When  I started planning for the twins' birthday party, I knew I wanted to do something special. After all, it was TWO first birthdays rolled into one. Also, we have been through so very much this year. Keep in mind that my sweet girls started out as preemies--8 whole weeks early! I feel that they went through quite a transformation--like tiny caterpillars into beautiful butterflies. So the theme is appropriate! I didn't want to spend a whole lot of money, but instead make something simple and fun.

I started out with the idea to take the string wrapped balloon balls and string them together to make a caterpillar. I have to say that this is more difficult than it sounds. I won't go into great detail, since the tutorials can be found in many places, including here and here. I used simple sewing thread to tie the balls together and pipe cleaners for eyes and antenna. Eventually, I got something that looked okay so I went with it, but if you are planning to do this project, I recommend leaving plenty of time to do a "do-over" if necessary.

I also wanted to create something special for the girls to wear. I ended up making these simple hats.

First, make the caterpillar bodies.

You can take pompoms that you find in the kids' section of your local craft store, or you can make your own. I took several and threaded them together. Since I have little ones who might try to eat the pompoms, I used upholstery thread for some added strength.

Then take a pipe cleaner , twist it around the thread behind the "head" pompom, and then wrap each head as you like to make the antenna. Make sure there is a little excess to attach the pipe cleaner to the hat.



Then you need to take a pre-made party hat. These hats should be cheap ones from the dollar store--they are flat pieces of cardboard that are rolled into a hat. There should be a gap at the top that you can stick something into.


Take the excess pipe cleaner and jam it into the gap.

Spread it out inside the hat so that the caterpillar stays in place. There you go, a caterpillar hat!! I think the girls liked them!

In addition to some standard decorations--balloons and streamers--I also found some favors for the kids that were at the party. If you are planning a caterpillar party, try to do it after Easter, so you can take full advantage of some clearance items! I lucked out and found these really cute butterfly glasses for each child to take home--8 for $1.20!

Keep in mind, if you are using a theme from a book, you should check out the author's website for ideas. Eric Carle has some great coloring pages right here. I printed out the Hungry Caterpillar sheets and the older children colored to their hearts' content.

All in all, I feel like the twins had a great birthday. I'll share the final piece of the party, a caterpillar cake, in another post.