DIY a Captain America Party in 5 Days

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Party planning doesn’t have to be exhausting, but the truth is that the Pinterest obsession has upped the party game. I have talked to many moms who feel like every gathering that they throw has to be top-notch and off the pages of their friends’ Pinterest boards. I know moms who put so much work into a party that they don’t get to enjoy the moments themselves. I’ve actually been guilty of this, too. Typically, I immerse myself in whatever party that I’m planning and begin at least 4 months before the big day, DIY’ing almost every little aspect. I’ve always been interested to see what I could do with a limited time frame. So with the release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I decided to put myself to the test and DIY a Captain America Party in 5 Days. Yep, even with all four kids in tow. To guarantee my time frame, I went ahead and invited a crew of kids, promising them a Captain America pinata stuffed with M&M’S^® candy.

The secret to DIY’ing a party in 5 days is this: Don’t DIY the whole party.

I know, I know. That doesn’t sound like much of a secret, but it boils down to a simple illusion. DIY enough of the party that guests don’t notice the portion that you didn’t DIY.  Combine pre-made ingredients and supplies with fresh ingredients and custom supplies to make your party unique. Here are my Captain America party ideas to get you started.

The Food

Make the star of the party a simple SuperHERO sandwich! It’s all in the presentation. Giving regular foods cute names shows an extra level of thought. These sandwiches are easy and can be made ahead of time.

Add them to the table with the title card. No ham and cheese sandwich here– just a SuperHERO Sandwich worthy of Captain America himself!

These 2 Ingredient MARVELous M&M’s Cookies are a treat for all ages, and they look like you’ve been backing up a storm all day!

Of course, we have to have something healthy for the kids, too! These Avenger Apples are a little more complicated to make than the recipes above, and they should only be made the day of– up to a few hours– the party.

Ingredients:

• Red Apples
• Yogurt
• Granola
• Mini M&M’s
• Honey
• Lemon Juice

Mix granola and yogurt– enough to fill however many apples that you are making.

Wash the apple and cut about 1/2 off the top. Scoop out the inside of the apple, leaving a well for the yogurt. Use a star cookie cutter to make a star shape in a portion of the top that you’ve removed. Brush lemon juice on all the apple portions to keep them from turning brown.

Fill the apple with the yogurt mixture.

Top it with the star apple piece.

Brush honey on the star edges. Attach Mini M&M’s to the apple on top of the honey.

Want more care-free and last minute party food ideas?

Let’s break the M&M’s out one more time for these Winter Soldier Sundaes! Don’t tell me this isn’t simple: Vanilla Ice Cream, Strawberry Syrup, and Blue M&M’s.

This ice cream treat is an easy and fun way to incorporate the Winter Soldier movie title!

Use a star and flag mold to create Stars and Stripes Gelatin Bites.

Place the blue drink of your choice into a fun glass or cup, and it’s instantly Super Soldier Serum!

The Fun

Of course, the food is only half of the party. The other part is the crazy amount of fun that party guests can have getting into the superhero spirit of things. It only took about two hours for my daughter and I to whip up a Captain America themed pinata and photo booth.

To make an easy Captain America shield pinata, start with cardboard circles, tape, hot glue gun, and red/white/blue streamers. Use tape to secure a narrow cardboard strip to the cardboard circles, creating the pinata structure. Be sure to leave a hole at the top for the candy! Use a hot glue gun to glue the streamers to the cardboard front, back, and sides in a Captain America shield pattern.

Stuff the pinata with your choice of M&M’s!

And then stuff your pockets after the pinata is busted!

For the photo booth, I cut out a cardboard frame and glued blue card stock, red streamers, and white stars to the outside. We borrowed a few Captain America themed dress up items from a friend and had fun at our photo booth! Even if you don’t have access to similar dress-up items, you can create masks of your own to use for the photos. Our photo booth was next to the Winter Soldier Sundae station, so it was easy to snap a photo and then grab a treat!

Many moms like to hand out party favors at children’s parties, but making them can be time consuming and buying them can be expensive. Instead, I made Americana treat bags for the kids to use at the pinata (even though, as pictured above, one little fellow was trying to sneak them past his mom by stuffing his pockets instead!). This way, the M&M’s from the pinata are the party favors. The best part? These bags require no sewing skills– they are completely no sew!

As an additional craft, I also cut foam circles for the kids to glue together their own Captain America shield.

The treat bags were large enough to hold the M&M’s and the shields.

All of the above food and fun ideas were made and put together in 5 days. The kids had a blast, the adults couldn’t get enough of the photo booth, and we ate a lot of M&M’s. To keep costs low, I purchased any party supplies that I didn’t already own and the M&M’s varieties at my local Walmart. There was a Captain America: The Winter Soldier display right inside the door. Grab a coupon for $5.00 off two M&M’s candy varieties and the Captain America: The Winter Soldier movie before you go.

Now, for the ultimate question- which M&M’s variety is Captain America’s favorite? I don’t know the answer to that, but you can find out which Marvel Super Hero that YOU are by visiting the fun Heros Eat M&Ms website.

Want a little spending power for a party (or something else) of your own? Use the below Rafflecopter form to enter to win 1 of 10 $100 Walmart Gift Cards!