Birthday Party Ideas - Port Chester, NY

Hi K. - I find planning kids parties a lot of fun, but often overwhelming when you start. I have found the best format for me is to start with some coloring pages or similar activity (that can be easily interrupted and finished at a differnt time) to keep kids busy until everyone arrives. Then use a story line to keep kids together - I've used a Blue's Clues format, a letter from Cinderella with clues that lead them to find the next activity, and even a Dora map to lead them to the cake...

I have found a ton of activity ideas at http://www.birthdaypartyideas.com it is arranged by type of party and age group. I have been picking and choosing from a lot of those party ideas to create one that fits my daughters' idea of fun (and the size of my house and budget).

Have Fun!

You could:

-do leaf rubbings (so easy- leaves, paper, and crayons)

-have a scavenger hunt with a nature theme (ex: red leaf, stick, cool rock, etc.)

-play outdoor or indoor "freeze dance" (Pick a fun pumpkin or fall song, and play it on a boom box. Kids have to freeze whenever the music stops, and the last one standing gets a prize. Or just play without prizes- my students LOVED this game!)

Let us know what you decided to do, so we get ideas too!

We're celebrating my daughter's 1st birthday. It's a family party (about 25 people). Here are some games we're going to play - most can be taken indoors in the case of yuck weather.

1. Hay rides - we have a little pull wagon and I'm going to pull the kids around the yard to a "pumpkin patch" where they can pick a little pumpkin to take home.

2. snap apple- it's a very hygenic version of bobbing for apples. You tie the apples to a string and then the person has to bite into one. Blind folded if they're adults or not if they are a small kids.

3. Pin the leaf on the tree - I just made a big tree out of brown construction paper and a fall colored leaf for every member of the family. At the end, the tree should be filled with the names of everyone in the family. Everybody wins this one. :)

4. Windsocks - I'm having the kids make fall themed wind socks. (The kids at this party are all pre-k aged). So I'll have fall themed pictures pre cut out, construction paper, crepe paper, pre-cut string, a few glue sticks, and a hole punch. The kids can decorate the windsocks and the adults can help them put them together.

5. Pinata - the only fall like pinata I could find was of a turkey. So it will have to do. We always do a pinata at every party.

I hope these ideas help. Have a great party!

Pumpkin painting is always a hit at any age. Get waterbased paint and you realy don't have to worry. Another thing you can go is go to a craft store and purchase the foam masks and let the kids decorate them with all different things, like sequins, shapes or anything else they might like. It it is going to be mostly girls you can even let them make bead bracelets and necklaces with age appropriate beads. The best place for ideas is your local caft store. ust walk around the isles and you will be surprised what you find. You might even find someone who works there and they might have suggestions!! Good luck and have fun!!!

craft projects are great! kids this age also love temporary tattoos and face/hand paiting. i've found that if you have older nieces or neighbors, they think its just to run that kind of activity for the little ones. look at orientaltrading.com -- buy craft kids by the dozen very cheap. have them decorate their own goodie bags.

Get some small pumpkins and paint them as a craft. Bob for apples. Rake up leaves and have a jumping contest who can jump the highest in to the leaves or from the farthest spot. Face painting. Indian Corn toss or relay race. Pin the steam on the pumpkin. Dress a scarecrow.Candy apple hunt (hide them around a small area and have the kids search for them and that be their gift) If I can think of more I"ll post again.

A few ideas I have...

You can have a pumpkin carving party. You can buy pumpkins for the kids along with pumpkin carving kits. It becomes the activity and also the party favor. Look online for a pumpkin pie recipe and attach it to the pumpkin kit.
You can also have a pumpkin seed roaster.
You can have the kids collect leaves and do a collage with them and add paint.
Have the kids make a scarecrow or little mini ones
Bake halloween cookies

you have a lot of great suggestions from other moms, but I'll add a couple more - or repeat ones I like...
if your weather is good and the party's outside, you could have a sack race. Dig out a bunch of old pillowcases and have the kids jump across the yard, gets out lots of energy :)
Also, I like the pumpkin painting (not carving for 3yos) and either leaf rubbings, or leaf prints - paint the surface and then press a piece of white paper over top - the kids can turn these into nice fall cards (halloween/thanksgiving) by gluing the white paper with the print onto a folded piece of construction paper. Have fun!

