DIY $5 Party Pinata

Piñatas were are huge part of my childhood, and they are proving to be a big part of my children's as well. Is there really anything more satisfying to a kid than being told to smash something and candy will come out??

Plus, the leadup to the pinata is so exciting - every birthday my kids get to plan out what they want theirs to look like, and then go shopping for the goodies inside (which are about 4-5 packages of individually wrapped candy or gummies from the Dollar Tree. Nothing fancy over here.) The process is super easy, basically free, and the kids can almost do it all. It starts with old newspaper strips:

And a balloon:

And a mixture of flour and water. (We used whole wheat because that's what we had, but I would suggest the very cheap white kind - it's smoother and, of course, cheaper.) Dip the strips in the mixture, layer them on the balloon, and let it harden. We did two rounds of this just to make sure it held up.

Add paint, a tin foil horn, some streamers, and boom, "Baby Unicorn" piñata is complete and ready to stuff with candy (after you pop the balloon to make a hole, I should mention.)

It held up beautifully through two rounds of children and was a total hit at the party. Pun intended, of course.