Summer Birthday Parties for Kids
Lucky is the kid with a summer birthday! As someone born in January, I longed for a summer birthday as a kid. Who wouldn’t want to celebrate their birth in the sun, at the pool or the beach?
Why Are Summer Birthday Parties Best?
They can be held outdoors, and any kid (and parent) likes that best. A shady lawn, a cool park, a pool, and a beachside are great places for birthday parties. So lucky the adults who have a kid with a summer birthday!
Pool party jello cups will be a big hit at a pool or beach birthday party. They’re also the perfect treat for the kids at any summer gathering.
Kids will enjoy helping make pool party jello cups. My version uses Berry Blue Jell-O and gummy fish, gummy sharks, or other gummy ocean animals. Keep your eyes open for the gummy sea animals. Bears and worms tend to outnumber the gummy ocean animals. But they can be found. This year we found gummy octopuses sold at a gas station!
Berry Blue Jell-O is the ocean, Cool Whip is the seafoam, and a mixture of vanilla pudding, a little Cool Whip, and finely crushed vanilla wafer crumbs form the beach and sand. Top the beach off with a Fruit Stripe gum beach towel, a cocktail umbrella, a round peppermint “beach ball,” and a Golden Teddy Grahams teddy bear with a tan!
This is a low-cook (vanilla pudding and Jell-O) no-knife recipe and safe for kids to assist with.
Ingredients for Pool Party Jell-O Cups
- 3 packages Jell-O brand gelatin, Berry Blue, large 6 oz. size
- 1 package Jell-O brand instant pudding, French vanilla
- 1 cup milk, for pudding
- 1 box vanilla wafers, finely crushed
- 1 container Cool Whip
- peppermint candies, round
- gummy sea animals, fish, sharks, etc.
- cocktail umbrellas
- teddy grahams
- Fruit Stripe gum
Instructions
- Prepare three packages of Berry Blue Jell-O according to directions.
- Pour plastic dessert cups 2/3 full and refrigerate to set.
- Halfway until set, insert the gummy sea animals into the Jell-O
- Place 3/4 of a box of vanilla wafers in a large Zip-lock bag and finely crush with a rolling pin.
- Mix 3/4 box of crumbs into the pudding along with half of the container of Cool Whip.
- When the Jell-O has firmly set (about 4 hours), remove from the fridge.
- Spread a thin layer of Cool Whip on the “ocean” to be the sea foam.
- Carefully spread the pudding and wafer crumb mixture on top using a rubber spatula.
- Finely crush the remaining 1/4 box of vanilla wafers and sprinkle on top.
- Add a stick of Fruit Stripe gum for a “beach towel”, round peppermint for a “beach ball”, a few Teddy Grahams on top, and a “beach umbrella.”
Pool Party Jell-O Cups Photo Tutorial
