Everything is ceremony
in the wild garden of childhood. 
  ~ Pablo Neruda

I have such an affection for everything vintage. I think that's because, yeah, I'm a little vintage myself (but NOT antique . . . yet).

No denying it . . . here's proof, circa 1961.

That's me (in pink) and my adorable twin sister with our girl friends and a very nervous Mom. I can't believe Mom let us have egg relays over her beloved blue carpet. But, that was your traditional 1950s-1960s kiddie birthday party.

Does anyone still play these games?

• Clothespin in a Bottle – We stood in front of a milk bottle and dropped clothespins, one at a time, from the tips of our noses into the bottle below. The one who got the most pins into their bottle won.

• Balloon Relays – Lined up in teams and holding balloons, the first girls in line ran across the room and popped their balloons by sitting on them. They ran back and tagged the next girls in line, and so on. The first team who finished popping their balloons won. The real winner was the girl who could pop her balloon without her party dress flying up.

• Egg Relays – Another relay, but this time we took turns carrying a raw egg in our spoons around a chair across the room. We tagged the next girl by transferring the egg into her spoon without touching the egg. The team who broke the fewest eggs won. It took a very special Mom to let her girls play this team over her new blue carpet – or, maybe just a bowl of boiled eggs.

And, of course . . .

• Pin the Tail on the Donkey – Everyone tried to pin their paper donkey tail onto the right anatomy of the donkey poster handicapped by a blindfold and a few disorienting turns. I was lucky if I just got the tail somewhere on the donkey, or maybe even on the right wall.

Whether or not you had an innate sense of direction with a donkey tail, a well positioned bottom to bust a balloon, a steady hand with an egg, or good aim with the clothespin, there were no losers. After some homemade, candle-blazing cake, everyone went home with a sugar high, balloon, party hat, and a goodie bag.

When my local scrapbook store (Crop-Paper-Scissors) showed me the new October Afternoon Cakewalk line, I grabbed it before any of their other designers could snag it. I would have wrestled them to the ground for it. It's just so stinking vintage-y cute!

I didn't use the Washi tape as brilliantly as our Catered Crop designers did (stay tuned for our Quickfire). But, of course, I had to incorporate it somewhere to play along with our "Washi's Up" theme of our Recipe Swap. I used my Washi tape to decorate my goody bag's clothespin.

That Washi tape has to be the funnest ingredient ever in the history of our Recipe Swap! I know everyone doesn't have it in their crafting kitchen, so I found you the perfect source – Chickydoodle! I love the way she assembles mini spools so you can try several colors and patterns. I was so happy when she agreed to join us in the challenge as a sponsor. She's a doll to work with, too. 

Here are the rest of the ingredients along with a few other challenges that gave me more inspiration.

Thank you for indulging me in my little trip back to "the garden of childhood." Vintage goodies are just so special when they take you to a precious memory.