You Don’t Have to Break the Bank to Throw a Great Party! March 20, 2009

Times are tough financially, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t throw a great birthday party for your child!

Here are a few tips to keep you within your party budget!

1.  Schedule your party for a time that doesn’t require you to serve a meal.  Stay away from time slots that stretch over lunch or dinner.  Usually parties in the 1:00- 4:00 range work best.

2. Bake your own cake.  If you’re not a talented cake decorator then opt for cupcakes that the party guests can decorate.  You can make them from scratch or stock up on cake mixes when your local grocery store is having a big sale!  Buy seasonal sprinkles during the after the holiday clearance sales to save some money.

3. Get creative with your decorations!  Balloons and streamers are relatively inexpensive and can be used to creative a festive atmosphere.

• Having a jungle themed party?  Turn your balloons into animals.   Tape balloons together to form bodies and heads and use marker to draw faces.  Have balloon monkeys hanging from green streamers (vines).
• Circus themed party?  Drape streamers from the center of the ceiling out to the the edge of the ceiling and then down the walls to create a streamer “tent”.
• Have your children help you create great decorations.  Paint water on a long sheet of (butcher) paper for an Ocean or Pirate theme party.  Then add construction paper accessories like fish, pirate ships, etc.  Hang the sheet of paper on an empty wall.

4. Save money on the invitations.  Don’t spend money buying fancy invites. Search for printable invites online.   If you’re looking for something creative trying making invitations instead.  Pirate invites can be made on crumbled up, tea stained “treasure map” paper.  Dinosaur invites might be found inside a dinosaur egg (large plastic Easter egg).

Look for more tips coming soon!

March Craft Ideas March 8, 2009

I’m working on my March lesson plans for my preschool class and I thought I’d share some of the crafts that we’ll be creating this month.

Wind Crafts

Last week, we made hot air balloons that are now hanging from our classroom ceiling.  They turned out much better than I could have imagined.

1.I started out by tracing the outline of the balloon on two sheets of thick paper.   Try to make the balloon as symmetrical as possible because you will eventually be gluing the two balloons together and you want them to line up nicely.

2. Cut strips, squares and even circles from tissue paper.

3.  Water down white glue and mix with a paint brush.

4. Use the paint brush to spread the water/glue mixture on the balloon shape.

5. Place the tissue paper on the glue, overlapping and adding more glue as you go. It is okay if pieces of the tissue paper go over the outline of the balloon.

6. Allow the glue to dry and cut the balloon shape out of the paper, cutting through any tissue paper that may extend over the line.

7. Punch two holes in a small plastic bowl or cup.

8. Cut two piece of yarn or string and glue them in between the two sides of the balloon as you glue the two sides together.

9.  Thread the dangling ends of the string through the holes in the plastic cup.  Tie knots to secure the “basket” to the hot air balloon.

PinWheel

I used these directions for our pinwheel craft.  We only used one sheet of construction paper though and instead of a thumbtack we used a brass fastener.

http://www.dltk-holidays.com/summer/mpinwheel.htm

Saint Patrick’s Day

Check out this super cute leprechaun craft!

http://crafts.kaboose.com/leprechaun-wall-hanging.html

and more to come . . .

Why Should You Shop With Noah’s Ark this March? March 1, 2009

Noah’s Ark is featuring some great incentives to shop online in March!

• Receive a FREE “Kisses” sound chip with every animal that you purchase through the site from now until March 30th!

• Contact me to receive a $5 off coupon code- good for $5 off the purchase of any animal!

Or book a Party in a Box and receive FREE sound chips for all of your guests!! So, for example,  if you would buy 15 animals- you would receive $45 in free sound chips, plus a 10% product credit (if you spend $150 or more- please email me to receive this deal)!  The last person to place a Party in a Box order through my site spent about $200 and received over $60 in FREE products!  A Party in a Box makes a great activity for a Birthday Party, Scout Troop meeting, Child Care, Assisted Living Facility, etc.

What a great time to order animals for your Easter baskets! Our brand new Bunny Bears, Lil Lamb or Lil Chick would make great Easter gifts at only $13 each!

Please contact me with any questions!

Great Ideas for Winter Parties January 4, 2009

Growing up with a November birthday, I was always jealous of those kids that were blessed with summer birthdays.  They had the pool parties, the water balloon fights, the picnics, the mini golf games, the playgrounds.

