Our girls’ birthdays are just three days apart and while I’m SO happy that they have their *own* special days we absolutely plan to combine their celebrations when they’re little. This year I felt like they should have their own birthday party themes, but to have them loosely coordinated. For Sophie’s party, ballerinas were my inspiration — Chloe’s birthday theme was bows, so the overlap felt pretty logical.
We also prefer to keep the girls’ celebrations small and sweet while they’re young and plan to have proper “parties” when they’re a bit older. We invited a few family members over to our home this year and it was the perfect intimate gathering to celebrate our little ladies!
GENERAL DECOR
I went pretty minimal with the decor — enough to make the event feel special and so that you could determine the theme, but nothing too crazy. Since it was a micro family event I just added a few festive touches to make the day feel more celebratory.
This year was Sophie’s second year taking dance classes and she absolutely adores it! She has been thriving in her class and has such a love for dance in general. I recently exposed her to both the Nutcracker and Swan Lake ballets (available to stream!) and she is just entranced. Watching those professional productions has definitely kicked her passion for dancing up a notch so I thought that a ballet theme would be the perfect fit for her celebration this year.
This ballerina banner was my inspiration for the party’s decor and color scheme… I absolutely love it and saved it just in case our girls want another ballet themed birthday in the future.
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Sophie has grown out of her high chair, but the best part about the Stokke Tripp Trapp chair is that it can grow with your child so we’ve converted it to a “booster” style chair. So while we don’t have a decorative garland for her tray like we have in the past, I tied two pink bows on the back of her chair to make it feel a little extra special for her celebration.
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Our girl is a BIG fan of balloons, so these were an absolute decor must. Ever since Party City closed, I haven’t known where to go to both buy balloons and also have them inflated.
Thankfully, our local Michael’s is located in the same plaza where the Party City used to be and they offer both balloons and inflation service! If you can’t find what you’re looking for from their selection you can still pay to have balloons inflated that were purchased elsewhere.
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TABLE DECOR
I have been eyeing this ceramic cake stand with ribbon slots for a long time and finally pulled the trigger! It’s so perfect for any gathering because you can literally thread any color / style / fabric ribbon through it so it works for any theme / aesthetic! Highly recommend.
I found these cute ballerina figurines on Amazon and thought they’d be perfect on-theme elements to add to the table that could be repurposed for play / sensory bins afterward. The set that I ordered comes with an add-on ruffle petal type of tutu skirt, but the figurines are really cute on their own so you don’t NEED to attach them if you prefer a sleeker look.
I thought these scalloped plates were so cute and we would be able to use any extras for other birthday theme possibilities in the future (flowers, fairies, under the sea, etc.). The best part? They’re compostable!
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FOOD / TREATS
CAKE
The main event! Ever since discovering ice cream last year it’s become Sophie’s absolute favorite dessert, so it was a no-brainer to order another ice cream cake for her this year! She’s not very adventurous with flavors yet so we kept it simple with yellow cake and vanilla ice cream (with a rainbow sprinkle mix-in), but since it’s from Coldstone, you know that even a simple combination is going to be delicious!
I added some extra sprinkles to the outside of the cake to keep things festive and in the general color palette (plus, Sophie absolutely LOVES sprinkles!). A simple “upgrade” for the cake, but I think it made a big difference.
These longer candles are our favorites, especially for birthdays!
I’ve repurposed these Kate Aspen calligraphy table numbers that I originally bought for our wedding (and ended up not needing) as cake decor every year… and now Chloe gets to use them too! Sadly, they’re no longer available, but I’ll link some similar options in the widget below.
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ADDITIONAL FOOD / RECIPES
Since we are keeping our celebration small I didn’t go to the effort of creating a full menu, but that didn’t stop me from finding some cute ideas to share in case you were looking for some additional inspiration!
Ballerina Toothpicks put into anything
Parmesan & Paprika Star Canapés
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ACTIVITIES
What’s more perfect for a ballet birthday than a dance party?? I’ve seen some really cute setups where tutus are provided which could double as party favors for guests!
Activity & Craft Ideas:
Pull-String Piñata? // Cookie Painting? // Dress Up?
Party Favor Bag Ideas:
Ballerina Scrunchies // Build-a-Wand Craft // Temporary Tattoos // Stickers // Bubbles // Ballerina Play Dough Kits // Mini Coloring Books + Crayons
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TRADITIONS & Gifts
This is a new tradition that we’re starting this year and I’m so excited about it. I got this shimmery streamer strip to hang in Sophie’s bedroom doorway so that she has a fun surprise when she wakes up in the morning on her birthday!
I’m also starting to do this little interview every year to document her thoughts and favorite things.
Sophie already has PLENTY of toys at her disposal, and so many of them are for her age group so we only ordered a few items for her (which is mindset we abide by with both of our girls). This year she received: (1) a three-wheeled scooter, (2) an art easel (with accessories), and (3) a digital camera for kids.
I also have to share these wrapping paper sheets, which were actually easier to use than a roll! I was pretty impressed by the quality as well.
We couldn’t be more proud of our tiny dancer. Happy fourth birthday to our sweet Sophie girl!
Sending hugs —
xx, Natalie
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