Christmas decor

Here is a picture of my entryway and staircase- it looks way better in the evening...

Here is one pic of the living room.. I did the mantel a little different this year. I did it in mercury class with brick red accents.

Time to Make Holiday Memories!

Ok, so it's time to deck and halls and be jolly! So while the fam was in town for Thanksgiving, we went and got our Christmas Tree! Now, it was much more fun than it sounds... First, we took a horse-drawn hayride to the backlot for all of the fun. We were all given our own baggie with s'more ingredients to roast over a campfire. Also Santa was there with Comet, Cupid, and Donner. So we got to tell him what we wanted and got a picture, we even got to feed the reindeer! We seen geese, pigs, miniature horse, donkey, and a beautiful rooster. They also had a playground. The weather was perfect. We chose our tree and headed back. What great holiday memories! Isn't that what it's all about?

Here are some tried and true Thanksgiving traditions and recipes to make this year super special!

Martha Stewart Savory Thanksgiving Menu:

appetizer: Warm Fennel-and-Parmesan Dip
main course: Roasted Heritage Turkey
side dishes: Calvados Gravy, Cornbread, Bacon, Leek, and Pecan Stuffing, Cranberry-Apple Chutney
desserts: Black Walnut Shortbread Cookies, Gabrielle's Honey Pie, Pumpkin Layer Cake

Other then the traditional feast, here are some other Thanksgiving Traditions.

Halloween Classroom Ideas

Need some ideas for planning your child's classroom Halloween party? Here are some fun and easy suggestions:


>> Eyeball Toss (game)
>>Ring Around the Pumpkin (game)
>>Boa Bats (craft)
>>Halloween Bingo (game) (use candy corn for markers)
>>Decorate sugar cookies
>>Make Sucker Ghosts (craft)
>>Play Kid's Halloween Music throughout classroom party time:



Serve:
>>Fruit Punch
>>Carrots and Dip



>>crackers and cheese
>>spider crackers (craft)

Yo Gabba Gabba party ideas

Popular now with the preschool set, and why not? Who doesn't like music, dance, and fun? Here are some way to celebrate your child's birthday Yo Gabba Gabba-style!

photos of flatware and party favor buckets above from twopartssugar.com

>>Decorate with balloons and streamers in shades of orange, lime, and blue
>>Dance right along with The Dancey Dance Bunch!
>>Play Backyard Bingo with free printables from the official site!
>>Decorate tabletops with bowls of skittles and other colorful treats...
>>Serve Smiley Face Pizzas and juice boxes

>>Hand out toy microphones, bubbles, fruit snacks, and stickers
>>Yo Gabba Gabba party supplies, party favors, and solid partyware at Celebrate Express.

Smurftastic Party Ideas!

Host a Smurftastic Smurf party with these handy ideas!

-Decorate with blue balloons, streamer, and tablecovers.
-Serve blueberry muffins, blueberry yogurt, and blue ice cream (call them smurfberries).
-Hand out small Smurf figurines as party favors.
-Play a "Smurfy" game of hide and seek with the one being "it" dressed as Gargamel and the hiders as Smurfs!
-Use Smurf toys, stuffed or not, and use for decor and a table centerpiece.
-Set up a craft table with a plastic tablecover and set out a container of blue playdough and white playdough for each child. Have them make their own Smurfs out of playdough.

More Smurfy ideas and Smurf party supplies available at It's A Party-ful Life!

Top Sellers in Kid's Party Themes

Pink Cowgirl Deluxe Party Pack


Mod Monkey Deluxe Party Pack


Yo Gabba Gabba! Deluxe Party Pack


Disney's Cars 2 - Deluxe Party Pack


Under The Sea Critters Birthday Party Ware - 32 Big Dot Bundle

Harry Potter Party Ideas

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2
Harry Potter Party Supplies
The end of a saga, whether an epic poem, a novel or a film, can be a painful experience.
Here are some party ideas to celebrate Harry Potter.
Decorate in deep purple and black...


Use an old lantern as a centerpiece with grapevine and branches around it for a dramatic look...


Recreate Hogwart's banners, using black fabric, felt, and fabric pens...hang these throughout party area...


Use fog machines for that creepy-woodsy feel...


Use a black satin-ny fabric for a tablecloth and sprinkle with silver star confetti...

Encourage guests to dress up in costumes. We carry an assortment of Harry Potter robes, Quidditch robes, accessories, and wizards caps. Guests can even make their own costumes. Graduation robes make a great stand-in for a wizard's robe.

Muggle Quidditch: Set up an obstacle course, and have the kids run the course with their brooms. Add hula-hoops and other obstacles that they must navigate.all while balancing a ping-pong ball (golden snitch) on a spoon. As an alternative, just give the kids brooms, a ball, two goals and lots of room to run and play! Use a soft ball for the bludger, so that no one gets hurt. (Shindigz)

Educational Toys

I am a big supporter in minimal candy in Easter baskets and am always looking for alternative ideas. I came across Kazoo Toys, who by the way are, one of the TOP stores for educational and quality toys on the web. Here are some smart and fun toy ideas for Easter gifts this year:


Ultra Stomp Rocket


Cookie Making Tool Kit by Sassafras Baking Kits


Rhythm Instrument Set by Woodstock Percussion


Kids Favorite Card Games by International Playthings


Ladybug Puppet by Folkmanis Puppets

Fun Grad Open House Ideas 2

• Make a scrapbook for the graduate. Start the book with baby pictures and all through school, with photos of friends and family, as well as, sports, awards, and activities. On the last pages, include what the graduate's aspirations and college plans are. Display on the gift table for all to enjoy.
  
• Rent a photo booth, such as, www.myfreezeframes.com
  
• Set up a candy buffet! Search candy by school colors: Candy Warehouse


• Videotape the party! They will have a keepsake to treasure and to share with others later.


• Decorate a box with an opening for cards for guests to put cards for the graduate.


• Hire a fortune teller or caricature artist for a unique and fun activity.


• Ask a friend or family member to take candid photos during the party. Then -- add pages to your scrapbook later with photos from the party!


• Set up volleyball, or croquet for all to play.


• Set a child's mini pool on top of a table and fill with ice. Place bowls of salads on top of ice to keep cool throughout the party.
• Fill a large galvanized steel tub with ice and personalized water bottles.

Sweet Shoppe Birthday Party

Here are some cute ideas for a easy do-it-yourself sweet shoppe birthday party

This banner was found on Etsy (a great resource for custom printables)

Creating a candy buffet for your party is easy and fun! You can search by color to match party decor. Visit Candy Warehouse.

We found these cute ideas for printables and invitations at Tiny Prints.

Circus/Big Top Birthday Party

We had a Circus Party for Josh's 4th Birthday! Here are some pics!

Circus Train made from cereal boxes, and straws.Josh blowing out his candle!Clear glass jars filled with colorful candy is eye appealing. Circus centerpiece put together with hot glue gun.

For activities we made balloon animals, played dressup with a trunk filled with various clown costumes and accessories...we all had a great time! For supplies, more ideas, and more pics, go to our website: http://www.itsapartyfullife.com/circus_party