If you’re stuck coming up with some ideas for a great Winter party, take a look at some the ideas below.  And feel free to offer some of you own suggestions!

The Cozy Party

Winter is the perfect time to have a Pajama Party.  Have a mid-day sleepover.  Invite the children to come dressed in their pajamas with their pillows in tow.  Dim the lights and watch a movie that was just released on DVD or an old Winter or Holiday favorite like the Grinch or Frosty the Snowman, eat popcorn, drink hot chocolate (with mini marshmallows of course) and talk.

The Winter Themed Party

It’s Winter so you might as well go with the season as the theme.  Create invitations on foam or paper snowflakes using glitter glue and markers.  We found a pack of snowflakes at AC Moore this season that we used to make beautiful invitations. Or if that seems like too much work- let the kids decorate snowflakes when they arrive.  Just be careful when using the glitter glue as it make not dry by the time the child leaves the party.

Play Pin the Nose on the Snowman.  You can make a great snowman out of white poster board with some construction paper accents (hat, scarf, etc).  Or purchase a snowman decoration at any place selling Christmas decorations and simply cut some orange carrot noses out of paper.  Put some tape or sticky tack on the back of the noses.  Use a scarf for a blindfold (preferably not a scratchy wool one).

If you have some open space in the house, let the kids have a snowball fight.  Use crumpled up white scrap paper or soft white balls for snowballs.  The kids can play a dodgeball- esque game using the “snowballs” or have them try to the balls into tubs or bins.  Each bin can be worth a different point value.  If this is party for girls, have each girl secretly choose another girl at the party.  (You can do this my drawing names from a hat.) Ask each girl to write down a compliment about the girl that they have chosen. Crumple the compliment up into a snowball and toss the snowball at the person that it is for.

Have the party guests bring their mittens or gloves to the party and as they arrive collect them in a basket.   Once the party is underway, ask the birthday child to match the gloves to the guest that brought them.

The Wishing It Were Summer Themed Party

Have a Summer Luau in the middle of winter.  Invite the guests to wear summer clothes to the party, like Hawaiian shirts and shorts.  Give the out leis as the guests enter the door.  Girls might enjoy learning to hula.  You can pick up an instructional DVD or book at the local bookstore or just improvise.

You could play a game of musical beach towels.  Fold the towels up into a nice seat size and play the game just like you would play musical chairs.  Play a mixed CD of summery songs or Island music to stick with the theme.

Serve up some french fries (just use frozen) in Dixie cups to give them the Summer carnival or boardwalk feel.

Look for some more ideas to be added as I have some more ideas!  And please feel free to leave comments with your own great ideas!

Only a Few Days Left! December 28, 2008

Noah’s Ark is is offering new Party Leaders a great deal and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to post about it here.  Until December 31, 2008, you can join Noah’s Ark for just $10.  This is a great deal considering you receive a 100% FREE, customizable website  through the company.  You also receive a manual and other info about the business.  All Party Leaders earn 35%-54% commission on all orders placed.  So if you were ever intersted in starting a children’s party business- this is a GREAT time to jump onboard! Visit my website at http://www.partiesbyjade.com and click on the “Join My Team” link at the top of the page to learn more.  Or visit the “Shop” link and purchase the Promotional Starter Kit to join!

Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears! October 9, 2008

Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake are now available!  These stuffable characters make great gifts- or book a workshop for a great party!

Looking for a birthday party idea for your child’s big day? At Noah’s Ark we think birthdays are extra special! If you book a workshop with me, you will receive all of the following items for FREE:

Invitations

• Thank You Cards
• Goodie Bags for every participant
• Coloring Sheets
• One Free Outfit or Collector’s Club Baby Mojo- as a special gift for the Birthday Child
• A small craft (such as decorating t-shirts for the animals-if t-shirts are purchased) or a game with a few prizes.

I also offer a great Party in a Box package for people that live outside of my service area!

A Party in a Box comes complete with everything you need to lead your workshop participants through hand stuffing their very own cuddly animal friend! Each order will contain the animals, stuffing, rainbow wish stars, stuffing instructions and birth certificates. A Noah’s Ark Workshop is always a “Boatload of Fun” for children of all ages!

