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The Very Best Toddler Birthday Party Ideas Ever!

Happy little boy celebrating his 4 birthday with colorful balloonsWhen I was in preschool my parents threw a birthday party for me and invited all of my classmates. I have very few memories dating this far back, but I do remember standing by the front window of our house and waiting for everyone to arrive. I didn’t believe my mother when she told me no one was coming, at least not until after it got dark. Turns out, my preschool teacher forgot to hand out the invitations.

My mom could have avoided this letdown by simply requiring guests to RSVP a week ahead of party day. When it comes to planning the very best party for your toddler it’s all of the little details that count the most. It’s not about how much you spend on the party or how many kids attend (as long as someone comes); it’s about creating memories to last a lifetime.

Throwing your toddler a great birthday party doesn’t have to be stressful, all you need to do is remember the details, let your creativity run wild and get ready to have a good time.

If you want to make your child’s next birthday party truly magical we’ve got all of the inspiration you need right here. Get inspired with these great toddler birthday party ideas!

Dress Up As Your Favorite Storybook Character Party

You can create some fun before the party ever starts by simply asking guests to dress up on the invitation. Since it’s not Halloween give costumes a theme, for instance have everyone dress up as his or her favorite storybook character.

Purchase one journal for each child in attendance along with plenty of art supplies. Kids can spend some time at the party decorating the front and back cover of their journal to match the storybook character they dressed up as.

Take photos of the kids wearing their costumes and holding up their decorated book covers. If you have a Polaroid camera or have quick access to upload photos onto a computer and print them, you can attach each child’s photo to the back of their book for a super sweet touch and an awesome take-home keepsake.

Throw Your Own Party Parade

Kids love parades, so why not transform your party into a parade? You will need to provide plenty of arts and crafts so that kids can get creative making their own banners and decorations. Cool props, and plastic or homemade musical instruments add way more fun to your parade. As the main party activity the kids work together creating a parade by making banners, and other decorations they can use as they march along to the music. At the end of the party the kids will partake in their parade, putting on an adorable show for all of their parents.

Helpful tip: Make sure you have plenty of adults on hand to help kids set up for the parade. Plan out the parade route and music (song, source, etc.) beforehand.

(Party Theme Ideas)

Color Crazy Crayon Party

Put out a big strip of white paper covering the length and width of a large table and invite your toddler’s pals over for a coloring party. Instruct kids to color on the paper table runner any way they like. At the end of the day, your child can keep the table runner as a keepsake from the big day.

Send each child home with a bouquet of fresh crayons for a cheap party favor they are sure to use.

As a bonus you can invite party guests to dress up as their favorite color crayon by simply wearing only their favorite color.

Treasure Hunt

Let the kids have a good time going on a treasure hunt around the house, in the backyard or at your local park. You will need to purchase plastic eggs, or some sort of object you can use to stash an assortment of ‘treasures’ inside. It’s important to keep everything in the same container because you will show the kids exactly what they are looking for before sending them off. Make sure children each have a sack to hold all of their collected treasures.

Musical Craft Tables

Little kids can quickly grow tired of sitting in one place. A good way to keep kids entertained is to keep them moving. Different art and craft stations are like a game of musical chairs full of great take-home crafts.

Kids will spend a predetermined amount of time at each craft station before moving on to the next. You want crafts that the kids can quickly complete without spending too much time since you are trying to fit in multiple activities. A way to reduce the amount of time it takes for children to complete each craft is to offer only a few decorative options at each table. For instance, only have markers at one table, or glue stickers and colored cotton puffs at another. This makes every station feel more unique and will take up less time since kids have less options to pick between.
Some good craft table ideas include:

-Decorate paper animal masks with glue, pompoms and glitter. (Masks pre-cut and ready to go ahead of time)
-Paint wooden letters that represent each child’s first name initial.
-Play Dough table where kids can mold their favorite animal, or whatever they wish.

