Chances are, if you have a boy in the family, you will eventually be planning a Star Wars party.  And, if you’re like most parents, you’ll want to keep that party on a budget, meaning you may be hunting for some DIY Star Wars party ideas.

You’ll also want a fun Star Wars cake.  Right?  

Whether you’re planning a birthday party or a celebration for May the Fourth Be with You, you’ll find the best Darth Vader cake ideas below.

When it comes to the original trilogy, Darth Vader is one of the most popular characters.  He’s mysterious, powerful, and the perfect bit of scary for kids.

Vader is the perfect character to base your cake on.    

There’s no need to run to a professional baker.  These creative ideas will leave you with a Star Wars cake you can be proud of.

If you have a child that enjoys the Star Wars movies, you may also want to try making your own pool noodle lightsabers.  They make acting out your favorite scenes fun, and they are safer than those plastic ones you find at the store.  

How to Make a Darth Vader Cake

Feeling creative?   

Pick one of the DIY Star Wars cake ideas below and create an awesome Darth Vader themed cake that will wow the guests.  

• Skip buying a special pan, and use the baking pans you already have to make this DIY Darth Vader Cake.
• Use black fondant to create this Star Wars cake with a picture of Darth Vader’s head.
• Have a bell-shaped cookie cutter at home?  Use it to help decorate these Darth Vader cupcakes.
• Make your own edible Darth Vader cupcake toppers with royal icing.
• Star Wars fans will rave over this 3-dimensional cake of Darth Vader.

Simple Darth Vader Cake Ideas

Want something that’s even easier and takes almost no time to do?

These fun ideas will make it super simple to create your very own cake for your Star Wars fan.  (Affiliate links are provided below.  See my full disclosure for more details.)

• Add this Darth Vader to the top of any cake to turn it into a fun Star Wars cake.  Kids will love that his red light saber doubles as a candle.
• Party goers will love this 3-dimensional darth vader cake topper. It even has sound effects!
• Using an edible Star Wars cake topper will make your homemade cake look like it was made by a professional.
• Purchase your own Darth Vader cake pan  and make it super simple to celebrate Star Wars any day of the year.
• Use these fun Star Wars cookie cutters as stencils to decorate your cake.  Simply fill in the centers with sprinkles and remove the cookie cutters to leave the characters behind.

No matter which of these Darth Vader cakes you try,  be sure to create your own mini R2D2 craft.  It makes a cute party decoration and keepsake.

You may also like:

• How to Make a Shark Cake
• How to Make a Dragon Cake
• 3-Dimensional Teapot Cake 

Updated from April 2019.

The post 10 Homemade Darth Vader Cake Ideas first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

Whether you’re planning your own Star Wars party, or you’re just looking for the perfect dessert to have while watching the movies with your kids, these Star Wars Storm Trooper cupcakes are sure to bring smiles.

(Related Post: DIY Darth Vader Cake Idea)

Affiliate links have been used below for your convenience.  See my full disclosure here. 

What I love about these Star Wars cupcakes is that they are so simple to make.  They’d be perfect to send in to school for your child’s birthday.

Materials Needed:

• Your Favorite Cake Mix  (We used this gluten-free one.)
• White Cake Frosting
• White Cupcake Liners
• Marshmallows
• Black Edible Food Marker 

How to Make Storm Trooper Cupcakes

Bake cupcakes as directed on package.  Once cupcakes are completely cooled, frost them with white icing.

Using your black edible marker, draw simple Storm Trooper faces on your marshmallows.  My kids have only seen the original Star Wars movies so far, so we went with the classic Storm Trooper look:  black band around the top of the head, triangular eyes, upside down curve mouth and a few lines for vents or dots to be bolts at the bottom of the helmet.  For a more modern Storm Trooper look you can connect the black band to the eyes like these cupcakes over at Spaceships and Laser Beams.

Once you have your Storm Trooper marshmallows are finished, simply place one on top of each cupcake.  You will have your own delicious army of Storm Troopers in no time!

