Chalk Theme Party

This party idea came to by way of my neighbor, an ever inventive father of two. His daughter’s birthday was soon approaching. Since he is a single father in need of party help, I suggested he choose a party theme related to one of his daughter's favorite activities. It seems Christina, 4 soon to be 5, was into drawing. In fact, her dad said he had works of art everywhere in his house.

So the party girl was into drawing and this lead to Chris (the father) to decide a party outside on his driveway would work. His plan was to get several tubs of sidewalk chalk for the entertainment part of the party. The little party Picassos could draw all over his driveway to their hearts content.

The day before the party Chris power washing his driveway and sets up some tables he rented. On the day of the party, I helped him by stringing some colorful streamers and balloons, as well as assembling the party favors bags. Each child received a bag of party favors containing coloring books with crayons, black craft paper with chalk (black works best for chalk) and some bubble gum and assorted candies. The cake was an airbrushed version of one of his daughter’s art pieces. The cake was so cool! Christiana squealed with delight when she saw her own drawing on her birthday cake. Between the cake, the party favors and sidewalk chalk entertainment, the kids had a blast. Chris could not have picked a better party theme for Christina's birthday party.

I suggest, if your going to have Chalk It Up Party, you do it in early spring or early fall. Driveways either cement or asphalt get extremely hot during the summer months and can burn bare feet and knees. You’ll find this theme is a minimal effort party that young kids can enjoy. As a parent you can pull it together in a short amount of time and clean up is a breeze.

Planning a birthday party for your son in those awkward years between 8-12? He's too old for those sweet little kids parties you used to throw. Yet, he still willing to have you plan his party. So, how do you create a party that he will love?

Skating Your Way To A Party That Is Off The Hook

Ask yourself "what do tween boys want or like?"  Think of what your tween's interests. I know several tweens who are in to skateboarding. Using the party theme like skateboarding is a fantastic place to start.  Seek out some skate boarding teens that can show the tweens some cool tricks (keeping in mind safety). Ideally it would be wonderful to rent a skate board facility.  Don’t fret if a skateboards facility is not available. Create a skateboard paradise at your house. Decorate your party area with mini skate boards, posters with skate board heroes such as Tony Hawk or Andy MacDonald and graffiti boards. Buy some thin ply board and spray paint and write graffiti on it.

Entertainment That Will Have Them Stoked

Keep a few ply boards and spray cans for your party goers to graffit up. Use teenage skateboarders as another form of entertainment. Have them give the young kids a demonstration. If your party area allows let the kids show off the skateboard skills learned for the older teens. Remember safety comes first. All kids should wear protective gear before they skateboard. You can also have them play a game of follow the skate board leader. Have one of the teens do age appropriate tricks for them to follow and when each tween fails to complete the leaders action, they leave the game to go drink a soda or power drink such as Gatorade. Listen to your tween and he will give you plenty of idea to make this party a success. Savor the memories of this party, hire a videographer to document the skateboard fun.

Party Favors They'll Be Down With

Party favors STICKERS … that is all you have to give to 8-12 year old boys to make them happy. This age group loves stickers. Need to fill your gift bags with more? Granola or power bars and skateboard key chains will excite these tweens. When looking for skate board theme items try a skateboard. You can even find great skateboard items online.

Grindage Must Haves

These tween will build up quite the appetite after all that skateboarding. Pizza is a good choice for the food, as well as hamburgers/hot dogs and soda. The big wow of this party is the cake with graffiti air brushed skate board and your tween's name.

A skateboarding party is a great way to have fun and allow boys to be boys. By the end of the day, your tween will think your the best bro a boy could have.

