Did 2020 go by faster than normal for anyone else? I know I am about five months late, but I am FINALLY getting around to putting up the details from Greta’s third birthday party! Yes, as a mom of two I am a little behind in putting stuff out and have not been the most consistent with blog posts lately, but on the bright side, I have built up a lot of content that HOPEFULLY I will consistently share with you in 2021.

Last year, was the first year that Greta picked her own theme for her birthday party. Like most kids, she had a little phase of being obsessed with The Lion King, and from about two and a half years old, she would say that she wanted a, “Hakuna Matata Birthday,” when she turns three. While I do love having a birthday as an excuse to get crafty (see Greta’s FIRST and SECOND birthdays here), I did not mind one bit this year making a few clicks on Amazon and being good to go! Here is how everything turned out:

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Like Greta’s past two birthdays, we kept it pretty small, inviting family only to her party. Despite having family only, there was still a good sized crowd and lots of birthday excitement. My sister always makes the trek up from Georgia for Greta’s birthday, and Greta always has the best time playing with her three cousins.

PARTY DECOR

To decorate for the party, I started by finding some Lion King party supplies from Amazon. And since I already had some tropical-ish decor, I thought I’d add some jungle vibes with monstera leaf accents, wooden serving dishes, and some tropical-looking garland. IMO, the Lion King table cloths and branded stuff made everything look a little busy, but that is what Greta wanted, so that is what she got! I was however, a fan of this Lion King Backdrop, which she loved! She loved her balloon name as well.

Our kitchen is the main area where everyone tends to gather, so that is where I set up the backdrop, and all the treats and favors. I do have a little problem with setting up everything in our kitchen, however. It is wide open to our den, which is normally a wreck because it is the main area where the kids play in our home. I have no exceptions for the party either, especially when we have FIVE kids in the home (although everyone did do a quick pick up before guests arrived).

To try and divide the kitchen and den, I used a plastic tablecloth and some other items that I found at The Dollar Tree. Isn’t the Dollar Tree the best place to go for party supplies!?  It is definitely a go to for me for basic party supplies (and cards too).

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ON THE MENU

I tried my best to make the menu themed to go along with the party as well. The first thing I knew I had to make were pudding “grub cups,” which was a nice pre-cake treat for everyone to enjoy! I tried to make homemade pudding for the first time, but it turned out to be more difficult than I thought and came out a bit runny.  I had some back up boxed pudding to make just in case! I ended up just mixing it all together for a half and half mixture of box and homemade pudding. Topped them off with homemade whipped cream, Oreo crumbs, and gummy worms.

I also used the occasion to try a new croissant recipe that peaked my interest from one of my 2020 Food and Wine magazines. It was noted in the how-to that the croissants could be made in advance and frozen, so that is what I did. We all know that bread items can take a while to make with all the waiting in between steps!

I am glad that I decided to make them because they were really delicious, and I got a lot of compliments on them. I decided to fill them with BACON JAM and brie instead of your usual chicken salad, or something of that sort, and I highly recommend! They were very savory and yummy.

There were some other cute themed food items that I saw on Pinterest. For example, I found  a lion’s mane made with yellow and orange peppers and a face in the dip… After all the effort I put into the Bacon Jam and Brie Croissants, making the cake, and all the rest of the prep that goes into parties, however, I just threw the rest of the food together and tried to come up with clever themed names instead of having things look on theme.

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THE FULL MENU

• Achin’ for Bacon Jam & Brie Croissants
• Circle of Life Turkey & Pimento Cheese Pinwheels
• Cub Sandwiches (Ham & Cheese Rolls)
• “The Mane Event” Hummus & Peppers
• Scar’s Spicy Spicy Garlic Dip with chips
• I Just Can’t Wait to be Quiche (Mini Quiches from Costco)
• Grub Cups
• Caramel Popcorn (Trader Joe’s)
• Vanilla Cake
• Iced Tea
• Rose

All the names for the food items came to me pretty easily, except for the quiche. I had to enlist help from my brother in law, and he came up with, “I just can’t wait to be quiche.” When he sung it out loud, it made me LOL. I was chuckling about it all weekend.

THE CAKE

If you want to DIY your cake for a birthday, it is definitely an item you can make ahead and freeze. If you wrap it in cling wrap and tinfoil, you can make the cake up to a month in advance, and take it out when you’re ready to decorate.

I opted for a naked cake lightly frosted in buttercream, and accented with some GREEN FONDANT monstera leaves. You can check out all the details on how I made the cake HERE.

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EXTRA ACCENTS

There’s nothing like a birthday for a good excuse to buy some flowers! When I took a trip into Memphis to get food for the party I picked up a few bouquets from Trader Joe’s and Costco to use for arrangements.

Don’t you just love the flower selection that Trader Joe’s has!? I kind of wish I lived in closer proximity to one so I can enjoy all their seasonal varieties more frequently. Not to mention, they always have seeded eucalyptus, which is my favorite filler to use in flower arrangements. It smells so fresh!

The fall flowers that were available were perfect for the occasion with because there was a good blend of yellows, oranges, and reds, the colors of most of the animals in The Lion King. What do you think?

I hope you enjoyed this post! As always, feel free to comment if you have any questions. Also, if you have had a Lion King themed party, let me know what you did! Would love to hear about it.

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