Whether you’re planning a birthday party or just a special day for your kids, cooking is a great activity to share with them to encourage healthy eating and teach them an important skill. Here are a few ideas that will hopefully inspire your next cooking event!

1) Purchase aprons and chef hats for kids. If you get white aprons, one of the activities at your party could be to have guests personalize their own aprons with markers.

2) Find recipes. Have guests bring in their favorite recipes. They can then compile their very own cookbook with some colored paper, pens and scissors.

3) Take an outing. Check out what types of cooking classes are available in your community. A few stores such as Sur La Table offer a variety of classes, with some especially made for kids.

4) Cook at home. If you don’t want to take a class, just buy, borrow or look up fun recipes for kids online. The Food Network is kid-friendly and has great cooking demos for kids.

5) Stock up on food. The best thing about throwing a cooking party is that your guests are the chefs. Just buy ingredients, some snacks and everything needed for baking a sweet birthday cake.

6) Send sweet invitations. These adorable invites are so appropriate for this occasion. They’re ready to serve to your guests for a memorable event.

Cooking: Boy Birthday Party Invitations

Cooking: Girl Birthday Party Invitations

The sun is out and summer is here! Why not plan a beach party for friends and family?

Invitations.These Go Fish birthday party invitations would go perfectly with a seaside gathering.

Favors. Purchase colorful pails for the kids. Fill them up with little bottles of sunscreen, a towel, and a bag filled with Goldfish crackers. Tie name tags on each pail with the names of your guests.

Activities. There are so many things you can do at the beach that you don’t need to have planned activities. If you want extra ideas, however, throw a sand castle making contest or check out FamilyFun for more ideas.

Food and Drinks. Whether you decide to barbecue or prepare a picnic lunch, keep it cool with fresh fruits, a salad and fruity drinks.

Looking for some cool favor ideas for your next party? Take a look at some of these ways to help make your party favors truly great!

1) Mint tins. Whether you are planning a shower, birthday party or any other special gathering, Tiny Prints has a variety of mint tins you can customize.

2) Cupcake containers. If you are doing cupcakes instead of a cake, send guests home with one of these adorable cupcake containers from The Container Store. That way they can enjoy a cupcake at home and you won’t be stuck with all the leftovers!

3) Candy boxes. Send them home with boxes filled with sweets and they’ll be so grateful.

I was watching my favorite reality TV family the other night and got a great idea for a birthday party. On “Jon and Kate Plus 8,” the family gathered together to do dress up night. The kids got a kick out of it, and so did I–which is what inspired this dress up party entry!

1) Decide on a theme. There is a whole lot of different things you can do when planning a dress up party. From firemen and police outfits to cowboy and cowgirl attire, your birthday girl or boy and their guests will have a good time dressing up as anything you choose.

2) Ask guests to bring their own outfits. There are a number of activities you can do with this. You can have a fashion show, or a best dressed contest. And, the kids will have fun trying on each others outfits.

3) Take plenty of pictures. Have your camera handy. If you have a instant camera such as Polaroid, take pictures of your little guests all dressed up that they can take home with them as favors.

4) Set out mirrors. Make sure you take out all your mirrors so kids can see how they look from head to toe.

5) Send invitations. Choose one of these invitations to match with the theme you chose for a fun dress up party!

Cowgirl Lasso

Fire Engine

When I was looking for a fun, casual venue for an event I was planning, I stumbled upon the zoo. Since most kids love animals and hence love the zoo, I thought that this would also be a great place to have a birthday party. Keep reading for tips on how to make your party, wild, crazy and lots of fun!

1) Check out your local zoo’s website. In addition to finding out if they have special birthday packages, you can get all the details about having your party there. In November and December, for example, I learned that the San Francisco Zoo hosts ice skating parties at their zoo.

2) Get chaperones. Depending on how many kids you invite, you might want to gather up some parents and family members to help you supervise and keep track of all your guests.

3) Favors. Cute stuffed animals or a small bag full of kid-sized water bottles and snacks will be much appreciated after a long day at the zoo.

4) Food. The best thing about having a party at the zoo is that food can be conveniently ordered and purchased there. You might want to see if they also provide utensils and paper plates. A birthday cake or cupcakes designed with animals are sure to be a big hit with guests!

5) Activities. The zoo itself is filled with tons of things for kids to do. For the party, you could bring crayons and coloring pages of animals for a little something extra.

6) Invitations and Thank you cards. Here are a few animal themed birthday party invitations and thank you cards that would be perfect for a zoo party!

If you’re having a birthday party for some roller skaters you know, read on for some cool party tips.

Location. First of all, think about where you’ll host the party. Places can include your local roller rink, a park, a gym, or anywhere that has concrete for the kids to skate. While it’s hot, you might want to plan a trip to the ice skating rink which is a fun way for them to cool off.

Guests. Go through the guest list with your child to figure out who to invite. If you’re planning a party at a roller rink, take into account the number of kids you’ll be paying admission for.

Food, Favors, Decoration. If your party is at a roller skating rink, decorations can be simple and you can usually order food there as well. If not, go simple by bringing pizza or easy to eat finger foods since most kids will want to quickly return to playing after they eat. Choose decorations such as balloons and birthday cake with a roller skate theme. For favors, make small gift bag filled with snacks, candy and roller skate themed items such as pencils and keychains.

Invitation. You might want to tell guests to bring their own skates and/or safety equipment such as a helmet and knee pads which can be included on these two adorable Tiny Prints birthday invitations perfect for a roller skating theme party.

Have a teenager in your life? If so, you might be having a hard time deciding what to get them for their birthday. I have a girl cousin who just turned 13 so I know how difficult it can be. One thing about teens is that they really want to embrace their individuality. A gift option that would be perfect for my cousin and any teenager is giving them something personalized and unique. Tiny Prints has a line of new note cards especially for the teen in mind. Match these with a personalized address labels and a gift certificate to really create an outstanding birthday gift!

I love anything that’s free! That’s why I was ecstatic when I received an email from Amazon.com saying that FamilyFun Magazine by Disney was offering a free Island Party Planner. Just go to Amazon.com type in FamilyFun magazine and click on the Island Party Planner link for a free download. It has cool ideas for a hot island party such as how to make a South Seas birthday cake, palm tree decoration and delicious island foods. Check it out and if you’re then inspired to create your own island themed party, take a look at some of the cool ocean themed party invitation Tiny Prints has. I think this ocean inspired party invitation would go perfectly well with any island party!

If you have an aspiring ballerina in your family who’s celebrating a birthday soon, check out this post for tips on ways to create a successful ballerina themed event! After deciding on your guest list, you’ll need to order invitations. Tiny Prints has fun, new cards designed with your ballerina girl in mind.

IDEAS & TIPS:

Planning a slumber party? If so, here’s some tips on ways to make it fun for the kids and easy on you. First of all, decide on the number of guests that will be manageable for you. If you have the time to do so, order your personalized invitations well in advance, around 6-8 weeks prior to the party. Then send them out 3-4 weeks before allowing enough time for guests to save the date.

Prepare yourself with lots of fun snacks, goodies and activities. Rent a video and have some popcorn handy as a fun late night activity. A week or two before the event, purchase a few of your child’s favorite snacks and decide on the menu. Finger foods such as tacos and pizza are always popular. You might also want to find out if any of your guests have any food allergies to take into consideration. This would also be a good time to purchase any decorations or favors for guests.

Lastly, give yourself time to get things in order, clean the house and relax a little before all the craziness begins!

Here are a few of our party invitations perfect for slumber parties.

Check out Birthday in a Box for more information on party planning and the timeline.