Ask The Celebration Advisor: PLEASE HELP! My husband and I married in September, 2008 in Jamaica after quick planning. Mainly due to the fact of illnesses in the family. (I took my father-in-law to chemotherapy 3 times per week for 2 years; which turned into taking my mother-in-law to her various appointments. She has been hospitalized 8 times in a year and half. My brother had prostate cancer and had surgery in January. My uncle broke his neck. My husband spent a week in the hospital with blood clots. My mother had open heart valve replacement in May. All six different hospitals, WHEW. Three years went really fast and have no idea where the time went. Now everyone is holding their own and I'm not running as much, leaving time to try to plan for family and friends who long awaited to watch our wedding video. What would I call this celebration? It will be more like an anniversary.Thank you for your advise. Deb

The Celebration Advisor: Deb, good question! This party theme is of particular importance because you all will FINALLY be able to watch the much ballyhooed wedding video. (Yes, I said "ballyhooed".) Is it safe to assume that you need this title for party invitations? If so, you're in luck! I just so happen to have a few. Since you said this is more of an anniversary, consider these suggestions:

• "Celebrate The Day" Party
• "My Favorite Romantic Movie Night"
• "Watch The Wedding Video" Party (Simple but effective)
• "Reliving The Wedding (With You There!)" Party
• "Our Just-Like-A-Second Wedding Party" (Because now your guests will be there)
• "Our Fairytale Wedding Video Watching Party" (Have the front of the invitations say "once upon a time you were invited to…" and then they will open it to this party theme)
• "Second Time Around" Party

Now, you can always go with some of the more simple and obvious theme like "anniversary party" or "wedding video watching party" but spicing it up a little is always fun. Two suggestions for whatever you choose are (1) to make sure that they know you are throwing the party so that everyone could feel included and (2) use a little imagination.

If you feel a little more explanation is in order, put a little description on the inside of the invitation. A few words will actually make the invitations more sentimental because you can personalize these and include your thoughts on desiring your family's presence at this party because unfortunately they couldn't be at the wedding.

Oh yeah, and have fun!!!

Are you a student in college and need help moving from one rental property to another? Well, that student is about to be me and when deciding how exactly I would go about asking friends to help, I stumbled across the idea of throwing a moving-in party in which my guests would unknowingly be helping me out in the meantime.

What I first need to do as a host is to decide who out of my buddies would be willing enough to come and help out the cause. Then I would write their names on a call list. Most women would not like the idea of lifting heavy objects so this party would most likely end up as a Dude Night. Next, I have to come up with a scheme to have them all over and camouflage the idea of them helping me with an adult party theme they'll all enjoy.

After considering party themes, the idea hit me. Why not have my guests each pick out a box or piece of furniture from my old house, drive it over to my new house, and place it inside? If I find there is an issue with fitting all those items in vehicles, I could easily arrange a rental van or trailer to help haul a load or two. With each new delivery by a guest, the house becomes more full of essentials to a party. With one shipment would come a chair, then a couch, then a TV and sound system. Soon thereafter, a guest would arrive with a BBQ grill and a cooler full of meat ready to cook. Each new guest that arrived would share the satisfaction of doing their part in ensuring that the party keeps going and be instantly relieved by their job well-done and being able to sit down on a newly arrived couch and enjoy a cold drink.

A neat beverage choice would be one that people who perform manual labor or grill outdoors regularly would enjoy; some ice cold beer, lemonade, iced tea, or jack and coke.

Being the middle of summer, backyard parties with some delicious food such as Hamburgers, Beer-Soaked Brats, potato salad, coleslaw, and refried beans would suffice. Of course after a day of heavy lifting, food that sets like a brick in your stomach would surely take the edge off. Of course if there is concern with time, hiring a catering service to provide the food would surely alleviate some stresses that come with hosting a party.

A running joke in my group of friends is to wear cut-off jeans or the aptly named "Jorts". So as a manual labor/chore party theme, guests should wear Jorts and consignment shop t-shirts to really bring the feel of sweat and hard work to the party (beer gut optional).

Who doesn't enjoy to be treated to a southern style grill-out after working out in the sun? My friends are sure to enjoy our upcoming backyard party and what's best about it is that I can spend the night in my new house. Remember to throw a Moving-In Party when you are just at an ends as to how in the world you're going to find help to furnish your new home.

