“I have about seven girls sleeping over including my two and I want it to be terrific,” says Circle of Moms member Karyn C.
by Mary Beth Sammons
“I have about seven girls sleeping over including my two and I want it to be terrific,” says Circle of Moms member Karyn C. “I am not the most crafty person, but want to make this party memorable since she is now ten.”
When it comes to hosting a sleepover party, Circle of Moms members agree that there is one thing that is always missing, and that’s the sleep part! But since you usually can't change that, moms suggest focusing instead on providing guests with fun activities for all those hours during which they're be awake! Here are five ideas that'll guarantee a good time.
1. Choose a Theme
Picking a theme and creating an atmosphere can set the stage for a successful sleepover, say several moms. Victoria W. usually goes with a sports theme for her son: "Bowling or renting out a school gym or playing hockey or soccer are a good idea."
Maria D. suggests a camping theme. For her daughter's party she set up a pretend campsite, put on a CD of ‘nature’ sounds and had her crew make s'mores and tell silly ghost stories. “The craft was having the girls decorate backpacks and canvas bags. You can get them fairly inexpensively and pick up some fabric paint and puffy paint. Anything goes and the girls can sign each other’s bags. It makes a nice take-home for them and the goody bag stuff can go inside”
2. Head to the Kitchen
Personalizing pizzas or decorating cookies or cupcakes serves up not just the food, but fun too, say moms like Tamara F.: “For my daughter’s ninth birthday day we baked a cake and let her and her friends decorate it themselves. I got several different colors of canned icing, sprinkles and candies." The end result "looked funky," but as Tamara notes, "they loved it.”
Vicki K. hosted a team of 10-year-old boys and says they also had a blast in the kitchen. “We let the kids make their own pizza's,” she explains. “You can use English muffins or have them make the dough [for] large size pizzas as well.”
3. Sing, Dance, or Make a Video
Young girls especially love to dance and sing, but boys too might get into karaoke, says a mom named Jennifer. “How about a karaoke machine loaded with some of their favorite music? You could even break out the video camera and let them make their own movies or a music video.”
4. Get Crafty
Tweens like to make stuff, so Amanda K. sets up craft activities. “We did beaded jewelry and friendship bracelets for a tenth birthday party because that's something the girls can pretty much handle on their own,” she says.
At a party Cheryl C. hosted, the girls watched a movies and made tie blankets. "We took a picture with each guest with my daughter and their blankets.”
Another crafty idea helped make Jennifer J.’s 13-year-old daughter’s slumber party extra fun. "After they woke up we went out to the yard, where there was a canvas on a circular table, and the girls painted whatever they wanted on the canvas,” she says. “We then took the canvas and hung it outside and took group pictures of everyone. Each girl got a picture in a frame to take home.”
5. Book a Hotel Room
The secret to the success of the slumber party Laura H. held for her 10-year-old daughter was outsourcing everything from the location to the food. She took the group to a local hotel for a night of swimming and crafts, which kept the chaos out of her house. “The girls spent the whole evening and next morning going from the indoor water slide and the outdoor heated pool,” she reports. “We ordered pizza and had an ice cream cake for dessert. The girls made jewelry out of beading packages that I picked up. They brought their own music to play in the room and had a real ‘grown-up’ party. It was a complete success.”
Image Source: El Diablo Robotico via Flickr/Creative Commons
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