You can have them collect leaves and glue them onto paper and make them into little leaf people. Collect some a few days before just in case they cannot go out on the actually day of the party. painting small pumpkins or gourdes is also fun. or a halloween theme party since it's so close to halloween. I have my own party favor business if you are interested in personalized party favors for the kids. www.littleshopoffavors.com. Mention Mamasourse and get a 10% discount on your order. Good luck with the party!

The most important thing to remember is that kids like to DO, not watch. Don't hire a clown or a face painter. Kids would much rather paint their own faces. Good activities:
1. Buy or bake a plain white frosted cake and give one tube of squeeze tube frosting to each child. Let THEM decorate the cake. They will scribble all over it and have a ball. It will also be delicious. You really don't need roses and Disney characters on a cake. The kids will love eating a ckae they "made".
2. Check out S & S Worldwide. I buy a lot of my supplies from them. They make a lot of plain, white items that kids can decorate ( umbrellas, t-shirts, lunch boxes etc etc etc.) Recently I have been using plain white, porcelain piggy banks, reading the children an old book called "The Painted Pig" and having them decorate piggy banks. The younger children paint all over it, older children create intricate designs. They love it! I am doing it for 100 children for Easton's annual town party in December. I did it for an elementary school last June for 400 children! Everyone loved it.
3. Kids can also draw all over their own party bags, fill them with their "party favors" and take them home. I always have them CREATE all of their own party favors I wrote a book that has a chapter on how to give a kids party. The book is called YOUNG AT ART. Check it out at SusanStriker.com

My daughter turns 3 on the 27th!! We are having one big party, mixture of friends and family. She is the only baby of the family so I am asking kids to come about 2 hours earlier than adults who may not want to hang out the whole time. We are doing the princess theme with some princess related games and activities. For fall, you guys can paint pumpkins, there are tons of different things to do with leaves, or even go out and build a scarecrow or something along those lines. Have FUN!!!

Hi K.! Why don't you have the kiddies paint pumpkins for Halloween or do some Halloween crafts?
The kids love that sort of stuff and it'll get them excited about going trick or treating while still celebrating your daughters bday.

You are so lucky to have a fall birthday so there is the outdoor possibility! (we have a December birthday so I always have to have it somewhere)
I would give a call to Muscoot Farm in Somers -I've heard they do birthday parties and they have indoor rooms -we are heading there in a few minutes for a Halloween Decoration making event -I called and this is indoors so if it rains, it's not an issue.
I don't know where you live but I just heard about another place called Westmoreland Sanctuary -in Bedford -maybe, they do bday parties as well -just a suggestion.
We had our 3rd party -last year -at GymTime in Elmsford and everyone loved it.
Good luck!
M.

walmart has these plastic face pieces to put in pumpkins(like the Mr. potato head theme)...you could scatter small pumpkins outside and have the kids go "pick" their own pumpkin...and then they can make the faces, you could use yarn for hair...it's a lot easier and cleaner than carving or painting.
you could also modify the oldies but goodies..."hot pumpkin" pass a small pumpkin around til everyone wins a small prize....if you have extra costumes you could use that in a relay with the parents, or even a costume party...although some parents might not want to get cake on the kiddies costumes right before they go trick-or-treating...pin the face on the jack-o-lantern, search for something in a pile of leaves,the ideas are endless...and remember, they're 3...they're easy to please! have fun....my son is Oct. 30th, last year we went apple picking with friends...or a pumpkin patch is fun too...of course he'll be 8 this year...so we're being "cooler" now :)

You have the perfect birth date for a halloween themed birthday party. Get a cute decorations (happy not scary of course). You could buy little pumpkins (you know the tiny ones) and have the tops ccut off and have the kids clean them our and decorate them with markers. Do a "candy hunt ala easter egg hunt for small prizes/candies or other treats to put into their (plastic lined) little pumpkins. They'll be busy and go home with a relatively inexpensive party favor that they created themselves. Also - don't invite too many kids!! good luck and have fun - I miss my girls being small enough for this stuff.