I love giving parties, do you need some ideas?

[ShirleyKnot]

Hello!

If you don't know me I'm Shirley and I'm a great lover of planning parties. I do a blog about it (which I'm not going to link here, but if you look on the bloggers network for PartySpanner you'll find me)

ANYWAY

If you're chucking a do, I might be able to help - I'm not a business, I don't charge for my ideas or owt, I just love to trawl the internet find good invite ideas, games and food.

Jump in and I'll see if I can help.

Are they the ones for decorating Blathers? I need to make some paper toadstools later, and get DH to help me make tree trunks from brown paper but he keeps looking at me blank. I couldnt get any dark brown paper cheap enough so I'm gonna cut tree shapes out of parcel paper (my xmas poncetastic wrapping) and then draw the details on to it. Need DH though cos i cant climb up high to see how big against the wall.

DD woke me up at six am to say "Mummy, Mummy I slept in my own bed like such a big girl, will you make the mouse today?" urghhhh.

Gruffalo is finished and on my profile updated, but he's still sat on my rolling pin. He'll need to give it up soon so I can put him on a log but his backside just doesnt seem relenting!

too late to save your fingers, this time, Blathers, but for next time I can recommend this seller of die-cut paper shapes - you can even specify colours if you want/need to.

My fingers are sore from making thatch for Noah's Ark with the sugar shaper, and the stupid stuff is reacting as real thatch would to having a giraffe head stuck through it (i.e. it's all falling off!) I am going to have to do a rescue job tonight as it is too fragile to transport, but I can't get too sucked into it as I still have a dragon hatchling to do, having messed up the online grocery order so the ingredients didn't arrive yesterday .

Now need to pretend I had more than 4 hours sleep for a day at work [yawn].

Good Luck with the mouse, DW - your DD is very focussed, isn't she (reminds me of my own DD - promises of "yes, sometime..." are fatal - she never forgets)

Oh lord yes my DD forgets nothing and her vocabulary makes her either highly amusing or intensely irritating. Playschool stopped me last week to say that she was "amazing" I honestly thought they were being sarcastic and cringed asking why. They said they have to remind each other that she isnt even 3 yet. She's terrible with her comments and demands. Last week my mum carved a pumpkin with a face on it. I then did one martha stewart style whilst she was asleep of a spooky house as a surprise.

DD came down in the morning "What is that? What's it meant to be? A house? where's the eyes? and the mouth. It needs a face like this . It's no good mummy!"

When I was on the phone to my mum she came over to shout "Nanny can you come and give this pumpkin some eyes and sort it out for me".

I cannot wait to see noahs ark Stealth. Even more than the dragon.

I did look online but they're all way too big. To fit on the invites, the teddies need to be about 2cms tall and all the ones I found online were 7 or 8cms.

So I have to cut them by hand. I've done 11. I think I need about 20 so I'm just over halfway there.

People better sodding appreciate the effort

They might will - DD's wooden spoon invitations for cooking party were very well received.

small teddy bear punch

I've got a mini teddy bear punch! I'm not sure that would go through felt though would it?

The one I've got is too small anyway, I was going to do the inside of the O with it before i forgot i had it :)

DS wants a Pizza making party for his birthday in March. I'm considering paying Pizza Express to do the slog and the clearing up but I might have to pinch the wooden spoon idea for the invites stealth.

Shame on you blathers for subcontracting a party esp when stealth did the practice run for you

It's a space thing. Our house is tiny. DS's circle of friends is not.

Plus, I don't have to tidy up the mess

Too right. Never again am i going to host a party in the house!! How old do dc's have to be before you can steer it to invite a friend to the cinema type job? Mind you I cannot even bare to contemplate whole class parties?!!!!

DS is 4.5

For his first birthday I did 2 parties at home - 1 for his friends (with a lady that came round to do hand prints on ceramic things) and 1 for the family and it was still crammed!

2nd birthday we hired out the same community centre DD is having and took a load of his toys down and let them run wild. I did a vague Jungle theme and we made snakes out of long socks and stuffing.

3rd birthday we did messy play at a Ceramic painting place.

4th birthday he asked to go to the Sea Life Centre as he was totally obsessed with the Octonauts and we took a cake to the Soft Play centre to share with his friends.

He's old enough now to chose what he wants to do and which friends he wants to invite (with a little encouragement) so hopefully parties will get a bit smaller and a lot more interesting.

I haven't done a party at home since DS's 2nd birthday (he is 9 tomorrow!). Cooking party was in the village hall, which has several ovens, although not, it turned out, enough to cook 20 mini pizzas in one go (cue ever-so-slightly-stressed DH).

To answer your question, DW - parties seem to fade out between 7 and 9. I actually quite relish the challenge of whole class parties (but then again, the largest class either DC has ever been in was 22 DC) and am reaching the stage of being slightly and regretful that I have probably already done DS's last "fun" party.

Blathers are you going to do table confetti with your mini teddy punch?

Ooo yes table confetti is great idea. Get punching!
22 kids. That fills me with horror. Ive got ten kids coming, their all family or family friends. Cant envisage how horrific to do a party with strange children ha ha. At least these and their parents are forgiving on my headless chicken act.

Our local fireworks display was tonight, theres another at a neighbouring village tomorrow. We managed to get dd to stay in her own bed by promising her fireworks party tonight. All day she's talked about it. Dh has spotted on local paper website its cancelled. Dd burst into tears thinking it was some kind of punishment. Her absolute disappointment made me cry. Dh has found an event on the steam railway, travel by steam train to see fireworks and fairground then come back on the train. I cant wait to see her face after being so heartbroken.

Table confetti for 2 year olds? No way. They'd eat it!

