Barnyard Party for Fall  I gave a barnyard party for my twins (boy and girl) who were turning 4 at the end of September.  We invited 14 guests between 2yrs and 6yrs old and their parents, using purchased invitations shaped like barns. I had made my own CD of farm type music (Old MacDonald, Farmer in the Dell, Home on the Range, Little Bo Peep, etc) and had it playing.  When the children first arrived, they received either a straw cowboy hat or a red neck kerchief, and I had tables set up with crayons and farm/animal coloring pages.  My husband gave hayrides in a trailor, pulled by our lawn tractor, with the kids going 4 at a time and the others coloring. We had decorated our backyard with a cardboard barn and pig and cow (purchased), hay bales and a Pumpkin Patch complete with scarecrow, and small sugar pumpkins.    After everyone had arrived and had a turn with the hay rides, we took a group picture of the kids in front of the barn and played pin the tail on the cow.  Next we played "Hot Pumpkin" using a small pumpkin-shaped gourd. As each child "won" (got stuck with the gourd), he or she got to go to the pumpkin patch and pick a pumpkin. I had purchased paints, brushes, markers and stickers to paint the pumpkins with which the children did on 3 small picnic tables placed end to end.  After they were done, we set the pumpkins on a tarp to dry and the kids had a few minutes of free play in the "barn" and swingset, while I set up the cake and cupcakes.  We called in the kids and sang happy birthday using a small cake I had made and decorated with a barn and tractor, and frosing "fields". Then the children went back to the picnic tables to decorate individual frosted cupcakes made with farm theme cupcake cups.  I put out bowls of chocolate chips, gummy worms, sprinkles, coconut and crushed oreos and the kids had a blast creating and then eating them. I used paper plates, cups and napkins I purchased with a barn and farm animals on them, and red and white streamers for additional decoration.   While they were doing this I had my husband hide plastic easter eggs filled with candy and stickers and little toy chicks in the hay inside the cardboard barn. After the kids ate, they went out and took turns finding 3 eggs each in the hay (youngest to oldest).  After cleanup of the picnic tables the kids came back and played "barnyard bingo" which I had created on my computer, and they used candy corn for markers. As each child won, they came up to get their farm goody bags, which included a farm animal beanie baby, a sheet of farm stickers, a small plastic horse and candy. They also got to take home the pumpkin that they had decorated. During the party I had put out potato sticks, a veggie tray, cheese tray, chicken wings and mini bagel pizza for the grownups and kids to munch on. This was a great party and thanks to the moms and other helpers pitching in it went off without a hitch.  Thanks also to the great ideas I got from other parties listed on this site.  The kids had a great time and we included a copy of the group picture in each thank you note (purchased to match the invitations). We did not open presents during the party, because with twins and 14 guests, thats apprx. 28 presents, it would take to long and be very chaotic, but did write a personal note in each thank you card, mentioning the gift. Try to do as much ahead of time as possible, so that you can enjoy the party too!