Countryside Gazebos of American Inc.

Today there are so many choices when it comes to choosing where to have your child’s birthday party- often it’s easy to overlook your own backyard. Backyard birthdays work well in the warmer months and for younger children, a fenced area is necessary. Birthday parties at home are often less expensive than taking a group of kids to a hosted party or children’s centre. With a little bit of imagination, creativity and a theme, a backyard party can be a huge hit.

Throw a barnyard bash

Throw a happening hoedown for your child by planning a themed barnyard, backyard birthday party. If you happen to have a shed or gazebo in your backyard you can decorate it to look like a barn. Put checkered table cloths on the tables, use bales of hay as chairs and tie up some stocks of corn as centre pieces.

To add to the theme have hamburgers, cobs of corn and milk for lunch. This is a good way to get kids to eat their vegetables.

Have the children dress up as farmers or animals. Play games like pin the tail on the pig, horseshoes, bowling with milk bottles and bobbing for apples. Have the children plant a small tree or vegetable in their very own pot to take home with them.

If you have any tricycles, wagons or outdoor riding vehicles turn them into tractors pulling bales of hay or crops on the farm. The children will enjoy riding around on them.  

If you want to hire entertainment, look for a traveling petting zoo or, for do-it-yourself effects, make a CD compilation of songs like Old MacDonald, the farmer and the dell, country songs or animal noises.

As a goody bag, give the children a pail, shovel, some plastic farm animals and animal shaped candy. All of this can be found at your local dollar store.

Throw a big-top adventure

If you have a gazebo in your backyard, you can make it look like a big-top tent by putting a big sheet overtop of it and securing the ends with rope to the ground. Use bright coloured balloons to decorate the area. As a main attraction you can dress your family pet up as a wild animal. Your dog could be a ferocious lion or your cat could be a wild cat or tiger.

 Games could include ring toss and pond fishing where they win candies disguised as animal food. You can hold a talent show where the kids are the circus act. As a bonus you can have a family friend dress up as a clown and make balloon animals or, hire a magician to perform some magic.

Serve circus foods such as candy apples, cotton candy, popcorn and fun snacks. Lunch should be hotdogs, pogos and pop.

Party at the beach

Bring the sunshine and sand to your own backyard by having a beach party themed event. Make sure to have a pool you can fill up with water and a sandbox to help create the real thing. Use vacation decor such as blow up palm trees, beach chairs, beach towels for tanning, beach balls, sea shells and small tables with umbrellas.

You can serve lemonade with limes, cherries or small umbrellas on the side for a cooling effect. Have the kids participate in a scavenger hunt by hiding small trinkets and treasures in the sand or around the backyard. Some other activities could be dancing in the sand, hula-hoop contests or volleyball. And of course, remember to play some summer music or songs from the beach boys.