Last year we threw an end of school party for Jane and all her classmates to celebrate surviving what could only be described as a wild year – for the parents, the teachers, and the kids! As this school year winds down, we talked about making this a tradition, and inviting classmates over for another after school celebration with some simple, old-school summer fun. I visited my local Christmas Tree Shops to stock up on all my party supplies and wanted to share a few of the fun finds and ways we’re celebrating the kick off of summer.
The idea of this party is to keep things simple and get back to the roots of nostalgic summer fun! Last year we ordered a few pizzas and served lemonade and popsicles, super low effort but the kids loved it! I grabbed a big drink dispenser and reusable cups from Christmas Tree Shops to set up a self-serve lemonade stand for the kids. Jane thinks it’s the coolest thing in the world when she gets to fill up her own cup, and it sparked some lemonade-stand creative play which was an added bonus (plus, way less trash to clean up when you avoid all of the abandoned juice boxes in the yard).
One of my favorite summer party hacks is to use big beach pails to individually packaged kids snacks, bubbles, chalk, etc. These big ones were only $1 at Christmas Tree Shops (and they make great goody bags for kids too!). I filled one large beach pail up with ice and used it to keep popsicles cold, so kids can grab them whenever they’re done with their lunch!
For the party entertainment, I stocked up on all different kinds of bubbles at Christmas Tree Shops, and set up a bubble station. The bubble makers I got there are so fun and festive too! At the end of the party, kids can bring home the bubbles as a party favor, an inexpensive but fun takeaway. I also grabbed some hula hoops and fun lawn games – the oversized connect 4 game is a hit with adults too – for some good ol’ fashioned summer fun!
PS: If you’re looking for even more savings, be sure to visit Christmas Tree Shops.com and sign up for their emails to get a $10 off $50 coupon!
Please note: This post is created in partnership with Christmas Tree Shops. All opinions, images and content are my own, thank you for supporting brands that support this site.
