Star Wars Party

For my oldest son's 7th birthday we did a Star Wars theme. We did it as young Padawans going through the Jedi training.

Invitations

For the invitations, I scanned some pictures from a Star Wars easy reader book we had around the house. On the front of the card I put a picture of Yoda and wrote "Invited You Are...". On the inside I wrote "To begin your training" and then the party details.  I printed them on half fold cardstock invitations. I had leftovers from a previous year, so I did not have to spend money on these cards.

Activities

My two older boys showing off their skills with a light sabers.

I printed out some Star Wars coloring sheets from the internet for each child to do as they came in.

The games were the "Jedi Trials". I made a little book for each child to keep track of each trial the complete and gave them sticker to put in their book when they completed each trial.

Trial One, Constructing the Light Saber

To make each light saber we bought 1" foam insulation from a local hardware store. One foam insulation was a foot long and cost about $1 a piece. We were able to get three sabers out of each piece. We then let the child choose a color for the saber and wrapped the insulation with colored duct tape. We wrapped the end with silver duct tape to make the handle.

Trial Two, Light Saber training

For this trial, I let my son do some fancy moves with his saber in front of everyone. The other children then would copy his moves. Kind of like a Simon says game. Then the kid's got to fight each other with their sabers.

Trial Three, Learning to control mind powers

Before the party, I blew up several balloon. During this trial, the children had to balance the balloons on their light sabers. Very fun.

Trial Four, Locating the asteroids

I wrapped candy in foil and hid it around the house. Then I let the child hunt for it.

Trial Five, Testing you knowledge of the force

For this trial, I made up questions about the Star Wars movies: "New Hope", "The Empire Strikes back" and "Return of the Jedi". 

When they successfully completed all the trials each Jedi received a certificate.  To make the certificate, I used the same picture of Yoda from the invitation. Next to the picture, I wrote "Now a Jedi Knight you are.". Then "(the child's name) has successfully mastered the Jedi trial on this day (date)." At the bottom I signed it "Yoda"

Decorations

The decorations for this party were very simple. I mainly used things I already had. I decorated the house with little star wars figures, ships and posters. I bought a star wars table cloth, plates and napkins at a party store. Since I was spending so little on everything else, I splurged and got licensed paper goods.

My death star cake

Cake

I could not find a cake that I liked. So I decided to create my own. I made a death star cake. I used one cake batter and split it between two 4 cup batter bowls (actually I used the same bowl twice). Then I stacked the two cakes together creating what looked like a giant egg. I dyed frosting a gray color used black dye and frosted the whole cake grey. I used a tooth pick to etch a design on it to look like the death star. I then dyed some tooth picks green and stuck them out of the cake to look like a beam, using super glue to glue the toothpicks together. I stuck a Darth Vader candle on top of the cake. I placed cupcakes around the cake and decorated them like planets. To drink, we had Yoda Soda. Which was lemon lime soda with lime sherbet in it.

 

 

Early Planning

So it's after Christmas and now I am in full party planning mode. I have one birthday in January, one in March and two in May to plan for. So it's one party after another for me, the next few months. My first party will be a Under the Sea party for my 9 year old. I have found that the earlier start planning the more money you can save. I usually at least set a theme about 6 months or more before the actual party. I am lucky enough that my children do not change their minds about the party they want. The reason I do this is because it gives me time to look for the best deal for things and collect things as I find them. For example, I knew I would need Swedish fish for my Under the Sea party. When I found a Buy One Get One Free coupon, I was able to buy them at a discounted price. Also the party store was clearancing out Under the Sea products several months back and I picked those up at discounted prices to store until I needed them. Plus, my March party will be a treasure hunting party and I picked up some Reeces Peanut butter cups (which has gold wrapping) for my treasure for only $1.50 a bag. Not only am I saving money on my party supplies, but I am not forced to buy all at once, spreading out the expense. In my case this does mean I am "planning" several parties at once. This may sound overwhelming, but I am not planning all the details at once, just a basic theme. When I find something at a good price that will go with the theme, I get it then I work it in during the party planning process. I will be posting more details on my parties along with pictures after we have them.

Fabulous Birthday card

I made this birthday card for my children's grandma. I got three cards for .99 cents. A special that shutterfly.com runs often.

Classic Green Birthday 5x7 folded card

Shop hundreds of birthday invitations at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Sleepover Cake

I made this Sleep over cake for a friend's daughter. I got the idea at Family Fun. I pretty much followed the recipe exactly. For the flowers, I bought "snowflake" sprinkles and decorated them with gel icing. This cake was a hit at the little girl's sleepover. It was simple and fun to make. Give it a try.

Tip of the Day

Be on the look out at dollar stores, garage sales, and clearance aisles for inexpensive party supplies. For example, I found a train happy birthday banner at the dollar store. What a find! Another time, I found little dinosaur bone 3D puzzles. This made a fabulous game for a dinosaur party.

