the MRS. & the MOMMA: MC: Birthday Party Ideas

I am part of an AWESOME mommy panel with Cassie from Two In Diapers and Julie from Naptime Review.

Each Saturday, we will bring you fresh new ideas and advice about motherhood.

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Coming on April 20th, we will discuss:

What are your tricks for successful grocery shopping with your children?

Now on to this week's topic!

What are you favorite fun birthday party activities for preschoolers?

Here is what Mom Connection shared:

Welcome! I'm Julie over at Naptime Review. I am a mom of two wild, crazy and beautiful girls. My oldest just turned 4 and my baby is 16 months old. These are some fun birthday party activities for preschoolers:

I love planning parties!

Once I pick a theme, I plan snacks, games, and treats to coordinate with the theme. Averie has had a pj& pancake party, camping party, and a baking party. Alice has had a pool party! So much easier to plan summer birthday parties. I am working on Alice's 2nd birthday party already. The theme is lady bugs. I can't belive my baby turns 2 this summer.

I get my inspiration from Pinterest and Parenting Magazine. They always have fun and creative ways to personalize your child's party. I buy all my party supplies online. I usually just google the theme and tons of suggestions pop up. Love the digital age! Google works greats for party invites as well. The secret to planning parties for preschoolers is to over plan your activities and to keep them moving. Preschoolers love to move and have a short attention span. I always try to have a table activity while we are waiting for guests to arrive. Then I plan mini activities that last around 5-10 minutes each! If they kids are enjoying an activity we stick with it. Some things have flopped and somethings have been a success.

Parties are a lot of work but very rewarding. I love watching my children and their friends have fun and enjoy themselves!

Hi! I'm Cassie from Two In Diapers, and I'm a mommy to three sweet babies, ages 5, 3, and 20 months. These are some fun birthday party activities for preschoolers:

Well, although I completely love planning parties for my littles, I am sad to say that I have little knowledge in this area! You see, we decided when we had our first that the kiddos would have family-only birthday parties until they turned 5. At this age, they could have their first "friend" birthday. Our sweet Emily did just celebrate her 5th birthday, but we held her party at a fun play place. This left nothing for me to plan except the dessert! Even though I really enjoyed not having the before-cleaning or the after-mess to deal with, I seriously missed party planning!

Although this was our family's first "friend" party, we have occasionally cheated on the family-only rule and invited a friend who's parents we were also friends with. In this case we have had a piñata {who could go wrong with a piñata?} and, another time, coloring-page placemats for the kiddos. We also often have dress-up themed birthday parties for the kids and their cousins to enjoy - the most recent was a princess and knight themed party. The kids always seem to have more fun running around the house in costume!

For future at-home birthday parties, I will definitely be scouting Pinterest! :)

My name is Fotini! I blog over at Glamorous Affordable Life. I am the mom of (Isabella 2 years and Christian 6 years). These are some fun birthday party activities for preschoolers:

I absolutely adore preparing for my kids’ birthdays!! It’s so much fun to make their big day special! I start preparing about three months in advance and start by picking my theme and colors, and go from there! Little ones really seem to like piñatas which is such a hoot to watch! You can buy them from stores like Target or Walmart or you can find out how to make your own here. Last year for Christian, we did a carnival themed birthday party which you can view here and we played games like ring toss, bean bag toss, potato sack races and pong.

This year for Isabella’s birthday we will play games like pin the crown on the princess, hula hoops, bubble blowing contest and balloon toss. The ages of kids that will be coming to her party vary in ages but I think this is a good variety for everyone to participate in!

My name is Kristen from The Mrs. & The Momma. I'm the momma of three girls (ages 7, 5, & 3) and a little boy (18 months). These are some fun birthday party activities for preschoolers:

Over the course of the last seven years and four kids, we've thrown our share of birthday parties. Some were a huge success and some were just okay...but my favorite party activities include:

-Decorating pillowcases (Slumber party theme and this was also their party favor.)

-Lightsaber battle (made with pool noodles and electrical tape)

-Fingernail painting

-Decorate your own cupcake

-Water gun fight

-Piñatas are always a hit

-Makeshift picture booth with props (can print here out and use as thank you notes)