Star Wars Party: Take One

This year we had Matthew's first big birthday party (yeah - it was over two weeks ago, but I've been a little busy lately). Although I knew he wanted a Star Wars party, it was like pulling teeth to get him to tell me that. He's not the most forthcoming child out there. So once he made the pronouncement that a Star Wars party would be acceptable, I got to work. And I must say, it turned out better than expected. We invited all the kids from his neighborhood playgroup and all the cousins within about a 50 mile radius. With a couple of extra siblings that stuck around, we ended up with 17 kids. Normally, that is about 15 more than I can effectively deal with (I have 3 of my own so that presents some problems on a daily basis). But armed with my party plan - that's right - an actual physical document - it went off without a hitch. This was the plan(most ideas came from www.birthdaypartyideas.com):

Project: Make your own lightsabers.
Used pool noodles (cut to size) and shiny silver duct tape to make lightsabers for each child. We wrote their names on them and let the older kids help the little ones draw controls on the handles.

Game: Keep up the Meteor
Kids used their lightsabers to keep balloons from hitting the ground.

Game: Star Wars Musical Chairs
I printed out two sets of pictures of Star Wars characters and ships. I taped one set on the back of small chairs (we always raid the Primary room for children's parties at our house) and kept one set in a zip lock bag. We set the chairs up in a large circle. The kids walked around inside the circle while music played. When the music stopped they all sat down. I drew a picture out of my bag and the child on the matching chair got to pick a prize. We did this several times. After we were done, all the kids that didn't get a prize got to pick one. As I simply copied this idea from the web, I can say it was genius!!!! Have you ever tried to play actual musical chairs with small children? It is complete chaos. This version of the game worked out perfectly. (By the way, I laminated the cards after the party to make a memory game that my boys love to play every night before bed.)

Game: Destroy the Death Star
Spencer drew a large, chalk Death Star on our basketball court. The kids threw water balloons at it to "destroy" it.

Then we did the obligatory cake and presents . (Thanks to Grandma Sherwin for providing the amazing Star Wars cake.)

One Last Game: Find the Meteors
Matthew and I wrapped up Starburst candies in aluminum foil. For the game, I had all the kids stand out in the yard and I threw the "meteors" up in the air and they gathered them.

It was a great party and all the kids, even the older ones, seemed to have a lot of fun. Keeping with our early 80's pop culture theme - "I love it when a plan comes together."

Now we are gearing up for Star Wars Party: Take Two. This one, being Spencer's party, will not be so simple. He has been planning it for months. He his writing, directing and producing his own personal Star Wars movie starring him as Han Solo. He almost has the casting done and has already picked out the music that will play as the credits roll. The script still needs work, but the force is with him and I am sure he will come through with a grand production.