Super Hero Training Camp

For my oldest's 6th birthday, we did a Super Hero Training party. It was a blast. We called it a super hero training camp. The kids went through different courses or training to develop the super hero ability. They kids each had their training manuals to follow and final test, graduating at the end of their training. We did not focus on any one super hero. That made the party easier, since we could bring in elements from several different super heroes.

Invitations  

I like to design my own invitations. Often I scan pictures that go along with my theme and use a desktop publishing program to design the perfect invitations. For this party I had picked up a sheet of marvel hero stickers. I scanned the stickers and used them to decorate my invitations. I also had a superman shield sticker (this sticker came in a special super hero airhead candy I bought as a favor) I scanned and used. The front of the card simply said "We want you!". Then the inside said, "Bryson thinks you have what it takes to be a super hero. We'd like to invite you to our training facility." The details of the party followed. I bought a 20 pack of greeting card printer paper, envelopes included. My son then handed them out at school. This was my biggest party. We invited the entire class plus family, however we only had a total of 10 kids. This was also my first party in which the parents just dropped the kids off and picked them up later.

Decorations

Originally the decorations consisted of pictures of different super heroes that I printed off my computer. But while shopping for last minute supplies I came across a wall hang of superman. It was very cool and on clearance for $7.  This became a fantastic backdrop for photos.

Games and Activities

• When each guest arrived they received a  bag with their name on it which contained their training kit: a cape, mask and training manual. Then they went to the table to decorate their training manual. I made the capes out of felt and ribbon. I bought a yard of felt at a local craft store, about $2 a yard. I was able to get 4 capes out of each sheet. The felt was folded in quarters which I used as a guideline for each cape. I bought two packages of 8 Maudie Gra masks at the dollar store.  The training manual had the name of the "courses" in the training and they were rewarded a sticker when they completed the course. This kids take this very seriously, make sure everyone gets their sticker.
• The first course was "Demonstrating strength". For this course I blew up a package of silver balloons, $1 for 25. I instructed the super heroes to crush the "rocks", or sit on the balloons and pop them, that threatened the city.  After they crushed all the rocks, I informed them that all good super heroes clean up their mess. Each child was given a sticker in their manual.
• The next course was "Capturing the Super villain". For this game the kids tied the super villain, played by my husband, by wrapping him up in toilet paper. We found that this was easier for the kids to do with a pencil in the middle of the roll. Each child earned a sticker for this.
• The last course to take was "Protecting the innocent". This game was a treasure  hunt. The young super heroes trainees followed clues to find a young child who had been kidnapped, a doll, and their party favors. The favors were a special Superman airhead, Marvel heroes candy, Marvel heroes stickers and Spider man tattoos. 
• After completing all of the courses, there was a graduation ceremony. I handed out diplomas, I bought from the dollar store. The diplomas already had each child's own name on it. 
• After the graduation, the super villain ran off with the party cupcakes and as their first official act as super heroes, the children had to track them down. This was the best part of the party!

Cake and Ice cream

• For this party, I did not make a cake. I made cupcakes and topped them with small superman figurines, I found at Michaels on clearance.
• Instead of ice cream, I found Spider Man and Green Goblin Popsicle.
• We did not serve snacks at this party.

Science Party for about $45

We did this party for my oldest son's 8th birthday and it is one of my favorites. I was afraid it would be too much like school, but all the kids had a blast. I modeled this party from an article I saw in Family Fun Magazine. I took several elements from this party and added some of my own stuff.

Decorations

For the decorations, I made a poster for the door of an fictional scientist on my computer. It said welcome to Bryson Laboratories. I also made colorful splotches on my computer and placed them randomly around the house. I had my heart set on making this Lab test centerpiece, I had all the ingredients, but I ran out of time.   If you decide to make this, it is very inexpensive. Gelatin runs a couple of dollars for a package of 8. And you use toys that are just lying around the house. 

Props/Favors $20

• As each child came in, the received a pair of goggles and lab coat. 
• The most expensive part of this party was the "lab coats". To make lab coats, cut large adult-size white T-shirts down the middle, fold the collars back to form lapels, and secure them with double-sided tape. Stick on name tags with "Doctor" or "Professor" before each kid's name. From Family Fun.     I found 5 pack t-shirts for $9. I also used Adult  size medium, so my husband could wear the leftovers. I tried to use the double sided tape. But it just came undone while all of the "mad scientists" were working. You could try hot glue or fabric glue.  
• For the goggles, you could order them at discountsafetygear.com for $1.24 a pair. For about two years we have been taking our boys to Lowes Build and Grow workshops. They are free workshops on the 2nd and the 4th Saturday of every month. For participation in the workshop, the boys get the project, apron, patch and safety goggles. So after workshop I collected the goggels and set them aside.  We collected about 15 of them, plenty to share at the party.
• I decided not to get the gloves. I used most of budget on the shirts, so I was out of money. I also figured the kids would get tired of wearing very quickly.

