Teddy Bear Birthday Party

Here is a great theme for a little girl's birthday party: Teddy Bears! This party would be great for younger kids between the ages of 4-6.

Invite each guest to bring along her favorite teddy bear. The teddies can join in all the birthday fun, from snack time to present opening.

• Set up extra chairs at the table so that each girl can sit next to her bear at a tea party.

• Make hats for the teddy bears using paper cups, crayons, and stickers. Use some stretchy string to put chin straps on the hats so that they stay snugly on the bears. 

• Let the kids decorate teddy bear shaped cookies. Grandin Bakery can make uniced sugar cookies that are ready to be decorated. We can also put together containers of icing in any color you like. Just pick up some candies or other toppings at the grocery store and you're set! Here is a picture of the teddy bear cutter we use at the bakery:

• Be sure to play games with the teddies. One idea is to have a teddy bear race. Split the kids up into pairs and give each pair a tea towel to place their teddies on. Each person holds two corners of the tea towel and together they carry their bears to the finish line. Whichever pair gets there first wins. If the bears fall out of the tea towel, back to the starting line!

• When it's time to open gifts, first have each guest hide her teddy bear for the birthday girl to find. Each time a girl's bear is found, her present is opened. This is a fun way to get everyone involved in the gift opening.

• Having kids over for lunch? Make teddy bear shaped sandwiches. Simply cut bread into bear shapes using cookie cutters and then add cheese or jam. Here are some cute grilled cheese sandwiches that are beary fun!

Hmmm...how to keep the kids busy at the family Christmas party?

Here are a few of our favorite ideas:

• Set up a craft station to make ornaments. Stock up on popsicle sticks, pompoms, pipe cleaners, beads and glue. Let the kids create!
  

• Have some "Minute to Win It" type games ready to go. Have the kids race each other to stack six metal nuts (from the hardware store) on top of each other using only a pencil (no hands!). Last year, at our family Christmas, one of the challenges was to put cookies on our foreheads and get them into our mouths by simply scrunching up our faces -- lots of laughs with that one! Check out the Minute to Win It website for more game ideas.

• Have a white elephant gift exchange: all the gifts have to be something from home that you don't need (want!) anymore. Each person can open a new gift or "steal" someone else's when it's their turn.

• Give the kids gingerbread men or sugar cookies to decorate with icing and candies. Put the icing into Ziploc bags and snip off the corners so that kids can squeeze out the icing.

• Set out a stocking and a bucket full of a bunch of household items. Let the kids take turns putting an item into the stocking and turns guessing what's inside just by feeling it.

Hope you have fun at your holiday get-togethers this year. We're sure looking forward to ours!