Summer is finally here! School's out and it's time for a vacation! You probably wont get to see your friends much, so what better way to catch up on things and have a good time than by throwing a summer pool party! It's time to do some planning and make a few phone calls.

When it comes to summer, the main thing most teens focus on is going to shop for that perfect swimsuit. With that in mind, what better reason to throw the ultimate summer pool party? Who doesn't think about going to the tropics for a summer vacation getaway? How about creating your own tropical paradise at home!

Decorations- Here comes the most fun part to throwing any party. Being a tropical paradise theme you want to think outside of the box to make this a very memorable summer party. Let's begin with the back yard, since it is a major part of this party. Putting up a couple of inflatable palm trees around the pool area would definitely give the party a more tropical feel. Setting up 2 or 3 picnic tables around the yard could be used for eating, or even to set some exotic tropical centerpieces on top. This party is more than likely to last through the night. A creative, inexpensive idea would be to buy a few mini beach bucket tea light holders. Setting these throughout the pool area or the backyard would definitely lighten up the place. Now for the pool, just throwing in a few beach balls and a few pool rings would do the trick.

Entertainment- To help your guests work up an appetite for delicious tropical party foods, the right party games and activities are necessary. Here are some ideas that might interest you and be fun for your friends too.

Music- Playing reggae music, beach songs, or the songs you know your friends like would be perfect for this tropical party.
Limbo Contest- Who doesn't love to limbo? Having a limbo contest would keep the fun times going.
Beach Games- Some beach games to include could be volleyball or even water fights.

These are all activities your friends are sure to enjoy.

Food- Of course, no party is complete with out a delicious food menu. This being a tropical paradise party, exotic foods is what comes to mind.You could start off by giving an appetizer, some sizzling chicken skewers, this would only get them ready for whats coming next. A very exotic main dish idea would be to cook a pan-grilled salmon with pineapple salsa. How much more exotic can it get! Finally, for dessert cooking up a key lime pie will leave your friends full, but satisfied.

Voila! You have thrown an unforgettable pool party. Your friends had a blast and are sure to be waiting for another one. Be thinking on how to throw your next summer party, and by the looks of it, it's sure to come soon!

It's finally your senior year of high school, the year every student waits for. Of course its obvious to know why, after 12 years of being in school, this is finally the last year! How exiting! Preparing for graduation can be a long yet exciting process. What better way to top of this moment, than by throwing your graduating friend a graduation party. It's time for party planning!

Theme- Having a themed party always makes the atmosphere a lot more fun. A very popular theme used for many parties is a Hawaiian theme! Hawaiian colors are bright and tend to make people think of either the beach or a Hawaiian shirt. It's your decision whether you want the party indoors or outdoors. Personally, I d prefer an outdoors party. Having a party outdoors gives you a lot more space. Meaning more room to PARTY!

Decorations- Decorating is one of the best parts when it comes to planning and throwing a party. The decorations are one of the first things your guests will notice. Think about making them really stand out! Try using different outstanding bright colors (neon orange, baby blue, lime green, etc.). One idea that is easy and fun to set-up up would be some colorful beach chairs and even a few lit-up tiki torches. Another decorative idea would be to go to your local party store and shop for a few party supplies. You could include Hawaiian-colored plates, cups, napkins, etc.

Food- Yummy, here comes the best part! An easy cooking idea that everyone is sure to enjoy would be to have a grill-out. Grilling out some buttered shrimp, Hawaiian flank stake, or Hawaiian grilled chicken and having a fresh Hawaiian salad as a side dish would be a delicious idea. To drink making a homemade Hawaiian fruit punch would be very fruity and delicious. A tasty suggestion for dessert would be to have a large platter of mixed mouthwatering fruits like strawberries, cantaloupe, pineapple, etc. After all, the pineapple is one of the most common fruits found on the island. But if you really want to sweeten things up a bit, a coconut cake would definitely be the icing on the cake for your overall meal.

