The 1st Snow -- a party for the rest of us.

You guys know that I’m no Special Events Maven.  One of my besties is; and honestly, I have been missing her spunky-just-because parties.  She’s a genius. 

Me, well, let’s be frank, most days my house isn’t even clean.  Ok, every day except when there’s company.  So when I say we had a 1st Snow Party, please don’t conjure images of photo booth props, perfectly laid buffet tables, or color-coordinated decorations.

No.  With me, it’s more:

{in Olaf’s voice}  “Hey, it snowed.  I love snow.”  … “It’s Friday.  Thank goodness.”  … “We should watch Frozen.”  … “Ah, what the heck, we’ll make it a sing-along.”  … “Ooo, maybe even have themed treats.”

…  …  … 

{2 Pinterest-ed hours later}  “So, all treats paleo are out.  WTFlip is arrowroot anyway?  Guess I’ll raid the cupboards and throw cotton balls on the table.”  

And that’s what I did.   The key here is raid the cupboard.  I didn't use anything we didn't already have on hand.  I wanted a "white" meal, and the kids were flexible enough that beige/yellow counted.  And there were white beans in the chili, so they let that count, too.  

I present to you: THE 1st SNOW – a party for the rest of us. 

  

See, I told you I used cotton balls.

I was making vegetarian chili anyway.  So, it became troll bites (beans look like rocks) 

with a side of Christoff's Corn Bread 

Popcorn for the movie: Sven's Snowflakes

More snackies: Carrots as Olaf's Noses and Han's (a dip) Humus.

See what I did, there?

Blue-green "ice" candy for Elsa's Ice Palace Pieces

Don't judge the source, people.  The Officer and I break bad sometimes, ok?

"He only likes to tinkle in the woods" Yellow Snow Lemonade.

I have a nine year old boy, folks; had to keep it relevant.

Snowmen in Summer

Jazz Hands.

The piece de resistance: Anna's Snow Pie

A vanilla creme meringue -- my first! 

Also, I used a regular, pre-fab pie crust.  

And I sprinkled some white, snow like sprinkles on the top.

Because, snow.

I had to get a shot of this lovely.  

Games:

Defeating Marshmallow

I had some white Styrofoam cups and extra cotton balls, so the kids had 60 seconds to throw as many "snowballs" (cotton) into Marshmallow (the Palace Bouncer) as they can.  Winner gets 1st piece of Elsa's palace.  Make distance age appropriate.  Lots of giggles.  

Make your own Olaf
I had different size Styrofoam balls and some brown pipe cleaners in the craft box.  Add markers and you've got a make your own snowman station.  Good for the time between eating and watching the movie, while Mom was trying to clean the ridiculous mess she made making a pie.  To check out the Firefly and Koala's creations, check the background of the pie picture above.  

Movie
Turn on the flick and sing at the top of your lungs.  Good for the whole crew.

I've decided that we're having a 1st Snow as an annual event.  It will no doubt evolve; but it was fun to celebrate that weather occurrence our family loves most.