Creative Children's Birthday Parties

I am delighted to announce my new collaboration with Raandesk Gallery.
Founder, Jessica Porter and I have partnered to bring you art themed birthday parties for children of all ages.

What does this entail?

-Exclusive use of Raandesk Art Gallery conveniently located in Chelsea for two hours of festivities.
-Paper or Online Invites and RSVP management
-Balloons, table decor and personalized Happy Birthday sign with your child's name
-One age appropriate art activity from the list below:

* Full body self-portraits: kids trace themselves onto large rolls of paper (double sided) and draw in their portrait, stuff it, staple it and voila!
* Skateboard painting and decorating: collection of stickers, paints and stencils to put on cutout skate boards made of foam core
* Create your own cartoon character: we bring examples of cartoon characters and the kids take different parts of each one to make their own personal character and name them
* Make puppets and put on a play
* Custom art activity based on your child’s interests and abilities.


+Kids lunch of sandwiches, seasonal pasta or potato salad, chips and beverage (provided by Whole Foods or comparable establishment)

+Personalized birthday cake (or cupcakes) and ice cream
+Paper plates, napkins, cups and serving utensils
+Goodie Bags for each guest
+Music
+Two birthday enthusiasts
+Special gift for the Birthday Child
+Party set up and clean up
+Peace of mind that everything will be taken care of on your child’s special day!

Please contact me for availability and with questions.
tammy@tammygolson.com 917.860.3312

Cooking with Children

Culinary curve balls can be challenging and I would never wish for situations that would add stress to a client's event, but I sometimes...secretly enjoy the challenges associated with inevitable and unanticipated circumstances. These situations force me to find creative solutions and tests my skills under pressure.

A few weeks ago, on a Friday night, at about six o'clock, I received a request by e-mail asking if I could lead a cooking class for children, the next day. After a brief e-mail exchange with the client, I accepted the assignment. I looked forward to cooking and welcomed the opportunity to spend time with kids. Because the class was hosted at a gym, my meal had to be healthy, kid friendly and prepared and served in an hour. I shopped for the ingredients and printed the menus. The next morning, at 9 o'clock, I answered an e-mail sent from the women who enlisted my services. In my response, I asked if she had standard kitchen equipment and utensils or should I plan to bring my own? Her response was that there wasn't a stove or an oven, just a sink and microwave. She added that most people bring hot plates or create recipes that can be prepared in a microwave or offer dished that can be served at room temperature. Clearly I will inventory equipment in advance, next time. Meanwhile, I had two hours to alter the menu for to fit the situation. I was not comfortable cooking my original menu of quiche and crepes in a microwave.

Happy to have time on the subway ride to come up with a contingency plan, I kept referring to it as my quickfire challenge, in the spirit of Top Chef. Stumped, I rolled my suitcase of ingredients and extra bag of groceries to the destination (the Midtown gym offers creative activities for children while their moms' exercise.) I stopped in the closest deli and walked around for a good seven minutes waiting for inspiration to strike... and finally it did. I bought whole wheat wraps, Nila Wafers, thin gingersnap cookies, cream cheese and salsa. Instead of quiche, I made quiche wraps, which were basically scrambled eggs with cheese wrapped in a tortilla with salsa. As a substitute for crepes, we had miniature fruit pizzas. Cookie crusts, were covered with sweetened cream cheese, topped with an assortment of fresh berries. My revised menu turned out to be more kid friendly, offered a better hands on experience and was very well received by my young culinary stars. I didn't realize the word pizza ignites such an enthusiastic response from children. When the quietest girl led the pack in making a smiley face of fruit on her hand held dessert, I knew I had succeeded in teaching them to cook something they'd want to try again at home.




Photo- by my iPhone

Best Kid's Party of 2009

As I look back on 2009 with enormous pride and joy, I am grateful for the abundance of professional opportunities I have had in the last twelve months. I also realize while I have offered bits and pieces of some of my most memorable events, I have not thoroughly shared the beautiful images and details of them. As we begin to bid farewell to the year, please join me as I showcase some of the best events I have had the privilege to plan and coordinate in 2009.

