Party prizes and favors

Party prizes don’t have to be some big object, but can be fun awards or edible treats or gag gifts.

Awards
Purchase preprinted awards or ribbons from a party store or office store
Make your own on your computer or draw them yourself
Print ready-mades: MAGIC PARTY GAMES has free downloadable game prize awards

Edible treats
Individually wrapped homemade cookies or brownies
Individually wrapped candy
Microwave popcorn
Hot chocolate packets – there are specialty ones with unusual additions or flavorings, or you can make your own

Gag gifts for prizes
Dollar and bargain stores are good sources
The Jungle Store sells inexpensive foam animal masks, starting at $1 a piece

Of course, nice prizes are fun, too. Here are some ideas:

Ideas for adults
Gift card for a restaurant, local coffee place, bookstores, mall, online store
Movie gift card
Table centerpiece
Specialty candy
Gourmet coffee or food item
Candle
Sports event ticket

Ideas for teens
Poster of the latest, hottest bandGift certificate to video rental store
DVD
CD
Baseball, football, or soccer ball
Itunes gift card
Movie gift card

Ideas for grade school children
Local ice cream shop gift certificate
Gift certificate for a local skating rink
Tokens for the video game parlor
Movie gift card
Book store gift card
Small toys – places like Oriental Trading are a good source I’ve used when you needs lots of inexpensive prizes
$5.00 or $10.00 bill
Figurines to fit the party theme – Schleich ones are nice – take a look at the figurine categories at Arsatoys – some toys stores sell them, too
Stationery – here are some fun kid-friendly stationeries

Ideas for preschoolers – depending on the age, you may need participation prizes, too!
Mylar balloons
Stickers
Small age-safe toys
$1.00 bill
Coloring books or paint with water books
Books

Wrapping prizes or bagging favors can add to the fun, too. Click here to read more!

New Year’s Eve Parties

Many New Year’s Eve Parties are more about drinking than anything, but they don’t have to be. I’ve been to a lot of family and children oriented parties. The smaller children often watched videos while older kids and adults played board games, card games, etc. And, of course, we had all kinds of snacks and beverages to keep us going until midnight. Once we saw the New Year in with noise makers (kids love wooden spoons and pans to bang on as well as horns, etc.), perhaps some fireworks, and New Year wishes and hugs, those driving home could go safely without having to worry about blood alcohol content. The next morning there aren’t hangovers either!

Check out these resources for more ideas:

New Year’s Eve Party Games from Party Games Central.

E-How has links to ideas for different types of partying for New Year’s Eve.

I-Village offers 4 Fun and Fresh New Year's Eve Party Themes.

Crayola has some kid focused ideas for coloring and crafts for New Year’s.

Party411 has New Year’s Eve party themes – scroll to bottom of page.

There’s a New Year’s Fun Guide at FamilyFun.

We have some fun party invitations for New Year's on our site, too. Click here to read more!

Merry Christmas

“The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.” ~Burton Hillis

We wish you the gift of time with family and friends.

IBY staff

Click here to read more!

Gifts don’t have to be monetary

Do you have one of those hard to buy for people in your family? And now it’s last minute and you still don’t know what to do?

What about sharing some good memories of this person? Or fun stories that you enjoy telling about them (obviously not “put down” stories). Write them up; put them in letter format or make a small booklet, which could include snapshots. Or do a list format, such as “25 great things about . . . “ If you have children, this latter is a great project to get them involved in. If you have a video camera or a way to record sound, you could make a video or audio recording of these stories or memories for them.

Another idea is “service” coupons. Make a gift certificate for something you know they need or enjoy. For some of my family and friends I could give “2 hours of computer help” or “I’ll put 50 of your pictures in a photo album.” I’d personally enjoy gifts like “2 hours of housecleaning” or “afternoon tea with . . .”

Do you have digital photos or videos they’d enjoy, but don’t have? Make a CD or DVD. I’d love to have copies of home movies my in-laws took of my husband when he was little.

Have technical skills? What about downloading podcasts in a format they can enjoy. There are great podcasts out there, but many aren’t even aware of them. (This one might take more time to find those good ones than you have this year before Christmas, but save the idea for a birthday gift.)

