Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Playdate Party: Monsters

Want to throw a party but don't have a good excuse?  Why not plan a playdate party?  It doesn't have to be extravagant.  Once you have a theme in mind, invite a handful of your child's friends to join you.  Playdate parties don't have to be filled with activity after activity - choose one craft or activity and serve a treat.  When you're finished with the craft, let the kids free play while the mommy's visit.

What inspired this monster party?  Leftover monster stuff from Halloween a couple years ago!  I also found an $8 bag of monster stuff at our local consignment store.  Add a few cupcakes (decorated with my daughter) and we had a party!
This banner came in the consignment store bag and I created the little monster boxes for my Halloween mantel decor a couple years ago.  I love getting two uses out of something I spent time creating! 
We served waters and juice boxes and I raided my daughters toy box for little monster stuffed animals.  A great party is in the small things!
My daughter helped decorate these cupcakes and we had leftover monster bags (from Oriental Trading) from Halloween.  Each bag had a sticker sheet, tattoo and pieces of candy.  I always try to have a small take home gift to say thank you for coming.  It's a nice touch and really doesn't need to be expensive.  Although the adults may remember the party details, often times the kids won't - but you can extend the party a little longer when they open their gift in the car or when they arrive home.
These fun hats were in the consignment store bag - but they were fun and perfect for the kiddos to wear!  The glasses/noses came from Oriental Trading - again, a Halloween leftover.  I asked the kids to take them home, too - cleaning up and cleaning out my leftovers!
The table was pre-set with the craft and activity.  We started by playing in our living room until all the guests arrived then moved to the dining room.  All of the decor and Monster-type activities were reserved to one room.  This helped with clean-up but also helped center the party on the craft and snack.  The monster magnet crafts were in the center (again, a Halloween leftover from Oriental Trading) and each child chose one.  I created an example of each so the moms could help without looking at instruction sheets.  Unfortunately, this craft did not include adhesive-backed pieces - so we used mini cupcake tins with a squeeze of glue and q-tips to apply it.  I prepared the glue minutes before guests arrive (the last thing on my to-do list) so it wouldn't dry out.
We all had a great time!  I think the kids really enjoyed it and the moms enjoyed the company, too!  Again, it wasn't expensive - I used leftovers and spent no more than $15 on "extras" (the consignment store bag, cupcake mix/frosting and misc supplies).  It was the perfect way to spend a raining morning!
Inspired?  What will your next Playdate Party look like?
Be Creative!

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