Team Mama Idea: DIY Photo Cupcake Toppers + NEW Senior Night Ideas!

It happened, Mamas. Senior Night for No. 1 was this past Friday. And guess what? I actually made it through without crying! I know, I know. HOW?!? Well, for starters I was crying on and off all week long. I was also running around like a chicken with my head cut off making sure that everything was set and that everyone knew where to be, and what to do. And finally, I spent waaaay too long doing my makeup to cry and forever look a hot mess in pictures. #FORREALS

Senior Night actually began at 4pm for the team (3pm for us mamas). We arrived earlier than we normally do to set up for our pre-game meal. We wanted to make it extra special for our 16 Seniors, so we decided to set the table for them. We found a bunch of football themed supplies, as well as plates and a table cover in our team colors at our local party store.

We let the Seniors choose what they wanted to eat this week, and of course they chose Chick-fil-A. I mean, can you blame them?! We picked up assorted chips and fruit to go alongside the chicken sandwiches. 

And for dessert...

They had individual bundt cakes, with these super cute, photo toppers!

They were one of my favorite details of all! Sure, you can order them. But it's more fun (and cost effective!) to make them yourself! 

Here's how.

What you need:

• Wallet sized photos (2 for each player)
• Foam board
• Scissors
• X-Acto knife
• Glue
• Cake topper sticks

What you do:

• Cut your photos. I decided to round the edges a bit. If you have a pair of those scissors that cut decorative edges, they'd be perfect for this!

• Trace photos onto your foam board. You only need to trace one photo for each player as the toppers are double sided.

• Cut out the shapes you traced using an X-ACTO knife. Then glue them on to the foam board.

• Once you've glued your photos on both the front and back, stick one of the cake toppers into the bottom of the foam board- no glue needed!

That's it! So simple yet they were totally one of the stars of the show!

Here's a look at how the rest of the night went.

My football mama BFF ordered this amaaaaazing balloon display.

Did I exaggerate?!? It was a show stopper! So many people stopped to take photos in front of it. 

We decorated the fence at the bottom of the stands with banners and balloons.

Each Senior had a fathead (click HERE to learn how we made them) as well as a poster.

Us Senior Mamas got cowbells with our boys' numbers on them!

As well as an orange rose with a hand written thank you note from our player... sniff sniff.

We also wore our sons' jerseys. SO fun!

The night was absolutely perfect. The sky was the most beautiful it had been all season long!

I can't believe it's come and gone so quickly.

Once a Spartan, always a Spartan! WE LOVE YOU, SENIORS!!!

I hope you found this post helpful. For daily sports mama inspiration, be sure to join the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group!

*** Click here and here to read my previous Senior Night Ideas!

Team Mama Idea: Decorate Your Athlete's Locker for Senior Night!

Happy Tuesday, Sports Mamas! I hope you all are well. I just wanted to jump on quickly and share this fun idea. There's no tutorial as it's pretty self explanatory.

You guessed it! LOCKER DECORATIONS! Many schools have this tradition. Moms make their athlete a poster and get together the evening before Senior Night and decorate the locker room. Here are some creative ideas from some of the awesome moms in the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group!

Shared by Elizabeth C.

Shared by Mandy A.

Shared by Stacey B.

Shared by Beth M.

Shared by Sydney D.

As you can see the possibilities are endless! You can simply hang a poster. Or you can go all out and hang streamers, balloons, and include gifts as well. 

You don't have to be a Football Mama to do this. It can be done for any sport that uses a locker room; soccer, volleyball, basketball, etc. 

Can't wait until Senior Night? Do it for Homecoming!

I hope this posts inspires you. For even more inspiration be sure to join myself and the 3,000+ REAL sports mamas, just like yourself in our Facebook Group!

Team Mama Idea: DIY Wooden Photo Collage Letters!

Senior Night for No.1 is next week!!! I can't believe it, mamas. Seems like he was just a Freshman yesterday. And a 55lb anklebiter two weeks ago. *sniff sniff*

Us Senior Mamas are getting together on Thursday for a craft night. We're making fatheads, posters, and these super cute wooden, photo collage letters!

I got the idea from Christina P., one of the awesome mamas in the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group. By the way, have you joined us yet?? It's a private group for Sports Moms to connect and ask questions, share ideas, victories and defeats. We're over 2,500 strong...and growing! Here is the photo she shared that I used as inspiration.

Her daughter made one for each of her teammates. How sweet is she?!

Want to make one (or 10!) yourself? Then just keep on reading!

What you'll need:

• Large wooden letter (we found ours at Michaels)
• Mod Podge (we went with the Matte finish)
• Foam Brush
• X-Acto knife
• Scissors
• Photos (I used a total of 12 4x4 photographs, however, every letter will be unique.)

What you do:

• Lay your photos out. You will notice that I printed way more than I needed. I wasn't sure how many I'd need, so I erred on the side of caution. 
• Place them on top of your letter, one by one, until it is covered and you are happy with their placement. Use your scissors to cut them down, if needed. Do not worry if there is some overhang; we will take care of that later.

• Once you are completely happy with the placement of the photos, glue them down using your foam brush and Mod Podge, one at a time. 
• Once the glue has dried (I waited an hour), flip the letter over and trim off any excess using your X-Acto knife.

• The final step is to seal the photos with a thin layer of your Mod Podge. I waited until the next day to do this step, just to be safe. You simply put a little on your foam brush and brush over the entire letter. Do not worry, it dries clear. I promise! This will ensure that your photos do not come up at the edges and will give you a nice matte finish. 

That's it! Super easy and super cute! I'm not even gonna lie. I got a tad bit emotional as I was looking through the photographs. I really cannot believe how fast it has all gone.

Youth sports; the days are long, but the years are short. Way. Too Short. Remember to enjoy each and every moment, Mama.

*** Check out these letters made by some of the Mamas in our Facebook group using the instructions above!

Shared by Beatriz C.

Shared by Stacey B.

Team Mama Idea: Senior Mom Jerseys!

One of the mamas in the Confessions of a Sports Mama Facebook Group asked to see sample "football mom shirts for inspiration". Speaking of the group... have you joined us yet?? It's a private group made up of thousands of real Sports Mamas, just like yourself. We share ideas, ask questions, and brag on our athletes. I absolutely love it!

Back to the topic of today's post. As previously mentioned, she was looking for inspo and boy did the group deliver! Here are a few of my favorites:

But my most favorite of all was this one!

SENIOR MOM SQUAD! How cute is that? Not to mention that I have a Senior this year, so it spoke directly to my heart.

Lucky for me, one of my football mama bffs is super crafty and volunteered to make them for us! She even took it up a notch by making them on jerseys. #WINNING!

She ordered the jerseys from JiffyShirts.com (if you go with this exact jersey, be sure to order up a size as they run small!) and used vinyl and her silhouette to do the lettering.

She even put our boys' names and numbers on the back!

I mean, seriously... how cute are (we) they?!? I'm so obsessed. GO SPARTANS!!!