For my son's second birthday, we decided to celebrate all his favorite stories. I made "books" for invitations on the computer which were titled, "I'm Going to be Two! by Paul" and read, "Once upon a time, an energetic little boy named Paul was about to turn two years old! His Mommy and Daddy decided to have a party to celebrate with all his friends and family. So they asked everyone to come to their house at two o'clock in the afternoon on Sunday, November 14th. When the day of the party finally arrived, all the people that Paul loved came to his home. They ate cake together and sang "Happy Birthday" to the little boy. Everyone had a wonderful time at the party. Paul slept well that night, dreaming of candles, balloons and turning three... The End. We hope you can come to Paul's Storybook Birthday Party!" The text was spread out over four pages and tucked into "cover" made from a 5.5 X 4 inch pre-made card. I used thread to bind the whole thing together. On the day of the party, each area of our house was decorated in a specific book theme. The living room was "Goodnight Moon." The coffee table had a green tablecloth, a hardback copy of the book standing up, two stuffed kittens and a plain red weighted mylar balloon. On the side table was "Owen." It featured a fuzzy yellow blanket as a tablecloth, a copy of the book, and a stuffed mouse. The island in the kitchen was "Pat the Bunny." The tablecloth was peach, and we had a copy of the book and a white stuffed rabbit with a mint green ribbon around the neck. The kitchen table is where we served the pizza. The table had a red-and-white checked tablecloth, a copy of "Pete's a Pizza," plastic toy pizza on a plate, and plain red plastic plates. The dining room was "Harold and the Purple Crayon." I opened the table all the way up and covered it with white butcher paper. I copied several pictures from the book around the edge of the paper, but left plenty of room to color. In the center of the table was a copy of the book and several purple crayons. I put the cake on the buffet in the dining room, and I modeled it after the book "Fanny and May," which is out of print but worth tracking down. The story is about two young elephant girls who live in a house made of cake. One day, one of the sisters loses all control and eats the whole house! Anyway, I made a two-tier cake which looked like the house in the story and decorated the buffet with a stuffed elephant and the book. Lastly, the family room was "Where the Wild Things Are." The coffee table had a grass-green tablecloth, a novelty crown, a nine-inch "Wild Thing" doll and the book. We also had clusters of red, blue and yellow helium balloons around the house. Guests were encouraged to color in the dining room and read the various books to their children (which they did.) Since all of the kids were under three, the only activity was a story read aloud. As they left, the children were each given (what else?) inexpensive books as favors, each with a label on the inside cover to remind the them where it came from. The beauty of the party was how inexpensive it was! We already had all the books and most of the props. And since I bought solid colored paperware and plastic tablecloths, I didn't have to pay high prices for licensed character partyware. Naturally, this party could be customized to reflect each child's personal favorites. Bookstores even sell stuffed characters from children's classics, but with a little creativity, you could probably find enough things around your house to decorate with. The party was a big hit, and everyone complimented me on finding such a unique theme which truly reflected my son's interests.