Dawsons 4th Birthday Pawty

Being the crazy dog mom that I am, I’m surprised this is the first pawty I’ve had for Dawson. Aren’t you?! His first birthday, I just made sure to get him a cookie cake from the pet store (see photo to the left). But, I did make sure to request it off from work so I could spend the entire day with him.

I knew this year had to be different. I’m a #dogblogger now (lol) and I wanted to do something special. Now, I don’t have a very large budget for anything extra right now (#lifeyall) so I wanted to put together a blog on how to have a pawty on a budget.

First things first, I’m having it at my apartment dog park. I don’t have to pay to rent out any space, etc. Another plus, is that the pawrents can have drinks at the park while the pups are playing. You can’t beat that!

What you’ll need:

Decorations

Birthday Cake

A Themed Outfit (duh)

Treat Goodie Bags

Decorations

I got all my decorations from Amazon or the dollar store. The backdrop I got off Amazon, I’ll be able to reuse and it was only $11.99.

The straws and balloons were less than $15 and can also be used for more then just at the pawty! I also made sure to get paper straws because they’re biodegradable and durable.

Birthday Cake

When I first saw Puppy Cake, I knew I wanted to work with them! I was hesitant to reach out with their resume of accounts they’ve worked with but I did and it ending up paying off. I’ve been looking up inspiration cakes for weeks! I used to bake ALL THE TIME and even made dog treats when I was a kid, I enjoyed it very much. Puppy Cake sent me a banana cake mix and peanut butter ice cream mix.

Puppy Cake is made with all natural, human grade ingredients and comes in wheat-free and grain-free options and is made in the USA!

For the cake, I knew I wanted to do two layers, it was just a matter of doing it exactly how I wanted. I only had one pan, that I found out after the fact is actually a cheesecake pan, so I had to YouTube how to create something that could work as a makeshift pan. It worked! Puppy Cake also comes with a frosting mix so you don’t have to worry about buying anything extra to make the perfect cake! I followed the instructions on the box and boom, the cake was done!

For some extra little decoration, I wanted to use my Whisk & Wag make-at-home dog treat mix, to make little heart shaped treats to go around the cake. They even include the cutter in package! To go with the banana cake mix, I’m going to use the honey & oats flavor.

Some benefits of this mix are that it encourages healthier skin and coat, supports gut, immune and bone health, promotes overall wellness and vitality AND it’s non-GMO! I also love that it has limited ingredients.

I ended up using a bit too much water in the frosting for the cake but hey, I love how it turned out. I have two layers and it’s clearly filled (and surrounded) with love! I also decided to crumble a Whisk and Wag treat over the top to give it more of a “decorated” feel.

Also, let me just say that I’m so thankful I randomly bought this $3 cake stand from Target. I was afraid that I wouldn’t use it but I’ve actually used it quite a bit!

After the pups have been playing for a bit, I knew they would need a cool down. I used my Roundabout Pets molds and the Puppy Cake peanut butter ice cream mix and made bone shaped treats. If you saw my Instagram stories, you saw that this was a fail. But, I enjoyed making them and will definitely be getting some more ice cream mix in the future – but I’ll make it and leave it in the container next time!

Themed Outfit

You can’t do this all without looking the part. I had a custom shirt made from The Dog Mom Co.! I plan on wearing this every single year for the rest of my life for each dog of mine’s birthday.

I’m also excited to announce that I’m a part of The Dog Mom Co. Ambassador Program! Claire and I have an incredible connection and our passion for dogs just beams when we talk. I can’t wait to help represent the brand and share the incredible products available on The Dog Mom Co. shop! You can use code thebarkblogger to get 10% off your orders! She will be accepting applications for the program in August.

Treat Goodie Bags

Finally, I knew I wanted to give something to the pups that come to the pawty. Instead of going out and buying baggies to put these in, I used leftover wrapping paper that I got at the dollar store and made little pouches and filled them with treats! Quick and easy!

I had SO much fun getting all of this together and hope it inspires you to throw your own pawty! The total cost for everything is under $100! To see the video of me creating the cake and treats, watch the Instagram highlight called ‘Dawson’s Birthday’. Watch the recap video. 

PUPPY CAKE AND WHISK AND WAG SENT ME PRODUCTS IN EXCHANGE FOR MY HONEST REVIEW. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN.