Celebrations, Events, and Party Planning News

The Passover Holiday is a festival that usually lasts from seven to eight days in the early spring. Often Passover will start in April, but has been known to start in March. The story of Passover is a part of how the Israelites were freed by the Pharaoh and made the exodus out of Egypt. It is an important holiday to teach your children about the story and you can do this as you are planning your Passover Party special celebration. Many stories also credit Passover as a celebration of the ‘birth’ of the Jewish nation because the Israelites traveled through the desert after this and made their way into Israel.

This can be a great holiday to encourage the kids to get involved with; many local programs usually hold a Passover play and use kids as the actors. Depending on how involved your family gets with Passover you can get the kids involved in preparations for the festival. Some families follow the guidelines not to eat or own any unleavened products on the first two days of Passover. If this is you get the kids involved in hunting down such products in the kitchen before the holiday and making sure to eat them up before the start of the holiday. Try thinking up other activities or holiday preparations you can make to get the kids into the holiday.

Since much of the holiday involves feasting you might wish to pick up some Passover themed paper products such as plates, cups, napkins, tablecloths and plastic silverware for easy clean-up, which by the way is another chance to get the kids involved. You will have fun picking out the available decorations when you shop for all of your passover party supplies. The Seder meals on the first two and the last two days of Passover usually involve a fine dining experience with the nice silverware and plates, but you can certainly add some wall hangings and candles to the table to accent the decorative atmosphere. The intermediate days are filled with a light more festive atmosphere, which is the perfect time to make use of those paper party supplies.

Easter is often considered to be nothing more than a Christian holiday that is celebrated around the world. The Easter holiday marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The origin of Easter can be traced back to mythology. The name Easter comes from the name of an ancient Greek Goddess of Spring, Eostre. Eostre, it was believed returned to the Earth after a long, cold winter and with her, brought along the light and warmth of Spring. Ancient Greeks celebrated the return of Eostre and spring with pagan festivals. You can make your Easter celebration into a fun and exciting party for all when you plan a themed party. As with many pagan festivals, the date coincided with the equinox on the 21st of March every year. It was important to keep Eostre happy in order to ensure she would return year after year. Therefore the Greeks threw an extravagant feast and celebration.

When the holiday became more Christianized, the celebration was no longer about welcoming spring, but instead was based upon the resurrection of Jesus. To sever the ties from paganism even further, the church changed the date of the festival from being held on the spring equinox, but instead it was to be held the first Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox (or on the full moon if it happened to fall on the first Sunday). Because the holiday is to be scheduled based upon that of the full moon, the Easter holiday can be celebrated as early as March 22nd or as late as April 25th.

Symbols that are often associated with Easter and their meanings are:

Labels: birthdays, decorations, easter, favors, games, invitations, parties, party, supplies

One of the newest celebrations of the calendar year, Earth Day fills a niche that in earlier times was only occupied by Arbor Day. Earth Day goes one step beyond the earlier tribute to trees and gives a tip of the hat to all environmental factors. Whereas previous generations gave their full backing to the concept of planting trees in May they didn't get involved with the issues of trash removal from public places as we now do in April.

Both observations are concerned with the appearances of public places but today's Earth Day celebrations add the urgency of awareness of negative impacts on the environment on the whole. In some parts of the country Earth Day coincides with spring mushroom forays when the favorite wild morel mushrooms are at their peak harvest. This adds greatly to the sheer numbers of gum boot clan people picking through wooded lots.

Participants of both activities may not be at odds philosophically but can still get in one another's way. With one group picking out abandoned tires and the other trying to find tender vegetation some conflict arises. The local mountain biking group may have scheduled an annual lengthy bike trip. Whatever group you fall into, you can get your point across and have a really fun time when you come up with great ideas for your Earth Day celebration themed party. As luck would have it some states also offer Free State park camping or stock local fishing spots as a tribute to Earth Day. What's even more hectic is that a lot of birthdays are celebrated in April.

Keeping these varied interests on track is no minor mission for those who juggle these coincidental schedules. So while the leaves of oak trees are the size of squirrel ears and the air still holds a chill; wilderness areas are surprisingly busy places. There can be frazzled tempers in the great outdoors.

When you choose your fun party supplies for your Earth Day celebration, please respect everyone's use of the woods and use paper party supplies.

Labels: birthdays, day, decorations, earth, favors, games, invitations, parties, party, supplies, theme

Your kids will certainly get into the NASCAR Racing scene if one or the other parent is into the sport as well. Kids love to mimic their parents, but better yet they often develop a life long love of the sport they are introduced to with their parents creating happy memories. So you can do your best to create happy memories for your kids by throwing a NASCAR Racing party that focuses or includes them and not just the adults. You'll have fun with your child if you bring them along when you choose your Nascar racing party supplies and ideas. This is done by creating fun activities for the kids when they get a little bored watching the races, getting good food out on the buffet table, and setting out lots of NASCAR Racing decorations.

