2.20.2011

Captain Preston's 3rd Birthday

Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Kate and I am your chief flight attendant. On behalf of Captain Preston and the entire crew, welcome aboard Flight 3333 with nonstop service to Seattle, Wa.

Our flight time will be 3 hours and 3 minutes. We will be flying at an altitude of 3,333 feet/meters at a ground speed of 333 miles per hour/kilometers per hour. (Is everyone picking up the "3" theme...cause I'm laying it down pretty thick!)

At this time, make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their full upright position, your seat belt is correctly fastened, and that as of this moment, all electronic equipment must be turned off. Please sit back, and enjoy the ride.”

Click on any image to enlarge.

The invitation:
Basic template and inspiration courtesy of Anders Ruff. Anders Ruff edited the ticket as I requested, then once I had the file in-hand I personalized names, addresses, and origin airline info. I also created personalized business envelopes for each guest.















The runway:
We clearly transformed the walkway up to our house to mimic a runway. The door sign said TERMINAL P3, and the sign on the left (above the plastic shoe bin) was the security sign asking everyone to remove their shoes.



















Airline Check-In: 
Each guest had their own badge. Preston, obviously, was the "Captain". All the adults were "Crew". And the children were "Co-Pilots".




Hanging Decor:
Inflatable airplanes and fluffy clouds were hung throughout the house.




















Food Court:
The peninsula in our kitchen was transformed into "runway 3" with an airplane hanging overhead preparing to land. The dining table was also adorned with a runway and airplane. The airport food- small sandwiches, chips, fruit bowls, and nuts- were all appropriately sized and priced. Drinks were served in small clear cups with ice. And the cupcakes (personalized with "Preston 3") ready to take off!
 
































Arrivals/Departures:
I also altered a .jpg found on Google of an Arrivals/Derpature board to include the "Addy Airlines" name and date. This way displayed on our flat screen tv, that hangs on the wall in our living room, during the party.



















Other various signage included: Lil' Pilot's Playspace (in the playroom), Lavatory, Beer Barrel and No Smoking. And of course, on the way out at "Baggage Claim", each guest received their own personalized puke bag. Contents included various airplane-themed goodies, and personalized luggage tags I created.

Thank you letters were sent out on Addy Airlines letterhead.
Must.Keep.True.To.Theme.

By now you are probably thinking I'm one of those crazy mom's who goes overboard with decor. And, maybe I am. But I have to tell you..there isn't much airline-themed party stuff out there. Which doesn't make sense considering we live in the state of Washington, i.e. a Boeing mecca. So I HAD to make the decor myself- with the help of my hubby and mother. Which really sucks for a creative-type like myself. ;)

31 comments:

Lauren said...

Holy moly! It's fantastic! I am in awe of your creativity and already thinking of ideas for my little one's birthday in May. Thanks for all the photos

MBKimmy said...

OhMeGosh I am so jealous ... you have such creativity! I love it!
AND if you had any spare time you could so sell this package!!!

Taylor said...

Wow that's awesome! Preston is so cute in his pilot suit.

seadragon said...

Oh wow, that is seriously impressive. And so cute.

Anonymous said...

Awesome! Very creative!!

chetzmosa said...

Wowwwwww those decors are awesome! I love the idea and admire (to the nth power) your creativity! My baby's turning 1 in 4 months and we're doing a mickey mouse theme... i wish i had your creativity skills!

Mama Bear said...

This is a fantastic idea - well done, very creative! I plan do have cool themes like this when my baby is born! You can't go too overboard when it comes to creativity!

Andi Watson said...

No way, that's so cool! I admire your dedication! I hope I'm as creative when our wee "bump" starts getting into parties!
Speaking of which, here are some Bump Pics - http://tinyurl.com/694oyxw

Vanilla Bloom said...

I am shocked at how brilliant this looks!!! You clearly put a lot of time and effort in to this and it payed off, you must have had a great time! You'd make a mint if you did this professionally!!! And I love the pilots outfit too, very cute :)

Fit Yummy Mummy,Fit Yummy Mummy Reviem said...

Really good ideas for celebrating memorable birthday of my baby ahead. These all thing will make the whole event beautiful and lovely.

Anne said...

It feels great to be a kid again. Your birthday party theme is totally awesome. I am sure Preston really enjoyed his party and one of his unforgettable birthday celebrations. pregnancy symptoms

26.pregnant said...

What a great idea! I love all the little details - this is something I'm really looking forward to doing once I have kids! What great creativity you have!

Rasan said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
baby loving care said...

whoa. that is such a great idea of celebration. when I have a kid later, I probably will make it as a astronaut theme or if its a girl, I will make a runway. by the way, if you want to make any virtual album for your blog, check out http://www.babydiaporama.com/
ps: I love the runway :D

Yasser Elnahas said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Yasser Elnahas said...

You are really creative and I really love the photos.My Wife had her second baby by a cesarian section and he looks exactly like your kid

Lily said...

You are amazing! I love your creativity! Before being the "Padalily Mom", I was a flight attendant and love telling my girls stories of my time in the sky. A party like this would be perfect! Thank you for sharing!

Anonymous said...

That is truly, truly amazing. You did a fantastic job :-)

Kim said...

This party looks amazing! Amazing idea!! Currently 32+4 weeks with my first and expecting a little girl! Please follow me at http://waitingforbabypj.blogspot.com
Thanks

ranimill Ford said...

oh gosh.it's lovely collection.i would like to have like that for my son too.

4d ultrasounds said...

soo Cute Baby . I Like it.

tubal reversal surgery said...

Happy Birthday Cute Baby .:)

K Sigue said...

Wow - I am so inspired. I am not a mum yet but as you can see from my blog, http://ksigue.wordpress.com/, I am moving in that direction. But I am a web designer who works from home and wondering if i will be able to keep up the creativity (and work) with a baby. You seem to have done both most admirably - thanks!!
And I love him as a pilot!!!

reversal of tubal ligation said...

You should definitely write more about this! Please!

Team Couture said...

I love this idea, I'm currently pregnant with my baby shower just days away.. I wanted to do my baby shower with a theme like this considering that my family had attached the name "pilot" to my unborn son. .
But you def did a fab job!!

http://babybumpcouture.blogspot.com/

Brittani said...

that is the cutest birthday party idea ever!!
<3brittani @ www.laborlooks.blogspot.com

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

The entrance way looks amazing. Great ideas!

Predicting Baby Gender

j.lahrue said...

OMG!! this is fantastic! I might steal this idea from you!!!! i love al the diy stuff you did! it loks amazing!!!

Tabitha said...

Great job! I'm planning on doing the same theme for my son's 2nd birthday. I really like the runway idea! What did you use to make the run way?

Wenni Donna said...

Thanks for sharing the party invite. Got one for my sister's friend birthday this same weekend. I think I have already visited this party venue on a casual office get together. It's really near to the mid of city centre. Also their services are high rated and timely. Bakers and all other catering supplies are available easily in all venues.