Bella’s 4th Birthday
I like to celebrate birthdays in a BIG way. I look forward to generating themes, scouring Pinterest, sourcing decorations, and of course seeing all of our friends and family. The best part really is experiencing your little ones enjoying themselves and feel oh so special on their big day. As you might imagine, I was very bummed that we were not going to be able to have a celebration for Bella’s fourth birthday this year, due to COVID-19.
When restrictions began in March, I was hopeful that by May (her birthday month), restrictions would be lifted and we would still be able to have a party. But as the date grew closer, my optimism dwindled and I realized I would need to alter my planning and expectations. We had planned on having a ‘Bella Rina’ themed birthday, complete with a dance class and tutus. That was put on hold, but will likely be the theme of her next birthday!
I had seen some innovative quarantine birthday ideas shared on IG, so I asked my followers for suggestions on how to celebrate children’s bdays while on lockdown. Some of the ideas included setting up a scavenger hunt for friends, asking friends to send video birthday wishes, a birthday car parade, holding a Zoom birthday party, and taking photos with a cardboard cut out of the birthday kiddo. We opted to try a couple of these suggestions, as well as some of my own ideas!
The night before the party, I went through my bins of party supplies and found that my hoarding of party decor had finally come in handy. I didn’t really need to purchase anything. There was no real theme, but a colourful rainbow pattern emerged which was just what we needed to keep the mood happy and bright. The iridescent tablecloth was from Walmart, party hats were from Homesense, and the rainbow balloon was a Target find. Cute wrapping paper was also key because half the fun of getting presents is the joy of ripping off the paper! The paper was also found at Walmart.
My Bella Boo appreciates schedules and routines, and enjoys following them (her brother, on the other hand, is a different story). So I knew creating a cute little layout of our plans would make her day, while also hopefully preventing her from asking me 1000x what we were doing next. I finished decorating the night before and posted the schedule on the wall so that when Bella woke up the next morning, she would be greeted with the birthday decorations.
When she came down the stairs she was definitely excited, but she often clams up and gets quiet when she is the center of attention. She told me later that she had peeked downstairs when she first woke up and the rest of the family was still sleeping…which explained the subdued reaction. Little stinker!
The other surprise decoration was the beautiful and colourful balloon garland designed by Crystal of Method Events. She is my go-to girl when it comes to all things events. You may remember she helped me pull off ‘CoaBella;’ Bella’s Coachella themed third birthday party. She put together a gorgeous peach, coral, and cream balloon garland and set it up on our front porch early in the morning, so that Bella would be extra surprised when she woke up in the morning. She pulled it off seamlessly and Bella was overjoyed to find all these pretty balloons just for her! The garland was the perfect way to tell all of our friends and neighbours driving by that it was a special day in our household!
Birthday cake pancakes are a birthday tradition in our household (find the recipe here), so that was top of the schedule. A yummy treat for the whole family (except Luca, because of his allergies, but he had some vegan pancakes and wasn’t complaining ;).
Bella is all about the presents. Not only on her birthday, but every day. I don’t know where she gets it from?? ;) I know gifts are one of the highlights of her day, so I decided to spread out the opening of her three presents throughout the day, to keep her excitement going. She really loves her Usborne Dolly Sticker Dressing sticker books, so two of those were her first present. She was thrilled and got to stickin right away!
Next up on the birthday schedule was a video call with Queen Elsa, courtesy of A Dream Come True Princess Parties. Bella was ecstatic when her iPad starting ringing and she answered to find Elsa staring back at her. We had received a a little package in the mail prior to the call. Elsa instructed Bella to open up her envelope (which she didn’t know she had received). When I pulled it out, her jaw almost hit the floor. The surprises just don’t stop around here. :P Inside there was an official princess certificate, a sparkling tiara, colouring pages, stickers, and confetti. Bella and Elsa sang songs from the Frozen soundtrack, danced, and read a storybook. At the end, Elsa asked Bella if she was ready to become an official princess, but Bella declined. She told me later she wasn’t ready to commit to leaving her old life behind. Too cute. Highly recommend A Dream Come True Princess Parties! We will definitely be having a princess join us for Bella’s in-person birthday party!
It was a warm but windy spring day, so we headed outside for a birthday parade! A few of Bella’s best friends drove by our house at the same time. They had balloons, birthday signs, and presents. They honked and hollered birthday birthday wishes out of their windows. Bella was over the moon to get to see some of her friends, whom she had not laid eyes on in months! It was a special moment to witness and truth be told, I teared up at this point. Partly from happiness, to see Bella full of joy, but also from sadness that this is how we have to celebrate. Despite that, I so appreciate that our friends made a point to stop by for our little lady.
We stayed outside and enjoyed the sunshine, until the next act showed up. A socially distant clown arrived to perform for us. He had us all laughing with his silly dancing and jokes. When Bella first heard we were expecting a clown she was terrified but once she saw him, all her fears diminished.
It was back inside for the next presents. Bella loves small toys and imaginative play, so Lil Woodzeez are her jam. Although she was asking for a Barbie Dream House (she already has a Barbie house), she was stoked on her Honeysuckle Hillside Cottage, Food Truck, and animal families. She can spend hours playing with these toys! There are a lot of little pieces but they bring her joy so I’m ok with it :)
I let Bella choose the menu for her birthday dinner, and she opted for her favourite - spaghetti and meat sauce. I also made garlic toast and caesar salad. The birthday was starting to wind down at this point, which means I can finally start to relax. I feel so much stress trying to make sure everything runs smoothly for events. I always thought it was because I typically throw big ones, but turns out it even happens with little, at-home parties :I I can’t help it!! It’s who I am.
The next big spectacular was the birthday cake, which my mother-in-law makes every year. Bella requested a princess birthday cake and she nailed it! It fit perfectly with the rainbow colour theme and it tasted just as yummy as it looked! Bella couldn’t wait to get the mini princess dolls off the cake and she has been playing with them ever since! A bonus of the delicious cake was that it was vegan, meaning Luca could enjoy it with us too! Even better.
The final surprise of Bella’s big fourth birthday was getting her big girl bike as a gift! Previously she only had a tricycle and a balance bike, but longed for a fancy bike with training wheels and asked us for one since last summer. We thought it was finally the perfect time to give her the bike she had been asking for. There were definitely some spills and tears the first day she had her new bike but she kept going and I am so proud of her!
Although the day was not what I would ever hope for, it turned out much better than I anticipated. The silver lining of it all was that we got to celebrate more intimately than we normally do, and we found ways to be creative and have fun together. I was worried that Bella would feel let down or disappointed to not have a party, but she really never mentioned it and had an amazing day, start to finish! I hope that you are inspired to try some of these ideas, if you are planning an upcoming birthday for your little ones on lockdown!
Xo Kk
