We had a butterfly theme party for my daughter's 5th birthday party. In India during this season the new leaves spring out and most of the trees have vibrant color flowers and there are a lot
of butterflies fluttering around. We had a guest list of 26 kids(most of them were under 5) plus parents so we started preparing well in advance. For the invitations I got cards with
butterfly and the invitation read as Butterflies are pretty and fly so free so join us for ________ birthday party." We hand delivered them. The party was held on the terrace of
the Poona club which over looked the cricket ground. I was a beautiful venue. For the birthday I designed a white banner with buterfly images and flowers and glued "HAPPPY BIRTHDAY"
on it. For the cake table we had a round table covered with dark silk fabric and sprinkles butterflies all over and some we stuck upright as though they had just landed there. This was an
outdoor party and we had sixty helium balloons a dozen for every year. My daughter was dressed in a princess gown with flowers flowing down her hair. She looked pretty as a picture. We
had 4 games lined for the evening. Musical flowers - This is a twist to the musical chairs game. I handed out flowers that I had fashioned out of foam and fabric and each had a number
assigned. We had the kids stand around in a circle and handed out one flower each. As the music plays the kids exchanged the flowers and when the music stop a number is called out and the
child with that flower is asked to step out. We continued until there was only one child left who was the winner.
Treasure Hunt - I printed out the butterfly life cycle and then had each stage printed separately which I had positioned at various places. To start with I explained to the kids about the four stages of the butterfly and then I asked them to identify each stage on the life cycle and find the corresponding print in the party premise. We had a lot of fun doing this and at the final stage I handed out butterfly wings and antennaes. The wings were crafted out of construction paper and high-lighted them with glitter glue and sparkly gems. I punched two holes on the top side of the wings and strung ribons through these The kids slipped their hands through the ribbons like a back pack.The antennaes were made out of out of head bands and pipe cleaner. Just twist the pipe cleaner around the band and curl it around a pen this will give it the springy effect. For the boys I had made bee wings and antenneas. This was a big hit with all the kids. Drink like a butterfly - I designed flowers out of bendable straws and tissue paper. I cut flowers in the shape of a daisy in different colors and layered them and poked the straw through. The bend in the straw anchored the flowers. The kids had to run from the start line with the straw in the mouth and hands at the back to a row of glasses filled with nectar(juice) and the mission was to finish the nectar with out touching the glass. The first kid to finish the juice was awarded the first prize. The kids had their wings and bands on for this race and looked really cute. Cocoon wrap - This race was with a partner where the partner was a parent or a older sibling. Each kid in the race was given a white band that was about two feet long. They had to run to the partner get their hands wrapped in the white band and race to the finish line. This taught them the concept of how the caterpillar wraps itself to become a cocoon/pupa. We had simple kid friendly food. Sesame Toast grilled mushroom strawberry and marshmelow noodles and cheese sandwich. We had a butterfly shaped cake done by a local pastry shop. And a ice cream cone to finish with. For the return gift I had a water guns candy glue sticks erasers and candy. The kids got to take the wings and antennas home. Everyone was thrilled with all the activities and the gifts. Some moms still call to compliment on all the efforts. The best part was that I got to re live a few childhood moments in the bargain. Hope this helps anyone who plans on hosting a butterfly party. "