Once you order I will ship out a separate package containing FREE goodie bags for each participant and a copy of the Rainbow Wish Ceremony that I use at all of my workshops!

Plus, every “Party in a Box” workshop host (who purchases over $150 worth of product) will receive a product credit equal to 10% of the total order (minus tax and shipping). So, if you spend $150 you will receive a $15 product credit which could buy 5 t-shirts, an outfit or even an additional animal.

Have a great day!

Jade Wagner
Independent Party Leader
Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop
http://partiesbyjade.com

Children’s Birthday Party Tips continued August 16, 2008

Do

• Take care when scheduling the entertainment. As a courtesy to the entertainer (Noah’s Ark Party Leader, magician, clown, face painter), schedule the entertainment to begin at a time when you know that all the guest will have arrived. Do not schedule the entertainment to begin at the very start of the party- unless you want the entertainment to keep the children occupied while the guests are arriving. Guests are inevitably late and the entertainer should not have to wait an extra 20 minutes to start his or her portion of the party to accommodate latecomers.

• Make the birthday child feel special. So often birthday party hosts are more concerned with the happiness of the guests then with the happiness of the birthday child. Give the birthday child special tasks to help him or her feel extra important during the party. Have her pass out the goodie bags to each child, make a seating chart for the table, announce the winner of any games, etc.

Children’s Birthday Party Tips July 13, 2008

Below are some tips to help make your child’s birthday party as enjoyable as possible!

Do:

• Keep the children occupied throughout the party. Provide games and crafts that can be done alone or with a group. It helps to have coloring sheets available for children who arrive early, or for children to work on while you wait for the late party guests to arrive. And there are always guests that arrive late! If the children are old enough- have a guessing game such as “How many jelly beans are in the jar?” Leave the jar on the table and children can visit it and write down their guesses at anytime during the party. The closest guess by the end of the party wins the jar. You may also want to do something similar with a “How well do you know the birthday child?” quiz. Have the guests fill out the quiz at their convenience (as they finish eating cake, as they are arriving, etc) At the end of the party, pass the quizzes back out and go over the answers, the person with the most correct wins a prize.

• Keep the children involved in every step of the party. Have cupcakes or cookies or ice cream sundaes for them to decorate instead of a big cake. Play a fun game during the present time to keep the kids involved and entertained. Have the children guess who each gift is from just by looking at the wrapping paper. If it is a party for girls- have the girls use the ribbons and bows on the packages to make a headpiece or bouquet for the birthday girl. Boys might like to help you clean up the wrapping paper mess by balling up the paper and shooting it into a nearby trash can. See who can make the most baskets.

to be continued

Become a Noah’s Ark Party Leader! July 9, 2008

Are you looking for an exciting new career or some extra cash to help you take that much needed vacation?  Well Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop is running their $29 Summer Success Starter Kit promotion in July and August! This means that you can become a NA Crew Member for just $29!

The $29 kit includes:

• (1) Buddy Puppy with Stuffing Kit
• (1) Animal T-shirt
• (1) Manual
• (2) Training CDs
• (2) Training DVDs
• (1) Bella Bee Catalogue Brochure
• (1) Cuddly Catalogue – 40 page
• (1) $5 Stuff On Us Mini Catalogue
• (10) Stuff-N-Fluff Mini-Catalogues
• 30 Piece Mailing
• FREE Customizable Website

This is a great offer! As always the Kit also includes a completely free website! The 30 piece mailing listed in the Kit contents will be sent to local school, libraries and daycares promoting you and your new Noah’s Ark business.

I LOVE when Noah’s Ark runs the $29 special! I joined during one of the specials myself. With all the great new promotional materials and products that were announced at convention- who wouldn’t want to join!

If you would like more information about becoming a Crew Member, contact me at jade.wagner@yahoo.com or check out my Noah’s Ark site at http://www.partiesbyjade.com

The Who, What and Why April 6, 2008

Hello! My name is Jade and I am an Independent Party Leader with Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop- a traveling Stuff Your Own Animal Party! As a Party Leader, I have attended a number of birthday parties. As a result, I have a good idea of the do’s and don’ts for parties. I hope to help you come up with themes, crafts, games, gifts, etc for all your children’s parties. I’ll even have a few tips on Bridal Showers, Baby Showers and more. So keep checking back! And let me know if you’d like some tips on something specific!

Jade