I love planning my kids’ parties.  I start three months before, create lists and rip pages out of magazines for inspiration.  I spend evenings on Pinterest, Etsy and Minted reveling in the creativity of others.  One of the best compliments I’ve received about the kids’ parties was that it was akin to Billy Madison’s when he passed the third grade.  Score.  I don’t have any birthday parties to plan in the summer (ho hum) but maybe you do – so here are a couple of of tips for planning a summer party in your home –

Pick. Involve. Stick.

Pick a theme. Involve your child. Stick with it.

Here’s what I typically do – lay out three or four themes that I’m comfortable with, show them pictures online, and then let them pick.  The trick is to stick with it so that you aren’t stuck with a Minion with a sword jumping over a rainbow riding a unicorn.  The way I do this is to buy two or three small things that represent the theme they chose and then keep it out for them to look at.  It’s a constant reminder and keeps them excited.

Indulge.

  Aside from searching in Pinterest to get ideas for your specific theme, here are some basic treats to include outside of cake and cupcakes –

Gumballs 
Put a gumball machine out with coins, arrange them in your child’s letter (or name), or just put them out in vases to double as a beautiful display:

Hoodsies
Do you remember these cute little individual ice cream cups from Hood? They come with the wooden spoon and they are perfect for summer birthday parties. (Psst: Did you know it’s National Ice Cream Month?? I say indulge in these as an after dinner treat all summer.)

Marshmallows

Kids. Love. Marshmallows. We used them as is for “clouds” in our rainbow theme.  Dip them, sprinkle them, turn them into tea cups, lego heads, or kabobs.  Did you know you can even melt them and turn them into edible paint?

 Entertainment.

Send in the clowns! But don’t really because clowns are creepy.  Here is a list of entertainment we’ve booked at our home in the past that have all been huge winners:
1. Bouncy Castle
2. Face Painting
3. Baby Wiggles Little Groove Musician (Or something similar)
4. Cotton Candy Machine
5. Pony Rides and/or Farm Animals

And when the day comes….

Let go and enjoy.
Smother them in kisses.
Lay in bed with them a little longer.
Tell them a kid-friendly version of their birth story.
Savor every last minute of their littleness.

Check out a similar article I wrote for Mommy Poppins Boston, here.

-MIM-

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