These cupcakes were a huge hit at my son’s Star Wars birthday party this year.

Honestly, they are so simple to make, you could easily whip up a few Star Wars Storm Trooper cupcakes for your own Star Wars fan any day of the year.  They’d be perfect for Star Wars Day!

More posts you’ll like:

• DIY Darth Vader Cake
• DIY Pool Noodle Lightsaber
• Recycled R2-D2 Craft
• Tipped Tractor Cupcakes
  
  

The post Storm Trooper Cupcakes — Perfect for Star Wars Party first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

Looking for some fun after school snack ideas to fill those bellies and make them smile?  Here are 12 fun kid snacks that are sure to please!

Check out these Butterfly Snack Bags that are not only healthy, but adorable, too!

Have a PB&J fan?  Make your own Peanut Butter and Jelly Sushi.

Speaking of sushi, try making some delicious Fruit Sushi!

These Frozen Banana Penguins put a whole new spin on frozen bananas.

Vehicle lovers will rev their engines for these easy Fruit Cars!

Grab some ripe bananas and mix up these yummy Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins or try one of these other 25 awesome muffin recipes.

Make a splash with these cute Jello Cup Swimming Teddy Bears!

Zoom off with this fun Jet Snack idea.

Have a TMNT fan?  Check out these simple Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle apples!

Kids like variety?  Try this yummy Fall Snack Mix.

Need something quick?  Grab a permanent marker and make some simple Fruit Cup Faces.

Another fast idea:  use a toothpick to create Secret Message Bananas.

We’ve come a long way from just milk and cookies!

Make after school snack time even more fun and try making a few of these ahead of time with the kids.  Those butterfly snack bags and the fruit cup faces could become a craft one day and a yummy snack the next!

Other Back to School Posts:

• Tips for Saving Money on Extra Curricular Activities
• 50 of the Best Apple Activities and Crafts
• Cute Mouse Pencil Topper Craft
• 15 Fun Ways to Practice Sight Words at Home

The post 12 After School Snack Ideas first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

(Or maybe you’re looking for the perfect late-night snack.)

You’re in luck!  I’ve got just the treat:  DIY candied pretzels!  They’re a sweet and salty treat that’s perfect for any occasion.

Looking for a fun activity to do with the kids one weekend?

Make these yummy pretzels and enjoy them while snuggling for a movie or doing a few kids Valentine’s activities.

Affiliate links have been used below.  See my full disclosure for more details. 

DIY Candied Pretzels

To create your own candied pretzels you will need:

•  pretzels
• chocolate candy melts
• assorted sprinkles or small candies (Pastel colors are perfect this time of year!)

I used half of the 12 oz. bag of (affiliate link) Wilton Dark Candy Cocoa Melts, which made 30 pretzel twists.

I chose to use pretzel twists to dip, but you could also use pretzel rods, which would look pretty boxed up as a gift!

Before melting the chocolate, line a cookie sheet with a sheet of waxed paper.  This will keep pretzels from sticking to the surface as they cool.

I melted my chocolate pieces in the microwave, checking and stirring them every 20 seconds until they were almost all melted.  Once most of them are melted, remove the dish from the microwave and continue stirring until all the chocolate is melted.  (Be careful to not overheat the chocolate or it will get thick and unusable!)

I tried dipping the pretzels in the bowl of chocolate, but discovered that they looked better if I used a butter knife to “paint” the chocolate onto the pretzel twists.

Once the pretzel is coated in chocolate, immediately press it into your colored sprinkles or candy pieces.

The chocolate will cool and set within 10 minutes or so on the prepared cookie sheet.

Our pretzels were covered in red sugar sprinkles and small pink candies.  

The sugar sprinkles didn’t stand out as well on dark chocolate (I’m a dark chocolate kind of girl!), but they would look lovely on white chocolate.

The small pink candies also look pretty tasty on white chocolate!

Stick some DIY chocolate pretzels in a basket with some shredded paper “grass” and you have a cute DIY gift!

