action figures and toys used throughout the party for decoration

My favorite little dude!!!!

Theme

There are not too many online party ideas  for this theme that don't include the mass produced licensed party decor.  It also didn't help that I didn't know much about this game.  So, I had to go with the very small bit of info I had on the game and from looking on You Tube to see how the game is played to work with an overall theme.  In the end, I just decided a full fledged Sonic filled party would suffice.

Decor 

I learned a lot and after all my research, I designed the printables for the party and a few key ideas to focus on for the decor!  Adam's favorite color is blue, and there are a lot of party items in the party shops with this cool blue checkerboard theme.  It also plays off of the brown checkerboard theme that's seen throughout the game.  I incorporated some of that in the design of the printables. 

The game also consists of Sonic running through various worlds, collecting golden rings.  I can't remember why, but I believe it's how points are tallied.  So, I created gold rings using floral rings I got from the craft store and painted them yellow.  I initially wanted them to hang from the ceiling, but instead chose to use them in the centerpieces I created for the main table.  To create the centerpieces, I attached each ring to a bamboo skewer and then slid a striped paper straw over it to conceal the stick and to make the rings look more festive.  I then anchored two rings into  Styrofoam that I placed in wooden crates and topped them with green paper shred to play off the greenery that is featured throughout the video game.

My goal was to try and incorporate a few of the key elements from the game and recreate those themes into the decor.  In the game, as Sonic runs through the various worlds, there usually is a bright blue sky.  I found the perfect backdrop for my sweets table when I came a cross a cloud filled sky roll of bulletin board paper.  It was a major score and saved me tons of work & time, as I initially was going to create clouds from paper and hang them against a sheet of blue paper. I also wanted to add palm trees to the decor and found a few ideas online on how to make them with paper bags and pool noodles!  It was such and easy and creative project.  Between my husband and I - we made two trees within 2 hours.....and he McGuyvered the trees to be able to stand using PVC pipe, C-clamps and jumbo rolls of toilet paper (don't ask). 

Anytime I'm forced convinced by my kids to do a character party, I stick mainly with toys to add to the decor and not store-bought party supplies.  Adam had a small selection of Sonic toys but it wasn't nearly enough for the party.  So, I found a good mix of toys online, that also served as his presents and I used them as decor - they didn't stay on the table long, he snatched them up quicker than I could snap the pictures!  If you're not into using mass produced party supplies or having trouble finding them, using your child's toys are a perfect and usually economical way to give them the party they want and add a personalized touch!

Activities

Thing 2 loves to color, it's on of his other favorite past times.  So, I created small coloring books that the kids could use as an activity and they also served as party favors.  I placed two big boxes of Crayola crayons on the table and let them have at it....it was a no-fuss kind of activity.

Another fun activity the kids enjoyed was a Pin the Ring on Sonic game that I found while I was out getting plates and candy for the party.  It was a lucky find, because there aren't too many Sonic themed party supplies available in stores.  

Since the party only consisted of the kids in our family, we also let the boys (and The Mini Diva) have a water gun and balloon fight and they also had turns at playing Adam's new Sonic Video Games!

Table Setting

I heart kraft paper, just like Thing 1's cupcake party, I covered our dining room table with brown kraft paper, and added the gold ring centerpieces that I made to the table.  I found gem shaped vase filler at the craft store that I used as table scatter to represent the Chaos Gems that Sonic collects in the video game. 

Food

Adam's request for food was easy, he wanted hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken wings.  To make the cuisine really fit the theme, I came up with some names for each dish.  We served Tails' Windy Wings (Buffalo wings), Sonic's Lightening Quick Burgers & hot dogs and Robotnik's Devilish Eggs (deviled eggs).  We also put our popcorn machine to use and gave the kids popcorn served in custom popcorn boxes that I created for the party.

The sweets table was very simple as we had a very small group of family only guests!  I ordered cupcakes and used the most awesome custom fondant toppers by Edible Details to dress them up.  In addition to the cupcakes, I also ordered a small bakery cake and asked for it to be decorated with just blue icing.  I added a small Sonic figurine to the top and a #6 sparkler candle.  You might notice the candle has a striped straw around it.....let me warn you now....do not use a paper straw to cover up the stick of a sparkler candle.....bad idea......very, very, bad idea.  

In addition to the cupcakes and cake, I made chocolate covered Oreo Cookies. You can make these with special molds, but luck was not with me the day I went looking for them at the craft store.  So, in a pinch, you can do what I did and use a muffin pan to make them.  Using a different chocolate mold I ordered online, I added a number '6' to each cookie.  These are really delicious treats, but they are SUPER sweet - major sugar rush.....MAJOR.
 

Favors

For the party favors each child received a mini tote bag filled with goodies.  I included a bag of Funyuns (remember the gold rings?) large swirlpops, noisemakers, Sonic stickers and a glow stick in each bag!  I also added a personalized tag on each bag for the kids.  As mentioned earlier, the kids also got to take home the coloring books that I created.

My favorite little dude is very easy going and in a matter of words very ho-hum about things.  So, I didn't expect much excitement from him about this bash.  However, when the party was over, he was playing quietly with some of his new toys and casually said, 'Momma, thank you for my Sonic birthday party.  It was the best party ever.'  Yup!  Best party ever for the best son ever!

Vendors & Where to Buy:

Styling & Design  - Cupcake Wishes & Birthday Dreams
Fondant Toppers - Edible Details
Sonic Action Figures & Toys - Amazon
Mini Tote Bags
Number Molds

(FYI - The FTC would like me to inform you that I may or may not receive payment/commission for some items linked to Amazon on this post.)