JUNK RUNTAH

Its that time again.... Summer is winding down and its time to pack up those backpacks and head back to school. Im thrilled to share a new FREEBIE PRINTABLE for BACK TO SCHOOL parties, decorating and other fun ideas. And even more excited to share these wonderful photos from a styled photo shoot showcasing the printables set from the talented Cris McGrath of Crissys Crafts. Cris did a spectacular job styling the party and has some fabulous ideas and details to share at the end of this post.

"Back to School is always an exciting time for my children. We have a "Mom and Me Day" to purchase the school supplies, special first day outfit, new shoes, new lunch bag and backpack. 

This year is extra special since my son, Joey, will start Pre-K!! Yep, all my children will be in school!! I want to celebrate Joeys milestone by having a Welcome/Back to School Party. 

As always, Amanda from Amandas Parties To Go designed the cutest FREE Back to School printable ever!!  My kids looked very cute wearing back to school personalized tees from *Golden*. 

For this party, I tried to keep the snacks simple but creative. For the sweet table, we enjoyed some erasers (Stacker Mallows), pencils (twisters), chalk  (marshmallow confetti), ABC chocolate letters, 123 chocolate numbers, bookworm cupcakes with the cutest cupcake toppers ever from Lynlees Petite Cakes, gum ball apples, apple cake pops and adorable apple sugar cookies from Sugar on Top. 

Before they hit the sweet table, the children munched on apple shaped whole wheat ham and cheese sandwiches, bookworm grapes and apple juice.  I set up the goodies on my daughters desk and used my sons vintage school desk to display some of their treats that they took home.

For the backdrop, I used a black bulletin board paper, embellished with a polka dot trimmer and the Back to School banner from the FREE Back to School printable.  As favors, the youngest took home a metal school box from Lunchboxes.com full of goodies. The older children received a lunch sack from Jill Celebrations full of school supplies. 

Thanks to Jill Celebrations chalk place mats, the kids played tic-tac-toe while munching on their snacks. What a fun and creative idea! 

I also used the FREE Back to School printable to embellish their lunch boxes, snack bags, mason jars, goodie bags, and popcorn container.

One of my favorite DIY projects for this party is the crayon cupcake stand using crayons and toilet paper roll! So easy to make and definitely made the cupcakes stand out!

The kids had a ball playing memory game and back to school bingo, too. A fun way to kick of the 2012/2013 School Year! "

_____________________________________________