Or, stick a few in DIY candied pretzels in a small bowl and surprise your sweetheart when he gets home from work.  (That is, IF the kids don’t eat them all first!)

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to make up a batch while the kids are asleep so I can get a few to myself!

You may also like these posts:

• DIY Holiday Popcorn Ball  — Perfect for Valentine’s Day, Easter, or anytime. 
• DIY Heart Gifts, Cards, & Treats — With over 40 ideas, there’s something for everyone.
• 20 Delicious Meals in Under 30 Minutes — Because life gets busy!

The post DIY Candied Pretzels first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

*Thanks to Robinsons’ Fruitshoot for sponsoring today’s yummy post!

At home I like to try to make lunch fun for the kids, like our painted American flag sandwiches and our jet plane lunch.

This is the first year I’ve gotten to pack school lunches.  It’s important to me to still be able to make lunch fun, even when the kindergartner is away from home.

How to Pack a Lunchbox for Kids

Before school began we picked out some fun, easy to open containers to pack lunch in.  Sandwich boxes with favorite characters on the lid, other small containers to hold side items, and of course, a water bottle that doesn’t leak were all important essentials.

To make our morning routine run smoothly, I make sure lunch gets packed the night before.  This also gives me more time to pull out the sandwich cutters and get creative!

This week we had a bug-inspired lunch perfect for spring:  butterfly sandwich and the classic ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins).  Oh, and don’t forget the note!

Usually I pack water in her lunch box, but water does get boring after a while.  That’s where Fruitshoot comes in to play! It has a new no-spill cap, perfect for children of all ages, and contains no fructose corn syrup, making it a much better option than other flavored drinks.  

And I love the brightly colored bottles!  (I’m thinking we are going to reuse them as water bottles for our trips to the zoo this summer!)  Fruitshoot comes in four fantastic flavors:  orange, apple, berry burst, and strawberry/raspberry.

I love that the apple flavor has no added sugar!

Want to know more?   Check out Robinsons’ Fruit Shoot Facebook page and find even more fun lunch box ideas!

You can find Fruitshoot at  the following retailers:  Walmart, KMart, Kroger, Lowes Foods, Harris Teeter, Dollar General, Family Dollar, Spartan, Speedway, Meijer Gas, Sheetz, Kangaroo, WilcoHess, Handee Hugo, Family Fare, Giant Eagles, Marc’s, Dave’s, UDF, Traxx, Redi Mart, J Clarks.   But not all of the stores are carrying it yet, so feel free to call ahead to see if they do.

Thanks, again, to Robinsons’ Fruitshoot for sponsoring today’s post!

The post Packing Fun School Lunches with #Fruitshoot #ad first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

When I take the kids to the grocery store, one of their favorite things to do is looking at all the different produce.

I always let them pick out which fruit we get that week; this has led us to trying some new and tasty fruits!  Last year they discovered pomegranate, and it quickly became a favorite!

A few weeks ago I mentioned pomegranate on Facebook and Twitter and had one follower who was frustrated by the red-stained fingers they get when opening a pomegranate.  I had to share how we learned to cut open a pomegranate!

The first step to cutting up a pomegranate with less mess is to slice off the “crown” portion.  I also make 4-5 shallow cuts the length of the fruit.

Next, fill a large bowl with water and soak the pomegranate for 10-15 minutes.  This allows the white part to soak of water and become easier to pull apart later.

Then comes the fun part!  (This is a wonderful sensory activity for kids, by the way!)

While keeping the fruit in the water, use your thumb to push the red berries out of the white portion.

Pushing them down helps keep the juice from splattering up and making your face look like this….

Doing it in the water also keeps your fingers from getting stained.

The berries will sink in the bowl; the white portion will float to the top, making it easy to separate them.  You can use a slotted spoon or your fingers to scoop out the white parts to throw away.

Then just drain the berries and you are ready to eat!

My favorite way to eat pomegranate is in a big fruit salad.  I love the slight crunch!

What’s your favorite fruit this time of year?

The post How to Cut a Pomegranate first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.