Andrew’s Third Birthday Train Party

There was never a question of what the theme of this party would be, as this three year old boy is deeply committed to his train tracks, engines and play regime. While Thomas the Tank Engine is his favorite, his mom wanted the party to be personal, creative and thoughtful.


The information on the invitation was thorough, yet presented in a creative verse. This set the tone for the party and gave guests an idea of what to expect.


The wooden train glued to the loot bag was purchased pre-cut at a craft store (they have many other non train options) and gives the bag a clean and natural look. Painting them at the party was an activity on my rain plan alternative in the case of inclement weather. Each bag had a pin stripped conductor hat, a red bandanna, a wooden train whistle (sorry parents!) an individual box of train shaped cookies and candy.


The play list of train themed songs we created for the party was burned to blank CDs for guests to take home. This is an inexpensive favor or filler for any type of party. The CD cover was customized to coordinate with the invites, loot bags and over all concept of the party.


This activity book was made special for Andrew. It featured trains and his birthday. It was filled with pages to color, mazes, puzzles and photos.


I used Martha Stewart's train punch to make the cardboard trains resting on each miniature cupcake. The cupcakes sat on wooden train tracks surrounding the cookie bouquet. They took main stage so no traditional cake was needed. The birthday candles rested in a deep glass of m&m's. Train lollipops and railroad gum adorned the table. When entertaining in a client's home, I try to use their service pieces when it's appropriate. It seems fitting, but in this case the client's beautiful crystal vases would have been a classic contradiction to this casual kid's birthday party. Instead I found Pellegrino bottles in their recycling. The colors coordinated perfectly!


These are Brigadeiros, traditional Brazilian candies. The young guest of honor is half Brazilian so in honoring his culture these were served with dessert. Made with sweetened condensed milk, they are beyond delicious!

The activities were a train pinata, Put the Conductor in the Train Game and swimming.

Good luck planning your next birthday party!


************************************************************************

Thanks to Andrew and his family for allowing me to help them celebrate this special day. Thank you to fabulous Michigan photographer, Jen Kroll for capturing the details of this birthday party.


What are the fondest birthday memories from your childhood?

Planning a Birthday Party

While I have great clients, I am guilty of playing favorites! Luckily my three year old godson in Michigan is one of them. Planning his birthday this year was so much fun. The morning of his party was like Christmas morning. He took my hand and guided me through each room in the house that had fun things for his birthday. Everything he showed me was followed by a: "for my birthday!"

Jen Kroll, the extraordinary wedding photographer came by early to capture the details of the day, before heading out-of-town to shoot a wedding. I am so grateful to her. I look forward to unveiling her photos soon.

Planning a Birthday Party:

-Start thinking and planning early.
-Consider your child's interests. Find inspiration in their playroom, on their bookshelf or from their imagination. Take a common idea and find a way to personalize it.
-Do less well vs. more sloppy. It's okay to aim for the sky with your intentions, but if everything does not get done, don't panic. You have not published the menu or the itinerary and no one will be the wiser if you eliminate a game or forgo the potato salad.
-Delegate and enlist help when necessary. Even if the help is from a local bakery, it's okay!
-Childrens' parties are an excellent opportunity to explore and experiment with DIY projects, especially when it comes to invitations, goody bags and decorations. (If the results are unsuccessful, you don't have to use them or you can tell guests your child helped you.) No one will criticize a parent for trying, on the contrary.
- Keep it simple, the first few years are for you and they won't remember the details, but be bold and have fun with bright colors, balloons and silly things that aren't always appropriate for other events.
-Remember this is a celebration and it should be fun, schedule time to relax and enjoy yourself.

Kid's Activity Book

I recently sent a bride her Kid's Activity Book, a great tool to occupy young children at the reception. I love to tailor the book to the couple using their colors and any special ideas they are incorporating into their wedding as a guide. In this case, I exchanged the wedding cake for pie. The bride and her family loved the book, but she asked if I could change the photo of the officiant from a man to a woman. I did not think I would find a cartoon this specific, but, I did!