Good Ol’ Sidewalk Chalk Party Activities

No matter your toddler birthday party budget you can add sidewalk chalk to the fun. You likely already have some sidewalk chalk out in your garage.

Fun games kids can play with chalk include:

Hopscotch: Set up hopscotch layout and let the kids enjoy the activity, and/or add their own hopscotch courses.

Body Outline Trace: Have kids lie on the ground in different positions (however they want) and then draw around their shapes with chalk. Then, instruct kids to color in and decorate their chalk outline.

Chalk Stencils: Buy large chalk stencils for the kids to use. All kids know what it is like to color with chalk but not all kids have used large stencils with chalk, this allows them to create something unique that looks really good.

Tic-Tac-Toe: Draw out the lines and let the kids make their mark, ‘X’ vs. ‘O’

Four Square: Draw a large square and divide it into 4 spaces of equal size with chalk. In a clockwise direction number the squares. Mark square one with a diagonal line, this is where the server will stand. The server will bounce the ball to another player. Each player must let the ball bounce once in their square before they can hit it back to another player.

Connect The Dots: Draw out a bunch of dots that when connected create a picture of some sort, perhaps a shape or animal outline. For added fun, ask the kids to guess what they think the dots will create before they start connecting them.

(Sidewalk Chalk Games)

Throw A Sports Carnival Birthday Party

Hosting a sport carnival is a great way to get kids active and outdoors while celebrating your child’s birthday party. Your guests will be divided into two groups or “houses.” Use the party invitations to let your party guest know which house they are in and what colors to wear.

The day of the party the two teams will come in their separate colors, ready to play the fun nostalgic carnival games you have planned.

Examples of games to play at your sports carnival themed party:

Tin-Can Bowling: Stack a bunch of tin cans into a pyramid on top of a table. Have party guests take turns knocking over as many cans as possible by throwing a ball while standing 10 feet away (give or take a little depending on child’s age and ability).

Bobbing For Apples: Fill up an oversized bucket with water about ¾ full. Sprinkle apples on top and have kids try and ‘bob for apples,’ or rather sink their teeth into one without using their hands.

Egg And Spoon Race: Each child starts off with a spoon in their mouth and an egg placed on the end of the spoon. The goal of the game is to make it to the finish line first without dropping your egg. Don’t use real uncooked eggs, instead go for hardboiled eggs or fake plastic eggs weighed down with jellybeans (or something similar) inside.

Sack Races:  It’s time to bust out your old pillowcases that you never plan to use for sleeping again. Set out sleeping bags in the designated area for sack races, set up with a clearly marked start and finish line. Kids will simply step inside of the pillowcases and hop to it. Whoever makes it to the finish line first wins!

(Theme Party Ideas)

3 Things All Toddler Birthday Parties Need

1. Plenty of adults to supervise and help out when doing crafts or playing games.

2. Games or activities/crafts to entertain the kids and ensure everyone is having a good time.

3. A yummy treat of some kind—hey, what’s a party without cake!?
Extra Tips For Throwing A Successful Toddler Birthday Party

-Figure out a budget before you do any planning.

-Include what time the party ends on the invitation. The ‘gold standard’ for toddler birthday parties is an hour-and-a-half.
-Include if you will be providing lunch/dinner on the invitation so that parents know if they should feed their children beforehand.

-Cupcakes or cake? Cupcakes are less messy, they are easier to serve and you don’t have to cut them. Plus, they require fewer utensils because kids can eat them with their hands. A pretty tower of cupcakes can look (and taste) just as good as any cake.

-Set up a small icebreaker activity for kids while you wait for all of the party guests to show up. It doesn’t have to be anything elaborate; you can simply set up a coloring table where kids can draw photos for the birthday girl or boy.

-Always have some back up games planned because you want to be prepared in case you move through the activities faster than expected.

-Have music going throughout the celebration; it keeps kids happily moving along.

-Don’t forget to take plenty of pictures, you’ll want to treasures these priceless moments forever.

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