Time to Plan Your Halloween Party!

Halloween is such a fun holiday- and it doesn't have to have anything to do with ghosts and goblins.  In fact, we celebrate it every year, and my 5 and 3.5 year old STILL don't know that Halloween can be scary.  Of course, they also don't know that most kids go door to door for candy.  Sheltered much?  Uh, yeah.  It can't last forever, but for now, they are happy girls- ignorance really is bliss!

Anyhoo...back to the planning.  EVERYONE should do something for Halloween.  It doesn't have to be elaborate or expensive...just FUN!

Here are some ideas for adult themed parties:

• Traditional dress up party- come on, dressing up is fun!  This was witnessed at my recent 9-02-10 party.  Who knew the 90s were such a bad clothing phase?  I had forgotten.  
• Themed dress up party- I had a great time at a Pimps and Hoes party once...sounds crass, but it was hilarious!
• Scavenger Hunt- while all the rest of the world is heading out for candy, send your guests in groups to do crazy things in public places- keep it clean people, the kids are out!- and have them video the stunts to show when meeting back at the house.  Word to the wise- make sure you know how to hook the video feeds to your TV so you don't have a room full of people trying to look at one i-phone screen!
• Want to do something low-key?  Invite some friends over to watch scary movies and have a popcorn bar with lots of yummy toppings

Here are some kid themed party ideas:

• Fall carnival- this doesn't have to be elaborate!  Just set up a few stations for the kids to wander to: face painting is always a hit, pin the stem on the pumpkin, bobbing for apples- is that still pc in our germ phobic world?, make your own pumpkin scene with foam stickers.
• Dress up party- seriously, kids LOVE to dress up.  Get some extra use out of those costumes, and create a fun photo op.  Again, this doesn't have to be elaborate- don't get bogged down by details and let the moment pass you by.  A simple playdate with a dress up party theme will have your kids talking for weeks!
• Pumpkin decorating- you can go all out and carve pumpkins, or you can just paint or even sticker decorate them.  Oranges are a fun thing for kids to carve with not so sharp knives.
• Dress up and meet your friends at a nursing home.  We have done this several times and everyone loves it- the kids get to dress up and get candy, and the residents love the show!

For invites, why not take advantage of some free invitation offers?

Make today matter and plan for some FUN this fall.  

And don't just PLAN for FUN- have FUN PLANNING!

How Do I Make a Tired and Over-done Theme My Own?

There are several reasons you might have to follow a common, possibly over-used theme. Perhaps the Guest of Honor (GOH) wants a certain theme and will not be happy without it. Maybe you are hosting a national holiday and you want to spice it up this year- create a new holiday tradition. Then again, maybe you just went a little crazy at a party store and bought some Dora the Explorer party décor and paper goods when they were on clearance and now your kids are so over Dora. And now you desperately need to spruce up Dora.

Making a theme your own takes a bit more thought and creativity, but it can be lots of fun and well worth the time and effort. The first thing I do is to put pen to paper and brainstorm all I know about the theme. Here is an example of how I might brainstorm princesses- a theme way overused in my household, almost to the point that is has become a bad word. Can I say that I am so over princesses??

Princesses

• Tiaras
  
• Castles
  
• Gowns
  
• Princess and the frog
  
• Grand balls
  
• Guards
  
• Dress up
  
• Fairy tales
  
• Jewels
  
• Make up
  
• Fancy hand held mirrors
  
• Gloves
  
• Happily ever after
  

My 5 year old helped me come up with this list in a few minutes. It's not extensive, just long enough to get me thinking about princesses and a way to revive them. Here are some extensions I thought of:

Castles (Beach Party)

• Princesses on the beach- maybe mermaid princesses?
  
• Sand castles
  
• Making moats
  
• Messages in a bottle
  
• Sea shell art
  
• Children's book- Do Princesses Get Dirty?
  
• Favors- personalized sand pails with a quote about princesses (maybe an updated, more politically correct one about princesses being more than frill and pink)
  
• Food- chicken or turkey legs and other hand held items
  

Happily Ever After

• 
  
  Fractured fairy tales- telling the story from another character's perspective, like Ursula's or the frog's
  
  • Read the True Story of The Three Little Pigs or other fractured fairy tale
    
  • Have kids rewrite and illustrate their own fractured fairy tale
    
• 
  
  Happiness-spin off with all the guest of honor's favorite things- one room for princesses, one for writing letters with all the embellishments, one for dancing, etc.
  
  
  
  

Mind maps are a great way to brainstorm and there are free programs on the internet you can download to use. Simple lists work for me, but if you are a doodler at heart, you might try mind mapping to get your creative juices flowing.

