Pinata Fun Despite a Helium Shortage

There’s just something about balloons and kids. I am not sure if it’s their punch-ability or the appeal of letting them all loose and watching them blow in different directions, but balloons are a hit in the Brunner house. So much so that each kid gets a mess of helium balloons on their birthday. I accomplish this cheap at the dollar store; they’re all a dollar!! So you can get 1 per year and not break the bank. Well this year there was a helium shortage according to the fellow who worked at the Dollar Store. I had no idea helium could experience, but low and behold, the dollar store man said it was true. Who am I to argue?

So here I am…..another round of birthdays (they’re a month apart..did I mention that?) and I have ZERO balloons. A tradition broken. L

Until I had a brain blooper: Build a Birthday Pinata!! How bad can it be? It gives the kids something to do HANDS ON and then something to do, BATS ON!!!!!

I google everything. Whenever I need to know something whether like ‘is Justin Timberlake married?’ or ‘how do you clean the carburetor on a push mower?’ I google it. P.S. I actually googled the carburetor example and my hubby followed the instructions and it worked! I was so proud. I don’t know who JT is married too but it’s on my list of things to look up.

Anyhoo, to make a piñata I found several sites that teach different methods for making a piñata. The 1 most popular were paper mache or a brown, paper grocery bag. I’ve never dealt with paper mache but I can imagine what a train wreck that would be in my little kitchen. Plus the gratification is too delayed on paper mache. You have to build in phases and give several layers and a little long for kids who just want to beat on it and get the candy. To me it’s like giving a kid a toy that requires batteries and saying ‘well today we’re going to put in only one of the 2 batteries. Then tomorrow, we’ll put the 2^nd battery in and then the 3^rd day, we’ll let it charge. THEN you can finally play with it.’ I do not like that approach and the paper mache piñata felt a bit like that to me. So we went the paper sack route and this is what we ended up with!!

My only recommendation is this; reinforce the holes somehow. The kids got a few good hits in and the piñata holes tore and the sack flew off the swing set!! I’d use a strip of this cardboard, like a cut up box and cut a strip, stamp holes in it and then staple with the bag’s fold and punch the bag equivalent to the holes in the cardboard. IF the piñata flies off, this is the result:

 

Disclaimer: Nobody was hurt in the beating of the piñata

Enjoy the fun. This was a good one for us Brunner’s. Take pictures of your piñata and send to me! I’d love to see them!!!!

 

http://familycrafts.about.com/od/paperbagcrafts/ss/PBpinata.htm