Some fun NASCAR related activities for the kids can be just about anything related to the sport. Have the kids build their own NASCAR car out of some cardboard boxes, markers, crayons and NASCAR stickers. Don’t forget the glue or tape to hold everything together. At the end the parents can get together and give out little awards based on the special merits of each of the kids NASCAR’s. You can also download and print out some free NASCAR or sports related coloring pages for the kids to fill in if you don’t think you’ll be up to having them build their own cars. Lastly, why not have the kids get into teams and do a mock NASCAR race around the lawn. They can just run, but you can put stickers on them to signify which team they are pretending to be. If there are a lot of kids at your party then you can have them for tag teams and do a relay race for endurance.

Put up lots of NASCAR racing decorations, balloons, stickers, wall hangings and give out lots of party favors for the kids. You can easily pick up NASCAR and racing related bobble head figures, pencils, stickers, and other items. Look for them when you shop for your Nascar racing party supplies and ideas.
For the buffet table and paper supplies you can find NASCAR racing themed paper plates, napkins, and tablecloths to keep up the party theme.

The 1st birthday is very important to most new families. It marks the completion of one whole year of existence. Parents probably have noticed quite a bit of change in their baby during the first year as well. In the first year a baby will often triple his birth weight and make millions of important neural connections in the brain as he or she learns about their surroundings.

Decorations for the 1st birthday celebration should be bright or shiny. Young babies are stimulated by primary colors and it helps even more to form those important neural connections in their brains so you can add a boost to the 1st birthday by picking up some brightly colored plates, balloons and streamers. You'll have so much fun shopping for everything bright and colorful when you pick out your kids 1st birthday party supplies. You may also be able to find educationally themed party supplies for the celebration such as Sesame Street decorations or Baby Einstein supplies.

Gifts for the first year old can be items that are symbolic of their growth and development. They’ll soon, if not all ready, be moving up to sipping cups. Pick up a few brightly colored sippers for the birthday boy or girl. You can find these in many different bright colors when you pick out your kids 1st birthday party supplies. Little felt hats make a practical gift to help keep them warm in colder months. Parents can have professional photos taken of their little ones and put in themed frames as party favors for the guests.

Around the time of your little ones first birthday, he or she will probably be very adept at crawling around and may even be attempting to walk a little. Be sure to allow plenty of room in a safe area for your baby to crawl around as they do their own meet and greet of the guests. This means putting a baby guard at the bottoms of any stairs you may have in the house, putting outlet protectors on each of the outlets in the rooms and making sure to cover all of the sharp corners on your furniture with a rubber guard.

When people think of ideas for a 70s theme party, they think of dancing music disco balls, polyester clothes and bad hair! Well, that may be a piece of what the seventies were about, but it isn’t everything. Allow me to suggest some somewhat more unique ideas for planning a 70s theme party.

In 1975 Saturday Night Live made its debut on the national airwaves. The characters created by the initial cast are still difficult to surpass. Invite your guests to come dressed as their favorite Saturday Night Live characters. They will have so much fun deciding which character to be when they shop for their disco 70's party supplies. Set up televisions playing SNL episodes (you can rent the “best of” series) with the sound down. If you want to expand the options for costumes open it up to any favorite 70s celebrities including TV characters, actors/actresses, movie characters and musicians. Suggestions would include KISS, Characters from Grease or Saturday Night Fever, Charlie’s Angels, The Godfather, Rocky, anyone from Rocky Horror Picture Show, a Star Wars character, Kojak, The Incredible Hulk, or even Bo Derek if you want to wear a bikini!

Music should reflect the entire decade and while there will be lots of the BeeGees and disco tunes, don’t forget to play some of the more intellectual music to come out of the 70s including Janis Joplin, John Lennon, Santana, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, Queen, etc. At the end of the night you can have adance off. Start off the same way the decade did. In the beginning dancing was a type of anything goes atmosphere but as the decade progressed dancing became an exact science so upgrade to the hustle, the bump, and other line dances. Then, just as everyone is either getting frustrated from not being able to do the line dances or is sure there is no doubt they will win the dance off – throw them a wrench. Play a song everyone --everywhere– knows the dance to – Y.M.C.A. by the Village People and watch everyone laugh.

