Kids Birthday Party Ideas

I'm sending out the invitations for this year's birthday bash extraordinaire! My kids are obsessed about being twins so because they both have November birthdays, they've decided to share their party this year and pretend that they're twins. Aww, cute huh?

Anyway, we're having a bit of a space issue since they are NOT twins, they have many different friends of their own ages. The only way we can do this in the space we booked and still comply with fire code is if the older children (6-year olds) get dropped off. So I included a note with the invitation to the older kids, "We will have a sign in sheet for drop-off and pick up!"

I used a spreadsheet to make the invite list anyway. So I used the same spreadsheet to make a quick sign-in sheet, including each guest's name, a column for a parent/chauffer to initial a drop off and pick up and another for a contact's cell phone. So in case of any stragglers, I don't go home with more children than I started with...

With the invite list out of the way, I need to come up with activities to entertain 40 kids, 6 and under! Where's that Kids Party Crafts and Games ebook?!

“The real reason why parents spoil their kids is because in doing so, they are spoiling themselves.” This is an excerpt from an insightful piece I ran across in the New York Daily News yesterday entitled, “Kids birthdays a Rx for staying young.” Perhaps this is why so many parents spend the time and energy to come up creative kids birthday party ideas.

The writer, Denis Hammill does a wonderful job of connecting with the countless baby boomer and gen-xer parents out there. He describes a scene many of us can relate to… 20 kids at a 7-year old’s birthday celebration, enjoying whatever activity their parents have booked for the duration: clowns, magicians, a bounce house, ice skating… parents watching from the sidelines, maybe outwardly complaining about the extravagance and yet inwardly feeling great satisfaction at being able to provide such enjoyment for their children. With this noble intention, parents outdo each other in planning their children’s parties, wanting each one to be an unforgettable experience. I count myself squarely in that circle!

Every year starting in… oh August, my kids start narrowing down their list to the serious contenders for their November birthday party themes. As they play together, I often catch snippets of sales pitches from my 5-year old to my 3-year old “Do you want a Woody party or a racecar party? Because if you want racecars, you can be Lightning and I can be Sally. And we can have it at Incredible Pizza!!!” Or this morning, "T, don't you want your party at Disney World?!"

The good news is that there is no shortage of ideas and venues for kid’s parties. A favorite book, movie or activity inevitably will be the starting points for each of my kids’ events. The nice thing is that there are birthday party packages for any theme you can imagine: Yes, Cars as well as Disney Princesses, Bob the Builder, Thomas… even High School Musical and Hannah Montana! So even if my children can’t quite decide until late October, (which seems to happen every year), no worries! All I have to do is add an activity or game to go with the theme and there you have it, another year of successful birthday bashes under my belt.

My daughter still talks about her third birthday party, when she helped me plan her Fish School party. She was really into Disney’s Finding Nemo but more specifically asked for a “Dory and Nemo” party. So we planned all the games and activities just like they do at school, except this was fish school — with story time (we read Finding Nemo), snack time (Nemo cake), arts and crafts (Nemo and Dory coloring pages) We carried the theme through by piping in some nautical tunes like Ralph Covert’s Bottom of the Sea (one of her favorite songs) and Under the Sea from The Little Mermaid. Three years later, she’s still listening to the soundtrack.

The lesson being that like anything else, the secret sauce for engaging any child and creating a meaningful experience is to involve them in the process. “You clap your hands just like the teacher and we’ll move to the arts and crafts area…” my daughter’s face lit up like the sun while we were brainstorming. Truly, the most memorable part of the experience for me was helping my child design her perfect day.

If you're still with me... you must be planning a party! I'll let you in on my little secret: FamilyFun magazine's awesome book, FamilyFun Parties. Or, if you've put this off until the last minute and can't wait, you can download Kids Party Crafts and Games right now. Isn't the internet a life-saver?