Bernadine in Cape Town, South Africa

Thomas-the-Tank Engine Party (3 year old) Our 3 year old son, loves Thomas-the-Tank Engine & friends. As Thomas is not hugely popular in South Africa, we were unable to find party supplies and had to get Thomas balloons, serviettes, tablecloth and plates sent from the U.S.A. The invitations were easy, we found printable Thomas-the-Tank Engine invitations and envelopes on the internet www.dltk-kids.com . One the day of the party, we used cake flour to make train tracks on the grass. There were tracks leading up to the gate entrance and on the gate we had several train signs (Stop railway crossing, beware of the trains and please show tickets) we had all sorts of signs in the garden and we also had tracks (using masking tape) in the house leading to the bathrooms with the relevant signs. We had planned on hiring a "train" for in the garden, but decided in the end to paint several cardboard boxes blue (one for each child) and cut a hole in the top (wide enough for a child's waist). We then cut two slits for handles on each side so that each child could easily manage their own "train". The birthday boy's box was made a bit more special, we pasted Thomas's face on the front of his box and gave his box a red stripe. We then took two old aqueous cream containers painted them black, glued them together and made a smokestack – his box really looked good and he loved it! We also hired a jumping castle in the shape of a boat, and made tracks with signs leading to the "Dockyard" - the jumping castle was also a great hit. We played a few 'train' related and other games and had prizes too, the best prize being the encapsulated trains (a kind of pill that you put in warm water and grows into a sponge train) We personalised the Party Boxes and each child was given a whistle and a Thomas picture to colour in. We found some old tape (cassette) boxes and decided to rejuvenate the boxes with new, personalised Thomas Cover's and filled them with crayons. We then came across a Thomas Birthday Card that was also a book, and decided to put one in each party box as a Thank you card/book. Of course, no party box would be complete without one or two munchies. We tried to keep the sweets to a minimum and served pizza, sandwiches and chips as an alternative to a table covered in sugar! The pizzas and sandwiches were cut into train shapes using a cookie cutter. Instead of fizzy drinks we diluted apple and grape juice. The cake was made by a local Party Company. It was a plain square sponge cake with a Thomas picture on the top. To finish it off, we had a plastic train and train track around the cake. A good time was had by all, and even though I tried to keep the sugar highs to a minimum - the kids still went home buzzing with excitement. Teletubbie Party (two year old) Most kids love the Teletubbies and my child is one of them! For his second Birthday we had a small party with mainly family. The red, yellow, green and purple theme was carried right through from the tableware (plates etc…) to the sweets. The Birthday cake was in the shape of a two and to add interest, I placed Teletubbie figurines around the cake. Next to Po, I placed the red sweets and next to La-La the yellow ones and so on. Using a square container, I covered it in foil and pasted on pink cardboard "buttons" and so managed to make a Tubbie "Toaster". For the Tubbie Toast I used Chocolate digestive biscuits, and used icing to make faces on the biscuits. I made pink Tubbie Custard using instant pudding. For decoration we put up Teletubbie balloons and all the Teletubbie toys were put out on display. I also put my son's face in the sun and had 'child size' Teletubbies on the walls around the room (To make your own large wall decorations, borrow/rent an overhead projector from you local school. Trace the small picture you have onto an overhead projector sheet. Then put a large sheet of paper on the wall, and project the picture onto the sheet of paper. Adjust the projector until the picture on the wall is the right size, trace the outline. Using paint you can do the final touches). Some toys were put out to play with, and very little entertaining was needed. Winnie the Pooh Party (one year old) For our son's 1st Birthday we had a Winnie-the-Pooh picnic on our deck. For the invitations I used an outline of Winnie-the-Pooh to photocopy onto different colour pieces of cardboard. I then cut out the shape and pasted the party details onto Winnie-the-Pooh's tummy. On the day, a picnic blanket was spread out on the floor and age appropriate toys strewn all over. I also put up a tent, filled with toys for the kids to play in. The picnic basket was filled with goodies that a one year old can manage to eat i.e. Flings & Boudoir biscuits. In keeping with the theme we placed all the Winnie-the-Pooh toys on the picnic blanket and the tableware was colour co-ordinated with Winnie-the-Pooh serviettes. Inside the house, Winnie-the-Pooh pictures were put up around the cake table. The cake was in the shape of a one, and it had little honey bees on it. For honey pots I used lilac plastic cups which I filled with yellow jelly – messy but great fun!