Be sure to take lots of photos to turn into digital prints as party favors. Don't forget your cameras and other party favors when you shop for your 70's disco party supplies. Feel free to put a few anti-war posters up just to keep things unbiased and above all – have fun. The 70s were a decade of growth of a nation and of course, growth of the influence of popular culture. Rubik’s cubes or disco ball key chains, mood rings, a box of hamburger helper, or even personalized pet rocks would also add a new dimension to your 70s theme.

St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland is believed to have brought Christianity to Ireland in the fourth century. He is believed to have removed many practices followed by pagan religions during that time. .

He is thought to have died on 17th March. Some stories about him are products of fertile imaginations over the centuries. What is important is that he gave the Irish Catholics an identity. Irish people celebrate 17th march as St.Patricks Day. On this day, most of the cities where Irish have a big population celebrate the day with parades. This day is the day to celebrate the Irish spirit. Color green, shamrocks, and good luck. And don't forget your Saint Patricks Day green party supplies!

Shamrock And Irish People -

Shamrock, the three-leafed clover has special significance for the Irish. Earlier this was also called the seamroy. Though some people believe that Shamrock was used by Saint Patrick to explain the Christian though there are no proofs of that. Shamrock is surely the symbol of Irish. Along with other Irish symbols or other things that are associated with Ireland such as green, gold and Luck, shamrock reminds everyone around the world of Ireland immediately. You'll have so much fun finding hats, balloons, and everything green when you shop for your St. Patricks Day green party supplies.

Traditional Food -

Corned Beef and cabbage meal is the traditional Irish food for the Saint Patricks Day. Though the traditional food has been Irish bacon, corned beef saves money and is becoming popular amongst the Irish Americans. On St. Patricks Day, Chicago River is turned green for several hours by using green vegetable dye. What a great way to celebrate the day. Wishing you all a Happy St. Patricks Day.

Every February 2nd in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, a groundhog named "Phil" is supposed to indicate whether Spring has arrived or if there will be six more weeks of Winter. The story goes, if Phil sees his shadow when he comes out of his burrow, then there will be six more weeks of winter weather. And that means it is time to celebrate with Groundhog party favors at your Ground Hog Party. Scavenger Hunts, Ice Carving Exhibits, Cook-offs and Sleigh Rides are some of the activities at a Groundhog Day party.

When hosting a party, such as a Groundhog Day party, sometimes we don’t mean to forget to thank our guests for coming, but hosting a party can be a busy, almost maddening affair, and before you know it the night is over and someone wasn’t acknowledged. We don’t mean it to happen. We have good intentions of circulating and making sure that each and every guest has been welcomed and thanked. Yet, when it is over, it is hard to be sure that you connected with every single guest – or is it? Actually, it is easy to be sure you talk to every guest at every party. How? By incorporating the distribution of Groundhog party favors into your guest circulating routine you can see exactly who has been spoken to and who hasn’t, thus ending the possibility of any one feeling under-appreciated.

Personalized party favors can really add a personalized thank you to your party guests – just be sure to get an accurate attendance count via RSVPs so you don’t waste a lot of money on unusable favors (although you can always squirrel them away for Christmas gift exchanges if you want to be real frugal). In addition, personalized party favors can be selected to complement any party theme. For example, if you are throwing a retirement party for your spouse, consider personalized golf caps or balls, fishing caps or lures, or flasks. For a spa party containers of soap, body oils, bubble baths, sachets or candles (trial size and tea lights work fine) can be put into a small sized personalized galvanized pail and tied with tulle and ribbons in order to become a personalized party favor or gift pack.

Regardless of the party themes, personalized Groundhog party favors can be distributed. Again, take time to follow up on the invitations to be sure that you have an RSVP for everyone who is planning to come. Then as you work your room, you can distribute the favors as a thank you for their friendship and attendance. You will know everyone has been thanked when there are no more gifts to distribute. Oh, and be sure to have a few spares made up and ready to go for those that simply decide at the last minute than your party is the happening place to be and show up without notice! After all, you are the experienced hostess that makes everyone feel so appreciated that they simply want to attend.

First birthday theme parties can be fun for the birthday child as well as for the friends and adults attending. With very few supplies one can make a wonderful Pirate party for the children to enjoy and most likely, the parents will actually have more fun than the children by watching the entertaining imaginations unfold. The imagination of younger children never ceases to amaze a parent. The fewer things they have, it seems, the more creative they become. That is why the underlying rule to a children’s party is to provide only the necessities, allowing the child to work his growing imagination and at the same time, save on the parents pocketbook. Here are some great tips to have an awesome pirate party without spending an arm… and in the case of a unfortunate pirate, a leg as well.