Music- Since this is a graduation party, you're more likely to have many people there with different tastes in music. What better way to please everyone than to get a DJ to entertain the party. A DJ is definitely a great choice, since they usually have a wide variety of music choices to play. This way everyone gets to dance out to their favorite music thought the party. The fun will never stop.

This graduation party is to celebrate for a couple of reasons. One, to throw them a party and congratulate them for getting this far. And two, to celebrate for this chapter they have completed in their life, and the start of a new chapter that's about to begin. Not only will they appreciate the party you threw for them, but this is sure to be a memory they will never forget!

Ask The Celebration Advisor: my sis is going to turn 20 today and i wanted to have a celtic tea party but i cant find anything online i searched and searched but nothing if anybody has any ideas please rasap!!!! ~~Olivia

The Celebration Advisor: Hey Olivia!

Actually I do have some helpful information for you! Celtic tea parties center around very traditional Irish themes. The fun lies in putting your own twist on the party though. To get you started, here are some suggestions for party food and how to make your Celtic tea party a hit! Being of Irish ancestry, I'm very happy to see someone taking the ide aof a Celtic tea party and running with it. How cool!

• Alright, for party food I suggest Irish foods like Irish potato cookies, Benedictine tea sandwiches, Irish soda bread scones and similar foods. You can find these and other cool Irish recipes with a quick Google search.

• If you want a sedate party with an Irish theme, pick up a cd of soft Irish music to play in the background. You can get these at many different music stores. I have three! If you want something a little more lively, choose more upbeat Irish tunes. You could even browse local musicians and see if anyone plays a lute, a lyre, or knows any traditional Irish music.

• It may be a little too close to tea time to read, but there are a few books available about traditional Celtic tea parties of many kinds. Lively, toned down, noonday, traditional–all wrapped around Celtic traditions. "Celtic Tea with Friends" by Elizabeth Knight (Amazon carries it) even has recipes you could follow!

Best of luck and please let me know how it turns out! I look forward to seeing pictures as well!   Go n-eírí an bóthar leat. (May the road rise with you, part of a traditional Irish blessing).

Brynn with Wedding And Party Network

Everyone looks for a good reason to celebrate. Cinco De Mayo is just such a reason. After all, commemorating independence is a wonderful reason to celebrate. Although Cinco De Mayo is the celebration of Mexico's Independence from Spain, it has great significance to those in the United States as well. Mexico and the United States have fought shoulder to shoulder to protect the freedom and liberty of their citizens. This wonderful celebration can be enjoyed by anyone from anywhere. It all begins with an authentic Mexican fiesta!

Planning Your Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

• Invitations – Make them festive.  You can buy invitations or create your own. Creating your own invitations can be fun and inexpensive.  Whether you buy party invitations or create your own, make sure they are colorful and festive.  Get creative with your designs. Use maracas, Mexican flags and the colors red, green and white as your part of your invitation theme since these are the national colors of Mexico.
• Decorations – Make them come alive. If you want to make this fiesta memorable, go over-the-top with your decorations! Include sombreros, Mexican colors (red, white, and green), colorful streamers and a lot of party balloons in your decoration scheme.  The more bright and festive colors used the better.
• Food – Make it tasty & spicy.  Food is the main attraction and the one thing everyone looks forward to at a party. Don't limit yourself.  Any type of Mexican food will be a star at this festive party.  Think spicy, think flavorful when you plan the food selections. Chicken molé, tamales, tacos along with chips and salsas are pretty standard fare for a Cinco De Mayo celebration.  Don't forget the sweets.  Cream cheese flan or sopapillas dipped in honey are great items for the dessert table.
• Entertainment – Make it active.  Every celebration needs entertainment.  Add excitement to the fiesta by incorporating activities as part of the entertainment. Teach your guests to do the macarena or have a piñata for the children. At any fiesta music is a MUST! Add a little musical spice by playing cumbia, salsa, or any latin music that you would enjoy.
• The Finale – Light up the Sky.  In many countries, fireworks are a traditional way to end the celebration.  Plan a firework demonstration for the end of the party.