Activities 
Total cost less than $10

Party guests thought the bubbling brew was cool. (no pun intended)

• After the young scientist were properly fitted, we proceeded into the laboratory. Which was the kitchen. I set up each experiment before hand, putting the proper amounts in baby food jars and other small container, so that we could move through each experiment smoothly. 
• I bought Styrofoam bowls and plastic spoons to aid in the experimentation. Cost was about $4.
• Most of the experiments I did came from Steve Spangler Science. 
• Our first "experiment" was carbonating juice, to make sparkling cider for our punch. I took a two pound block of dry ice, which I found at HEB Plus for a little over a dollar a pound, and placed it in a large bowl. Then I poured two 64 oz containers of apple juice over the top, as the children watched. Make sure you wear rubber gloves. I was pretty nervous about this experiments. I thought for sure a child was going to freeze off of finger. But I only had to give one warning of the danger and they proceeded with caution.  Now this block lasted for over an hour, I would suggest using a much smaller piece. All the kids thought the smoke was very cool.
• Next we did the classic baking soda and vinegar. I collected empty water bottles for each child. I placed each water bottle in a bowl to minimize mess. I bought some funnels at the dollar store and asked the guests to bring their own, so we had enough for everyone to have their own. I filled pitchers with warm water to put in the bottles, but I gave each child a baby food jar with vinegar to pour themselves. I put the baking soda in small bowls and they used the plastic spoons to put a spoonful of baking soda in the bottle.

Eruption in a Bottle
1. Pour warm water into a plastic bottle until it's three-quarters full. 
2. Add some drops of food coloring and 1/4 cup of vinegar. 
3. With a funnel, quickly add a heaping teaspoon of baking soda. Instantly, the mixture will fizz and overflow from the bottle. (from Family Fun)

My boys making their eruption in the bottle

• Next we did the Color Collision.  If you want to know how it works, check out Steve Spangler. We used the bowls for this experiment too. I put the detergent in baby food jars.

Color Collisions
1. Pour some milk into a bowl.
2. Add a drop of food coloring.
3. Pour a small amount of dishwashing soap into another bowl. Dip a toothpick into the soap, then into the drop of food coloring floating in the milk. The drop of coloring will instantly spread into a ring, repelled by the soap. For another fun experiment, try adding drops of several food colors to a single bowl of milk.

From Family Fun

• We then made slime. The kids loved this experiment. My kids played with their slime until it was dead, about two weeks. I suggest stocking up on elmer's glue at back to school time when it is only $0.25. If not it normally runs about $0.88. Borax runs about $2, I keep it around the house for cleaning. This is the recipe we used:

Ingredients:

1 bottle of elmers school glue
water 
food coloring
1/4 borax
1 gallon size zipper bag per child


Squeeze entire bottle of glue into bag. Fill bottle with warm water and pour into bag. Add desired color of food coloring to mixture and seal bag. Shake and squeeze bag to mix glue and water. Add borax to mixture and continue mixing. Continue to add borax a tablespoon and mixing until you reach desired consistency. 

Our soda geyser

• After making the slime, I took all the kids out to the back yard to do the mentos and diet coke experiment. You can find the full experiment at Steve Spangler Science. Before the party, I took a lid from a used bottle of soda and drilled a hole in it, only big enough to put a pipe cleaner through. I then used a nail to poke a hole into three mentos. I poked a pipe cleaner into the lid, slid the mentos onto the pipe cleaner under the lid. Folded the pipe cleaner around the mentos to secure them and pulled them snugly under the lid. Then I secured the pipe cleaner on the outside the lid and clipped the access.  When I was ready for this experiment, I took the full soda bottle outside, took off the lid and replaced it with the doctored lid. When I was ready, I pulled the pipe cleaner out and dropped the mentos into the soda. This experiment cost about $2.

Food 

Total cost $16

• In keeping with the experiment theme, I did not buy ice cream, we made our own. I thought I could replicate the ice cream ball to make ice cream. I took two tin cans, one small enough to fit in the other. I think one was a cookie tin and the other a popcorn tin. I placed the ice cream ingredients in the smaller tin and placed it into the larger tin. Then I packed ice and rock salt around the smaller tin. The idea was to roll the tin around the table for ten minutes and then have ice cream. First the lid popped off, then the kids got bored. So one of the parents stirred for ten minutes and we got our ice cream. It was a soft serve type. We told the kids it was a failed experiment and even the most brilliant scientist have failed experiments. Also a lot of the things we have today started from a failed experiments, silly putty, chocolate chip cookies, and ice cream to name a few. The ingredients cost about $5.
• I did cake I did was the Fantastic Flask cake from the Family Fun party. This cake took a lot of frosting, at least two batches. Altogether I think it only cost $2 for the cake mix, frosting and cotton candy.
• I just did a happy birthday table cloth, plates and napkins, and cups from the dollar, $5.
• The juice and dry is was $4, but I recommend a smaller block of ice, so you could do it closer to $3.
• I did not do any snacks for this party. After cake and ice cream we opened presents. This party was so much fun, the kids are still talking about it 6 months later.