Ideas for Three of the Most Popular Children's Party Themes

• Pirate party - there are many party supply companies that offer kits for parties that include treasure maps, eye patches and other pirate-like items. At craft stores, you can purchase faux cold coins and gems for decoration. Kid's party invitations for this theme can look like old treasure maps. Arrange a treasure hunt for the kids at your house, have them play pin the patch on the pirate and play pirate music (offered by The Wiggles and other kid-friendly experts). Fill goody bags with pirate booty such as chocolate-filled gold coins, eye patches, gems and treasure maps.
• Hawaiian Luau: decorate your house or yard with fake palm trees and greenery. Offer grass skirts to the girls and pin paper palm trees to the boys to give them an instant Hawaiian shirt. Play Hawaiian or island music. Have a hula hoop and limbo contest. Serve root beer floats, virgin pina coladas and watermelon Kool-Aid as well as chopped strawberries, pineapples and coconut. Goody bags can include mini flip flop notepads, highlighters, faux flowers and goldfish key chains.
• Prince/Princess Party: decorate with purple, blue and yellow streamers, create or buy shield and castle images, give the girls costume jewelry and the boys fancy-looking gold rope belts and have the children make their own crowns and treasure chests. Play Renaissance music, plan a treasure hunt using inexpensive items with fun names such as "the jester's ball" (a rubber ball from a coin machine) and "unicorn horns" (crayons). Goody bags can include some of the same type of items as well as a magic wand and party candy such as chocolate-filled gold coin candy and "dragon eggs" (plastic eggs filled with candy)