The first question one needs to ask is what they feel makes a pirate look like a pirate. Simply make a list of what you feel completes the look: a wooden leg, a sword, a toucan, an eye patch, a missing tooth, a hook for a hand, pearly necklaces. The list could go on forever. Choose three or four key items that you would be able to supply the children with. The more creative you get, the cheaper this is likely to be. The trick is to keep with the First Birthday Party's theme with the few items you construct or buy.

To remain money smart, make use of resources that are available to you. The cheapest and most affordable resource (free) that is easy to come by is cardboard boxes. Breaking them down and using them for just about anything is somewhat time consuming but also fun when the kids are involved. It is entirely possible to make swords or eye patches out of cardboard boxes. A big enough box can be the pirate's shipt itself. Make a pattern, trace it on and cut out. For the pirates wooden leg you may be able to split the inside of a paper towel roll and place that around a child’s calf. A toucan could actually be a sticker or pinned on cut out as well.

In today’s society, children aren’t always enticed to think on their own. No matter what you try or how much you decide to spend, remember to keep the kids involved and they will have a blast with the creation and end results of your First Birthday Party's theme.

If your child is a cat lover, consider throwing a Hello Mrs. Kitty theme party. Center the cat party around cat history, facts, and cat trivia! Make the party special by ordering or making feline themed decorations, having perfectly feline party favors, and treats. Make kitten chow by melting chocolate chips and peanut butter, tossing in crunchy cereal squares, and then shaking them in a bag of powdered sugar, to serve your little kitten lover! You can even have a photo of your cat made into a cake at local bakeries.

Another great kid party idea would be to have a hippie party. All the kids could come dressed as hippies with headbands, peace necklaces, and go go boots. A hippie snack for your hippie theme party would be to bake some brownies. With these ingredients, your party is assured to go along way.

Want to put a happy face on all the children's faces this next party? Why not have a Happy Face theme party? Have all your decorations, supplies be of the happy face picture? A cake with a happy face, paper plates with happy faces and games to play to bring on happy faces are all you need!

Tired of spending a lot of money on your party goods? Well, President's Day party ideas doesn't have to be that way. Stores are often a very convenient resource when preparing for a large event but don’t forget to shop around if you are trying to watch your spending. They are not all the same. Entailed here you will find some interesting information on what to consider when shopping at different Party Supply Stores before your make that final commitment to buy.

Your own desires of Quality, Quantity and available Budget are what will truly lay out where you should spend your dollar as well as your Presidents' Day party ideas of how you are going to decorate, and entertain. Having this information clear cut prior to your shopping experience will provide the answers to many of the questions you encounter in your quest.

Many supply stores that you would find in a mall are truly not there to give you a discount. Every salesman around will tell you that sales depend on location, location, location. The customer base that the mall stores seek out comes from the window shoppers, not the penny pinchers and this will be reflected in their prices.

Dollar Stores are nice when purchasing just a few things but they are not usually the right source if you are looking for bulk or quality.

The so acclaimed discount or wholesalers are also not always necessarily the best bet. Often times their items are damaged or need to be bought in large quantities to get a good deal. Again, checking around with other stores to figure out what the going rate for your desired item is will definitely let you know who has the best deal. Sam’s Club and Cosco’s usually have decent deals and are of decent quality depending on the quantity of your needs.

The most important aspect of planning for your Presidents' Day party ideas is your creativity. Don’t be afraid of the second hand stores for some of the items that you might need. Often times these stores are great alternatives to renting in that the products are actually yours to keep for your next gathering after your party is over.

With cherubs, hearts and candy of all flavors presented in red and pink; Valentines Day breaks up the monotony of a long winter. While snow piles up outside many a northern window sill, February 14th is a welcome diversion rather than an overly sentimental holiday. So why not liven up your Valentine's Day party with Valentine's party decorations and go all out.

Chocolate lovers delight at the unabashed fervor for the national holiday that has become synonymous with cocoa beans. There seems to be an unending contest among confectioners to develop ever more unusual concoctions than the previous year. Cartoon characters, skyscrapers and autos have all been depicted in chocolate. Many candy stores have zeroed in on chocolate covered strawberries as the perfect, if perishable, confection for the mid-winter celebration.

This is just the right touch of course since many southern zones do have ripe strawberries in February. For those in the north who are still trudging through slush for a couple of months, this is a suitably exotic import. Of course, these can be easily prepared at home but most people still buy them out at a rather high price point. But don't let this discourage you, your Valentine's Day party decorations don't have to be expensive at all.

These and other Valentines Day treats can be colorfully displayed with Valentine's Day party decorations. A themed table cloth used with solid white, red and pink plates, napkins and plates make the occasion special while preserving the delicate budget. Favorite entrees or humble fare are welcome here.