The steam railway fireworks sound amazing DW. We're going down to the local school (that I didn't send DS to ) tomorrow night. I'm hoping DS has gotten over his fear of fireworks by now and doesn't end up with his head buried in our shoulders all night again. He loves the idea and is very excited about meeting up with his friend to go but he always changes his mind once the bangs start!

He never gets upset or begs to go home btw - he just won't watch.

Lol at being scared but not going home. Last year was the first time we took dd, we warned her it would be loud and scary. But she fell asleep!!!!

Steam train and fireworks sounds fab! I am not taking DS. Two years ago I took him and he fell in the hook a duck pond! Completely soaked through and bawling, bit traumatic. We sorted him and took him outside for the fireworks and he was petrified! I thought he might be ready for another try this year but he said not. He is a bit of a wuss bless him.

DW - Gruffalo looks great.

As much as I love this thread I am still quite pleased that the football coaches are doing the entertaining this year. Last year was a bit hectic. I just have the food to worry about. Going to try and get some cheap cute party bag fillers this weekend.

Now then - any ideas for a New Years eve party where the age range is 4 - 60+ years?! How to keep everyone happy I wonder? We are going away with the inlaws and there will be 10 of all in all. My inlaws never plan anything and I want to have some games and nice treats up my sleeve to make it a bit more bearable memorable!

Eggrules - I saw these today - don't know if you have already had your party, or bought everything already or not, but I thought they looked cool and so would link you to them! You could split the pack up or have them as a pass the parcel present?

Oh those science bubbles are great. I've made the snake, log and mouse for the cake. Bloody mouses tail snapped so i superglued it. Then i've made a massive tree for the wall and paper toadstools to put at the bottom. Bought 25 balloons in varying shades of green to hang from the ceiling and a giant gruffalo floor puzzle. Gonna do the jigsaw hunt suggestion as all the kids are so little. Thought be great to build it together on the floor. I got little packs of colouring pencils for party bags and some of those jointed snakes.

The fireworks. Mil rang to say she'd meet us at the other station to surprise dd. Fab. They never do anything with dd on her own they always bring their other grandaughter. Dh was thrilled she was getting some one to one time. Went to the steam train station, it was all victorian even the toilet which fascinated dd. We told her she had another surprise and arrived at the other station to a bonfire, mil fil and... Other grandaughter. Shock. She was petrified of fireworks so my dd pretended to be. Spent whole time cajouling one and reprimanding the other. Niece was so so bad mannered, demanding toys, sweets etc to the point that i stepped in to say 'whats the magic word'. Dd didnt get a look in with gp's. Then they started on about me working through my maternity leave (i work for them). It was awful awful night. And i was so excited about it. Gutted.

Apologies for blatantly coming on here for ideas and then buggering off - have been up to my eyeballs in party prep/ car breakdowns, etc. etc.

TDW that Gruffalo is amazing - really impressed! Sorry you've had a shitty night. and

DS's party was this afternoon and it went really well! We didn't bother with Jedi robes in the end - too much like hard work - I just put on a dressing gown and 'made' a light saber out of pipe insulation with duct tape at one end for me. It looked like, well, pipe insulation but one of the boys took quite a shine to it and carried it around the whole time.

Cake - pic on profile, I could kiss the person who invented ready-to-roll icing. I did the Nigella party cake recipe and it is, if I say so myself, bloody gorgeous . I had to shove the damn stormtrooper in knee-deep to get him to stop toppling over though.

I also made a Death Star pinata (pic on profile) which took some whacking but they loved doing that. We seemed to go through party games pretty quickly so we had Jedi training (keepy-uppys with balloons and light sabers), pass the parcel (from DS's birthday TWO YEARS AGO that we've not yet found time for til today ), musical statues (with liberal doses of Haribo for the 'losers') and Death Star destroying (filled it with chocolate coins). It took a lot of hitting and some coaxing to break - if I'm ever mad enough to attempt one again, maybe only two layers...

All went well, no tears, only annoyance was one boy who used to hit DS and DD1 (he has calmed down a bit now, hence why he was invited) asking me 'Why were you so silly before and wouldn't let me come over to play?'
So I just thought 'sod it' and told him the truth. And then gave him a slice of cake with a massive corner of thick icing just before home time. Mwa-ha-ha!

Oh TheDW I'm really sorry to hear your evening was ruined , and especially so for your dd

MinnieBB I can't access your profile and see your photos. I really want to see the cake! And good for you for telling the truth. And I'm impressed by the Jedi training. Sounds like a really successful party. Now where are those cake photos?!

I think I forgot to carry across my profile details when I did my Halloween name change - which, obviously, I really should change back now, but then I'd probably have to update my profile again... Can you see the pics now??

Yes, can see it now, thank you.

Fantastic looking cake - very impressive writing too!

And I love the Deathstar pinata - brilliant and an inspired idea!

for your ruined evening, DW.

I will post photos of baby dragon (quite cute once I finally gave up trying to get both halves of his egg into his nest) and Noah's Ark (very well received) as soon as I have time - but right now I need to sleep

That's very annoying DW, what a shame, it sounded such a lovely idea. Families! I was quite annoyed at my SIL who knew I was on my own this weekend so we discussed going to a display together (thought my DS might like the idea if his cousins were there), but then I never heard from her so I thought she had decided not to go but it turns out she had - without me! Having said that, despite showing some interest on and off, when the fireworks were going off outside our house, DS said he preferred to watch them through the glass door as they were prettier that way! So he is officially still a wuss .

Star wars party sounds like it went really well. Cake looks great. Will have to store away ideas for another year in case DS gets the Stars Wars bug.