Regardless of the decorations you choose, the food you cook, or music you play, a well planned fiesta is sure to be a great success!

Coming up with a party idea for a teenager is difficult. If I can come up with a party theme, I find it usually helps.  A friend of mine decided that her son's passion for the environment would make a great theme for his 14th birthday party.  This teenager is all about being eco-minded and recycling.  So going "green" for his party was a natural choice.

She bought recycled birthday party invitations, paper plates and napkins. They held the party at one of our local parks.  For entertainment, the kids participated in a trash scavenger hunt.  Of course, she pre-arranged this activity with the park rangers.  Yep, my friend had a good idea, one that provided entertainment for the kids and a community service for the park.

Each scavenger (kid) was given a list (on recylced-paper) of trash items: soda bottles, water bottles, papers, etc. The first to bring back all the trash on the list won a prize.  In my friend's case, she went with a green prize (as in cash). It wasn't much money, but, the teens sure enjoyed the hunt for trash.

As party favors, she gave each guest a pair of cotton gloves (used during the scavenger hunt), a few packets of seeds, and peat pots filled soil.  Her bakery made a recycle birthday cake that was unique.  No, it wasn't previously used.  It was in the shape of a recycling container including a recycling symbol with a number 14. Although decorations were kept minimal, she was able to find recycled products including napkins and plates at her local party store.

All of this she did for her son, the eco-friendly kid.  This party was a hit with his friends and one that he whole-heartily enjoyed. I heard him tell her "it was the best party ever, it was fun and not wasteful".

Side note: they recycled everything they used that day and collected.

la fiesta Quinceanera- A Young Woman’s Fifteenth Birthday Celebration

In Spanish "quince" means fifteen and "años" means year. Originating with the Aztec culture, the la fiesta Quinceañera or Quinceaños is the custom of having a special 15th birthday celebration. Later the celebration was incorporated into the Mexican and Latin American cultures.  Through the years these cultures have added their own traditional elements to the celebration.

Historically the celebration has been referred to as Quinceaños and the celebrant as the Quinceañera.  Many today refer to both the party and the participant as Quinceañera.  Although this is a cultural celebration, the symbolic atmosphere surrounding this coming of age party offers a way for any family to recognize the importance of family and community in the transformation of a young girl in to a young lady.

A Quinceañera - Where It Begins
Traditionally, the quinceañera begins with a very important ceremony held in a church where a special mass is celebrated. During this ceremony, the priest presents the young lady as an adult member of the congregation.  This begins the formal recognition of the young girls transformation into adulthood.

After the church service (similar to a Bat Mitzvah), the young lady continues on to a reception similar to a sweet sixteen party. Since community and friendship play an intricate part in this celebration, she is accompanied by seven female attendants (damas) and seven male attendants (chambelánes) as she makes her entrance at the party. Every component of this celebration plays an special part in the symbolic nature of this young girl's emergence into adulthood.

Appropriate Attire For A Quinceañera

In keeping with the formality of the celebration the attire is also very formal. The young lady shows her respect and honored status by wearing a beautiful ball gown usually with a petticoat or hoop slip. Pure or soft colors, such as white or pastel colors like pink, blue or yellow, are often the dress colors chosen.

Customarily, the quinceañera girl chooses to wear a white dress and has her damas wear a pastel color in the same style of dress. With cumber buns that match the damas' dresses, the chambelánes wear tuxedos. Although these are the more traditional colors, this celebration is defined by the personality of the young lady.

Many young 15 year olds want their special celebration to be unique. So, you may see them wear dresses that are red, purple, or even a mixture of colors.

Invitations For A Quinceanera

Quinceañera invitations are just like any other party invitation. Styles can vary from very formal to theme invitations and sent several weeks in advance of the party.  Invitations should be sent no later than a month before the quinceañera.  This will give guests plenty of time to find a formal outfit for the party.

