Bug Party- 1 Year Old For my daughter's first birthday party we threw a bug party which was a huge hit. We bought bug-themed invitations (on clearance!) at a party
store and also bought bug-themed plates and napkins (on clearance again!) at a different party store. We decorated the house and the backyard with bright colored balloons, streamers, and ladybug banners. The ages of the children at the party ranged from 8 months to 5 years so I knew I needed a variety of activities to keep everyone interested. In the backyard we set up different stations of games and activities. We had a bug bean-bag toss that my husband and I made. He took a piece of particle board the size of a standard piece of poster board and sawed two holes into it (one the size of the rim of a standard paper plate and one the size of the interior ring of the plate), with about 4 inches in between the holes. He nailed braces onto it so it could stand up, with the back side being totally open. I made ladybug bean bags out of red felt with black felt spots and black braiding for trim and antennae which I stuffed with pinto beans and then sewed shut. I then took a piece of white poster board, cut holes in it matching the holes on the beanbag base my husband had made, and decorated them to look like two flowers with construction paper. The kids had a fun time tossing the lady bugs through the flowers. We also had a table set up to make caterpillars. We cut egg cartons into sections of two and three "humps" and had glue, glitter, tissue paper square, sequins, gems, and google eyes to glue onto the caterpillars. We also had white pipe cleaner antennae for the kids to attach (poke two holes on the top of one of the egg sections to fit the pipe cleaners in). We also had a "Put the Spot on the Ladybug" game. I took a piece of red poster board and drew the outline of a ladybug on it with marker. We had a small red bucket full of mini-Oreo's and a red bandana to blindfold the kids. The kids had fun opening the Oreo, licking it, and trying to stick it onto the ladybug. We made a large sheet cake and frosted it blue and then frosted green grass onto it and red and yellow flowers before decorating it with a bunch of small plastic bugs. (I only used the cute ones like caterpillars, dragonflies, and ants, not big hairy spiders). For drinks we had juice boxes, pop, bottled water and beer (for the adults). The adult drinks were in a large sheet metal trough that I borrowed from a neighbor. The kids drinks were in a wheelbarrow which I lined with a garbage bag and then filled with ice. The kids thought it was great fun to run up and get a juice or water from that! Toward the end of the party we passed out the goodie bags. For the small kids I gave a sand pail and bucket with a butterfly bib tied on it (both items found at a dollar store). For the kids 2 and older I gave a bug catching kit that I bought at Wal-Mart ($1.97 each). It was a rectangular plastic container on a string with a removable top which had air holes and a built-in magnifier on it. The kits came with a few different types of grabbers and a pair of scissors for cutting grass to feed the bugs. I opened the kits before the party, put a plastic bug and bug stickers in each one, and then re-closed them and wrote each child's name on it so they could identify theirs. Then, at the very end of the party, my husband and I released 100 crickets (that we bought, very inexpensively, the morning of the party, at the local pet store) and about 600 ladybugs (which we bought at a garden store a few days in advance for $9 and which can be kept in a refrigerator where they hibernate for a few weeks if necessary). The kids thought it was so much fun to hop around our yard and catch bugs like crazy. Each child caught at least 15 bugs and they haven't stopped talking about our bug party, even though it was months ago!