Perhaps they'd like personalized stationery. Or calling cards.

Be creative! Your gift of time may be treasured and remembered longer than any other gift. Click here to read more!

Creative Ways to Wrap Presents

Starters:
As a child I remember one year when all my presents were wrapped in the Sunday funnies. Colorful. Inexpensive.

I also remember receiving gifts wrapped in fabric scraps.

What about using reusable containers? Fabric bags, decorative boxes.

Paper bags that you decorate with stickers and/or stamps? I also remember as a kid getting to use a stamp on paper to make my own wrapping paper--wouldn't be surprised if we used newspaper end rolls--again not very expensive.

I also like going to the dollar store for decorative paper bags.

Try these websites for more ideas:
ehow.com
fun.familyeducation.com
theromantic.com

Books from the library can provide helpful suggestions, too!

I think you might find this site useful. It may take a little while to load but it has photographs and tips in the form of a slideshow. Click here to read more!

Adult Mixers—people, not drinks

Sometimes you need something to get people relaxed with each other at a party. People Mixers or Ice Breakers can work. Here are some suggestions:

Memorable Mixer for a small group
Ask each person to bring some object that is important to them. At dinner or a set aside time, each one gets to show and tell. You may be surprised at what they bring and the stories that come out! We did this once and not only was it fun, but we really learned interesting things about each other.

Online Resources:

How To Mingle at a Dance Party Mixer for Singles – a lot of these ideas are not just limited to a singles party

Icebreakers Games for different age groups, including adults.

Ice Breaker Party Games

Ring a Bell Icebreaker

Icebreakers for All Occasions

Warming Up Your Next Party with Ice Breakers
Click here to read more!

Christmas Party Games and Activities

White elephant gift exchange. At an annual department party for my husband’s work we did various types of exchanges. But the most awful gift (true white elephants – those items no one would really want) was one of the most fun. These items should either be something you have in your house or something that costs very little (thrift shops, dollar stores, discount stores are good sources). We always played the game by drawing numbers. Number 1 got to choose a package and open it. Number 2 could either steal number 1s or take a new package and open it. If number 2 steals number 1’s gift, number 1 chooses another gift. Gifts can only be stolen twice. After the last person has picked a gift, number 1 gets their chance to steal.

I've also seen this game played with nice gifts.

FOR ALL AGES

8 Christmas Party Games

40+ Christmas Party Games

20+ Christmas Games and Activities – especially appropriate for school parties

43 Christmas Party Games

Or what about sharing a Christmas Story? Here’s a site with lots of stories, plus links to more stories.

ESPECIALLY FOR KIDS

3 Children’s Christmas Party Games

5 Children’s Christmas Party Games

“Ideas For Your Kids' Christmas Party” by John Lenaghan

Christmas Party Games for Kids 4-8

ESPECIALLY FOR TEENS

Christmas Party Games for Teens

ESPECIALLY FOR ADULTS

Christmas Party Games for Adults

These Christmas Party Games include Christmas Movie Trivia, The Bacon Factor, and more, plus Party Starters. Click here to read more!

Christmas Party Ideas

Want to invite friends to celebrate the season with you? You can make your time special by planning ahead. This article by Julie Henry “Christmas Party Ideas” has some great suggestions. So do these 2 articles by Coral Nafie: “Plan a Memorable Christmas Party” and “Gearing Up for Holiday Guests.” This article, “Christmas Dinner Party Ideas” by Susan Crowley, has a variety of ideas.

The Invitations

Want a unique wording for your Christmas party invitation? What about using a quote about Christmas? Or a quote may inspire what you want to say. Here are some Merry Christmas Quotations for you.

Ideas for Children

Or maybe you want to plan a party for kids. Here are a few resources:

“Christmas Party Ideas For Kids” includes Christmas party games and ideas for a classroom or home party.
“Planning Your Child's Christmas Party” by Kimberly L. Keith
Christmas Party Ideas for Kids

My best advice for any party, is do as much prep as you can ahead of time so that you can enjoy the party, too!

Later this week I'll blog on Christmas games and activities. Click here to read more!