If you get stuck, just go to the internet and put different words into a search engine. Put princess in and see what comes up. Or if you have your list, search Fairy Tales or tiaras and see what you find.

Don't brainstorm too long or it becomes work. Put your list away and let is fester for a few days. Come back to it and see what you can come up with. Mention your ideas to friends. Synergy is a magical thing and sharing ideas always sparks creative juices.

Remember, the purpose for spicing up a tired theme is to breathe life in it and get you excited about it. It's important for the GOH to be excited, but you should be too. The more excited you are, the easier and more fun the planning process will be.

Life is supposed to be fun…enjoy the journey and all that…so have some fun planning your next party!

Party Themes 101 Part Two

Brainstorming Themes, Part 2

        Brainstorming with the guest of honor

Ok, so this week it's time to take the theme brainstorm one step further.  Last week, we made a list of possible themes.  And if you're like me, you've been mulling over that list off an on and have come up with your favorites from the list.

This week, it's time to collaborate with the guest of honor.  I like to choose 2-3 of my favorites from the list and pitch those to the GOH.  When pitching to my 5 year old, I give examples of what each theme might look like: possible activities, cake options, favor ideas, etc.  This doesn't have to be very detailed.  You don't want to put too much thought into it, because you never know which theme the GOH will choose.  You want to save your effort for the chosen theme.

But here's what my pitch might look like to Monkey:

Fossil Excavation:

Activities-

    *fossil dig  (baby pool filled with sand and fossils)

    *make your own fossils (with plaster of paris)

Cake Ideas-

    *fossil cake (cake and pudding and crushed oreos on top with gummy dinosaurs inside)

    *dinosaur egg cupcakes (dinosaur eggs baked inside the cupckes)

Favor Ideas-

    *personalized shadow box for displaying the found and created fossils

    *fossil book with a group picture inside

    *excavating tools

Pirates:

Activities-

    *treasure hunt

    *pirate swagger dance

Cake Ideas-

    *Pirate cake bites (cake balls with an eye patch)

    *Pirate ship

Favor Ideas-

    *treasure hunt loot

    *pirate accessories (eye patch, bandana, etc.)

Bike Parade:

Activities-

    *Bike decorating

    *Parade

Cake Ideas-

    *Bike wheel cupcakes

    *Cupcakes made into the shape of a bike

Favor Ideas-

    *Bike horns, personalized with names

    *Bike baskets with streamers

So, I would talk this out with Monkey, and she would choose the one she wants.  NOTE- Make sure to only pitch ideas that you can live with!  The GOH won't always choose the theme you expect.  

Sometimes, the GOH will have a theme all their own.  If it's one you are not too keen on, I would try to really sell the others that you do like.  If you are unsuccessful, it's probably best to go with the GOH's theme choice because if the GOH isn't happy, no one is.  Don't worry, ANY theme can be tweaked to be wonderful, especially if you have plenty of time to let your creative juices flow.

Party Themes 101

Brainstorming Themes

Why do I need a THEME?

Here's how dictionary.com defines theme:

THEME:  a unifying or dominant idea, motif, etc., as in a work of art.

                    AS IN A WORK OF ART

ART is what makes life juicy and worthwhile.  I try to put art into everyday.  Now, mind you, I can't even draw the simplest stick figure- without following a step-by-step "how to draw a stick figure" manual.  Yes, they make those.  Google it.

So I'm not talking about the creating of a masterpiece on canvas.  Unless I am having an art party.  Then I guess I'd have to sneak in a step-by-step manual for that....you get the point.

ART is so much more than pictures and paintings.  ART is what makes your memories smile.  You know, when you think back on something you have done or seen or heard.  That part that makes your heart smile, that's ART.

And in my opinion, every party should be a work of ART.  Something people will think back on and smile about.  If there's no heart smiling, no WOW factor, then aren't you just adding one more thing to your TO DO list?  Raise your hand if you are just dying for one more thing on your to do list.  That's what I thought.

You want ART.  You want WOW.  Thus arises the need for a theme.

The beauty of making hearts smile, is that the "to do's" associated with your party will be FUN.  Not just one more thing you dread doing.  They become something you can't wait to do, because you can't wait to see all the smiles- especially on the face of the party's guest of honor.  

I can hear my friend Kari rolling her eyes at the thought that a "to do list" could be fun (yes, her eyes roll loudly and I can hear them through the ether).  I know some of you are skeptical.  But trust me.  What have you got to lose?  You have to throw that party, right?  You already committed to it, didn't you?  Well, do you want to dread it or enjoy it?  Ok then.  Jump on board.

