Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday Party

Well it happened. My hungry little caterpillar turned one and to help celebrate her big day we celebrated with a Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday party. It was a great day celebrating our little caterpillar.

I am obsessed with Eric Carle books and my favorite is, and always has been, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I have always wanted it to be my little one’s first birthday party theme, but I also knew that I would plan something that my little one liked. Well to say she loves the Very Hungry Caterpillar is an understatement. She received a set of Eric Carle bath toys for Christmas and soon afterwards adopted the little caterpillar as her favorite toy and carries it everywhere. He even shows up in some of our sensory play from time to time :)

It was the PERFECT party theme for everyone and I am so excited to share with you all the little details.

Before we could have a party we had to send out party invitations. So thankful for circle cutters to help me cut all of the circles.

I also couldn’t let my little girl party without having a party dress. I fell in love with one I saw on Etsy, but just couldn’t spend that much on it, especially when I have made all her other holiday outfits, so I knew I had to make it. I bought the pattern from Millie Rose Patterns, bought some fabric and got to work and I cannot tell you how much I love the final product. I seriously do not want to take it off of her.

And then it was party time!!!

Welcome to Very Hungry R’s Cocoon! We used some of our plates to create a caterpillar for the front door to welcome guests inside.

I didn’t go over the top with decorations, but added just enough to give it that Hungry Caterpillar feel.  I used a circle cutter to punch out a bunch of circles and used them all over the house in random places-doors, cabinets doors, the refrigerator etc just to add a little decorative touch.

I knew we also needed a focal wall for cake smash and pictures so I cut out the word ONE from colored printer paper and used some of my circles to create a focal wall, complete with a 12 months of baby R caterpillar that featured pictures from her first year of life.

And then there was the food, which told our own “Very Hungry Caterpillar” story. I will tell the story as I share pictures below.

In the light of the moon a little egg lay on a leaf. (Deviled Eggs laying on lettuce. You can find the deviled egg recipe here.)

One Sunday morning, the warm sun came up and –pop- out of the egg came a tiny and very hungry caterpillar. (This was a table setting station and we used her tiny caterpillar bath toy.)

The caterpillar started to look for some food. On Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday he ate lots and lots of fruit. BUT HE WAS STILL HUNGRY. (Fruit Salad)

On Saturday, he ate through some meat, cheese, and crackers, cherry cheesecakes, and cupcakes. ( Food just as it says.) That night he had a tummy ache.

It was Sunday again so he ate through one nice green leaf. By now he wasn’t a tiny caterpillar anymore. He was a BIG FAT CATERPILLAR! (Used a green tablecloth to cut out a leaf and made a caterpillar cake/cupcakes. The caterpillar head was the smash cake and cupcakes were the body. I followed this tutorial HERE to get the icing on the cake smooth and loved the results. We are not fans of fondant, but I wanted a smooth head and this worked out perfectly. )

He built a house around himself called a cocoon and stayed inside for 2 weeks before nibbling his way out. (Hot dogs in buns)

And out popped a beautiful butterfly (butterfly cookie decorating station…and for a baby play date later in the week I made fruity pebble filled butterflies)

Someone did not like the taste of the cake, but she sure had a BLAST destroying it which was a huge sigh of relief because she is not a fan of other people, especially those watching her, but she dug right in and thought it was hilarious. She puts the definition in messy. She went right to the sink diaper and all and got hosed down.

I hope this post gives you some inspiration to plan a Very Hungry Caterpillar party for your little one.  If you are looking for more Very Hungry Caterpillar Inspiration you can check out my Celebrate: Very Hungry Caterpillar Party Pinterest board.

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