Formal invitations are sent inviting special friends to be the attendants for the celebration. These invitations are sent several months prior to the celebration.  This allows for coordination of all the participants as well as time for dress and tuxedo fittings.

Accessorizing The Quinceañera

You will find accessories hold great importance in this celebration. Some important accessories are gloves, scepter, tiara, a quinceañera doll, as well as ring or bracelet. A tiara and scepter signify not only that she is a princess, but that she reigns over her past childhood and looks forward to being a responsible young lady.

The quinceañera doll is usually given to her by her grandparents and will often be made of porcelain and have the same style and color dress as hers. The doll symbolizes the last doll she will ever get as she has now stepped into womanhood.  This is only one of many symbolic gifts given to the quinceañera.

Her "padrinos" (godparents) present her with a very special gift of honor; usually a bracelet, necklace or earrings.

Celebrating the Quinceañera – Decoration, Music and Photo Ops

The party can be a very lavish affair or a simple get together. Decorations can be anything from balloons to streamers as well as candles and flowers. Yes, even themed quinceañera parties, such as a 50’s theme, can be found at these celebrations. Basic traditions still apply. However as with any party, each girl has her own unique way of celebrating her fifteenth birthday. Some young ladies choose a horse drawn carriage to take them from the church to the reception area. Others may choose a limousine which can transport all her attendants.

The celebrated young lady often takes her first waltz or dance with her father. After she has danced with her father, the quinceañera is free to dance with her chambelánes or even her damas. You may even find a bit of a new twist on the dance floor with a choreographed dance done by the quinceañera girl and her damas and chamblanes. This is often done to more contemporary music played by a live band or by a Disc Jockey. Video is recommended for this part as photographs don’t capture the fun movements of the dance. You will also want to make sure that you have hired a photographer for formal pictures of the young lady with her damas and chambelánes as well her family.

Treats For Quinceañera Guests – Party Favors, Food and Drink

Most quinceañera celebrations are catered. While any food can be served for the party, Latin food is often served. Items such as enchiladas, peccadillo, and tamales make great choices. The main attraction at the food table is the cake which is ornate and similar to a wedding cake. Some cakes have cute cake toppers, while others are elaborate multi-tiered cakes with artistic ornamentation. Beverages run the gamut from  punches to soda and from wine to champagne.  You will often find punch fountains, champagne fountains and even chocolate fountains at these celebrations.

Just like any birthday party you will find party favors. Decorate the tables with party favors such as little mint tins with the name of the young lady and the date, chocolates that go with the theme, or even place cards held up with commemorative take home candles. All make sweet gifts to say thank you for celebrating this special day with me.

A quinceañera is a very special tradition that many Latin cultures hold dear. It is a time to say goodbye to their young daughter, cousin, sister, or friend and say welcome to the beginning of adulthood and responsibility. It holds religious significance as well and often the priest will ask the young lady’s friends to commit to her, to help her in making good decision as she grows older. It is a time to say goodbye to her childhood and embrace her newly found womanhood.

While rooted in Latin American tradition, you can have a quinceañera party for any one who's turning fifteen. Taking the basic idea of this tradition and making one of your own for your teen, will make an outstanding party any teen will proud to have. Since "quinceanera" is merely Spanish for fifteenth year, all you need is a beautiful party dress, some attendants and of course a soon to be fifteen year old and viola! A quinceañera party is well on its way.

A special thanks goes to:

Get The Picture Inc , an Austin Texas Photographer, who shared their beautiful photo of a Quinceanera with tiara.

Ella Park Bridal, a Wedding and Quinceanera dress company in Newburgh Indiana, who gave a gorgeous example of a Quinceanera gown.

Festive Ice Sculptures and The Chocolate Fountain Co., a provider of awesome chocolate fountains in the Watford Ontario area, for the fantastic photo of the chocolate and fruit table.