We wanted our son's first birthday party to be spectacular, so the ideas I have listed may be extreme to some, but we had a great time putting it all together.  We chose an Under The Sea Theme.  The party was held on our deck and in our backyard.  The guests were sent invitations printed from a stationary store.  They had various shades of blue background with "baby" sea creatures bordering around the edge. The invitation read "Under the Sea Under The Sea" come celebrate turning one with me! My husband constructed a frame to go over the top of our deck.  We placed a blue tarp over the frame to create the illusion of under the sea.  We attached cut outs of various sea creatures hanging from fishing line to the tarp. We then attached different lengths of green, blue, and white crepe paper to create the illlusion of water. I purchased sailor hats for each of the guests and used a paint pen to write their name on the hat and attached fish and sea creature buttons to the hat. As each guest arrived they received a hat.  Because of the various ages of the kids invited we set the backyard full of beach balls, volleyball games, and a yard golf game with sea creatures as part of the games.  The children played with these games until all of the guests arrived.  We then played several games I had put together for the party. Before beginning the games, each child was given a sand pail with his/her name painted on the front to hold their goodies.  The first game was the "Jack Fish" fishing hole. I bought wooden dowels and attached fishing line to them. At the end of the fishing line I attached a magnet.  I bought many different plastic sea creatures, shells, and various other ocean toys and attached magnets to them. All of the toys were placed in a child's swimming pool and the children "fished" for various prizes.  They absolutely LOVED this game!! The next game I filled a child's swimming pool with sand a buried various ocean and kid treasures for them to find.  We then took a break to open presents, and the kids were able to grab a few snacks which included: fish sticks and tartar sauce, PB&J sandwiches in the shape of fish, and goldfish cracker mix.  Not to leave the adults out, I made a seafood bisque.  After present opening, we broke open a pinata shaped like a fish.  We then enjoyed cake and ice cream.  The cake was a beautiful shade of powdered blue with seaweed pipped up the sides.  The icing was made to look like waves on the top and sugar cookies shaped and iced like tropical fish were on the top. Our son had an exact replica of the larger cake for himself. Earlier in the party the adults had a game of their own.  I filled a bowl full of about 1500 goldfish crackers.  The adults were told to write their guess down on a slip of paper and put it in the fish jar. After we finished the cake the winner was announced a presented with a bottle of wine.  The adults had SO MUCH FUN with this! As our guests left they received a plastic bag with a "fish".  I filled plastic bags with blueberry jello and put gummy fish inside.  Attached to each bag was a note thanking them for attending the party. I hope you can use some of these ideas and good luck with your party!