for months, my no. 1 has been begging to have a movie night with his classmates…seeing as the summer was completely, 100% dedicated to moving, it didn’t happen over the summer. but, given the new house has a dedicated space to watching movies (thank you attic theatre!), we decided that would be the perfect place for a class party. the place was set, then we had to decide the date.

for anyone that’s gone through a move, the house is never *really* ready for having peeps over. i realized that, and we set a date. because realistically, eleven ten-year-olds aren’t going to care if i still had boxes sitting out, framed pics randomly leaned against the wall, or zero curtains in the windows. so, we set the date.

i left the movie choices up to the kids, and (spoiler alert), i focused on the snacks + table setup! i had two big food goals (besides the totally required pizza, popcorn + boxed candy): a kid-friendly charcuterie board + a candy charcuterie plate!

then, of course in total me fashion, i remembered the super fun popcorn cupcakes i had made pre-no. 2 from the hello, cupcake! baking cookbook. so, i temporarily lost my sanity, and also made popcorn cupcakes for this awesome set of fifth graders!

all the deets on the charcuterie boards + cupcakes are below!

popcorn cupcakes by hello, cupcake! (these are shared in the cookbook as mini cupcakes…this time, i did full size cupcakes with the mini marshmallows!)

ultimate kid-friendly (aka lower sugar!) charcuterie board (i totally just made this up as i went along with snacks that kiddos tend to like that aren’t too fancy schmancy. included were: ritz crackers, goldfish, cheddar cheese slices, pepperonis, grapes, ruffles with french onion dip, carrots + ranch, and chex mix! it was gobbled up!)

the candy-crazy charcuterie board (yeah, this is just sugar overload, but it was *so* fun to make! included are: sour twizzler bites, swedish fish, sour patch kids, oreos, m&ms, gummy bears, and reese’s cups!)

we finished the fun night with some sugared up kiddos + hopefully some fun memories for these kids as they kick off their school year!

p.s. want to see a few more pics of the behind-the-scenes prep?

yes, the guy at five below looked at all the candy and asked “having a party?” 🤣