I'm not talking about your typical "tea party" or "Bob the Builder" theme.  Mind you, I can show you how to turn one of those over done, over-commercialized themes into something that people will never expect or forget.  But when brainstorming a theme, there are NO LIMITS.  So, go crazy.  Make it happen.  Be GREATNESS.

I am constantly thinking about types of themes for parties, but when "brainstorm themes" is on my to do list for the week, I put pen to paper.  For 15 minutes.  I promised you 15 minutes.  That's all it takes to come up with a FABULOUS theme!

So, here's what you do.  Grab some paper, or your phone note pad, or whatever floats your boat.  My sister Sara and I have been known to come up with some amazing ideas on a cocktail napkin and a borrowed pen.  You need something to document your ideas.  

Now you need a timer.  Or a set amount of time.  I don't use a timer unless I am dreading the task.  But if I find myself procrastinating, I will grab a timer and set it for 15 minutes.  As my organizing guru at www.flylady.net (loove me some flylady!) states, "You can do ANYTHING for 15 minutes."  So, if you are not feeling the mojo, set your timer.  Trust me, it will free your mind and allow those creative juices to flow as it quiets those nagging, "I don't have time for this" thoughts.  If you don't use a timer, just make sure that you don't brainstorm so long that you start to get tired of it.  The trick to loving something is to stop yourself always wanting for more, right?  So...15 minutes.  The end.

Alrighty, let's say I am brainstorming themes for my daughter's 5th birthday party.  I would sit down, alone or with my partner in crime- aka my sister Sarita, and start jotting down possibilities.  In the words of my 4th grade writing teacher, Mrs. Baird, the wackier the idea- the better!  

I just start writing what comes to mind, thinking of things she likes or is interested in.  And, of course, I throw in ones that I am secretly pumped about and hoping she will love too.

Monkey's Bday Theme Options:

backward party

fossil excavation

pirates

dress up

bike parade

back to nature

willie wonka (the book we're reading right now)

wizard of oz (the book she wants to read next)

kids in the kitchen

yoga pretzels

invisible

kindergarten kritters

pet picnic

pen pals

sculpting

painting

Then I get up and move on with my week.  Sure, this festers, and I start to think about how I could do a Willie Wonka party without candy.  Or what a pen pal party would look like.  But the idea is to get my ideas flowing and to get excited.  

That's all.  Check it off the list.  You have officially brainstormed your theme!  And you are right on track for a WOW party.  Woo hoo!

Mulling Over Party Ideas

This week I have lots of parties on my mind.

Sarita and I made Monkey's pirate invites last night (part two- more on that later).  Next week we will do the wax seals.  They turned out so cute and were so easy, even with a couple of tea mishaps!

The 9-02-10 plans are in full swing.  Invites (over facebook) are out, food is planned, decor is planned, and entertainment is mostly planned.  I'm loving the facebook invite because people can comment and build the excitement.  The lead up to a party is so much fun.  LOVE the anticipation!  Can't wait to see what my Brenda outfit is going to be.  My amazingly talented closet guru is helping me create the perfect outfit from my existing wardrobe...and maybe a few key additional items.  If you don't have a closet guru, I highly recommend you get one.  Not just for a rockin' everyday wardrobe, but for those parties you can't wait to attend, but aren't sure what to wear!

One of my besties (wow, I just became one of those ladies who use the word besties- awesome) has a birthday coming up in only a few weeks.  We brainstormed ideas yesterday and due to a time conflict are back to the drawing board.  We had been planning to attend the upcoming 10K Pub Crawl, but realized that the day wouldn't work for us.  Bummer, because this year's theme is SUPERHEROES!  I had visions of cape running (ok, walking) dancing in my head.  If you aren't busy Aug 21st, you should try to make it.  It is so much fun.  I'm not part of BARC, but they are an awesome bunch of people and let anyone tag along on the pub crawl, even me!

I'm also on a quest to find a whole foods cake recipe that is quick, easy, and delicious.  Having a bake off in the next couple of weeks will make that feat absolutely delectable!

Finally- I am really excited about planning a theme around these awesome tie dye cupcakes:

How cool are those?  I'm thinking "Peace, Love, and Tie Dye" or "Rainbow Bright" for Earth Day this year.  Any other excuses (I mean ideas) for using these?  Sock 'em to me!  Me, I'll be perusing through ideas here:   The Hippie Handbook: How to Tie-Dye a T-Shirt, Flash a Peace Sign, and Other Essential Skills for the Carefree Life.  I love amazon's used books.  This one can be had for only a few bucks!  I'll be a real hippie in no time!