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Posts Tagged ‘kids’

Fun Fact Friday: Charlie Brown turns 59, stays young forever

Posted by Josh on October 02, 2009 in General

birthday-charlie-brown-giftsToday Charlie Brown and his comic strip friends from Peanuts turn 59. In an incredible feat, Lucy, Peppermint Patty, Charlie Brown, and the crew have made it through more than a half century without ever growing up. Peanuts, the comic strip created by Charles Shulz, holds the record for the most syndicated comic strip of all time. The Fizzle News reports:

From Monday, October 2, 1950, until the final strip appeared on Sunday, February 13, 2000 there were a total of 17,897 strips: 15,391 daily strips, and 2,506 Sundays. Through that [Charles Shulz] only took a single vacation from November 27 through December 31, 1997.

Through their lifetimes, the Peanuts characters have appeared as movie stars in features such as “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and even “Happy Birthday, Charlie Brown.” They have been stars of the theater, singers on their own music album, featured in books, and seen on a blimp as advertisers for MetLife.

The cast started small, featuring Charlie Brown, Shermy, Patty, and Snoopy, but grew to include many other beloved characters such as Violet, Linus, and Schroeder. So today, Charlie Brown, we wish you a happy 59th birthday.

Happy Birthday Wallace and Gromit

Posted by Josh on September 30, 2009 in General

thumb-wallace-gromit-sidecarIt’s hard to believe that it’s really been 20 years since the claymation pair made their debut in the British short film A Grand Day Out, but what started off as a student production went on to entertain children (and adults) around the world. Paste Magazine has a great salute to the series, and here’s an excerpt:

Begun while director Nick Park was still in college, theWallace and Gromit series is likely the most successful franchise ever built out of a student film. That the film “A Grand Day Out” went on to an Academy Award nomination at the same time as another of Park’s works, the equally surreal “Creature Comforts,” is a testament to just how good Park was right out of the gate, appearing in even his earliest works as a fully-formed artist in a way that’s pretty rare for any medium, let alone one which requires the shear level of craft as animation. Since then, the Wallace and Gromitpictures have gone on to win three Academy Awards as well as pretty much every other award offered to animated films under the sun. Not bad, considering that the series has only had one feature film and, frankly, it’s not even the series’ strong point.

Happy birthday Wallace and Gromit. Keep enjoying the Wensleydale cheese and here’s to many more!

The history of the balloon

Posted by Josh on September 28, 2009 in General

index_01Kids love them, they make a party a party, but have you ever wondered where they come from? After a bit of digging, it turns out that balloons have a long, interesting history:

Balloons started out as entrails or bowels filled with air, and the Aztecs were actually the first people in history to make animals out of them.

The first rubber balloons were made by Professor Michael Faraday in 1824 for use in his experiments with hydrogen at the Royal Institution in London. `The caoutchouc is exceedingly elastic’, he wrote in the Quarterly Journal of Science the same year. `Bags made of it…have been expanded by having air forced into them, until the caoutchouc was quite transparent, and when expanded by hydrogen they were so light as to form balloons with considerable ascending power….’ Faraday made his balloons by cutting round two sheets of rubber laid together and pressing the edges together. The tacky rubber welded automatically, and the inside of the balloon was rubbed with flour to prevent the opposing surfaces joining together.

Toy balloons were introduced by pioneer rubber manufacturer Thomas Hancock the following year in the form of a do-it-yourself kit consisting of a bottle of rubber solution and a condensing syringe.

You can find much more on the history of balloons by checking out balloonhq.com. Who would have thought that something so seemingly simple had such a fascinating history. Here’s to many more years of balloons… the rubber ones that is.

Theme Thursday: Wizard of Oz party

Posted by Josh on September 24, 2009 in Theme Thursday

normal_100_0368To keep the Wizard of Oz theme going (it only turns 70 once), we’re featuring Wizard of Oz party theme ideas. As usual, amazingmoms.com has some great suggestions:

WIZARD OF OZ PARTY DECORATIONS
It’s easy to be creative with a classic party theme like the Wizard of Oz.

Create the beautiful land of Oz, using plenty of rainbow colored balloons,
streamers, matching party supplies and a beautifully set table.
Place rainbow swirled lollipops at each place setting.
Cover your party table with a large sheet of yellow butcher paper.
With a marker, add lines to create yellow bricks. Scatter red and emerald green sequins or faux gems all around the table. Create a centerpiece using a basket with a stuffed “Toto” dog inside, or use a pair of ruby slippers you’ve created with red glitter.
We’ve received some wonderful decorating ideas from our readers …

  • Use a roll of yellow butcher or mural paper to make a yellow brick road
  • that leads from the street continuing through the party room.
  • Cover a piece of mural paper with orange tissue poppies
  • and mount it on the wall.
  • Fashion Dorothy’s house from a large appliance box. Then, add
  • witch’s legs with striped tights and place them under the house.
  • Enlist an artistic friend or teen to paint “Munchkin’s” on
  • poster board. Hide the munchkins in the yard and party room.
  • Hang a giant banner by the front door that says
  • “Welcome to the Land of Oz” — then by the doorbell
  • a sign that says…”Bell out of Order, Please Knock.”

For many more Oz-themed party ideas, you can click here. Have a great party, keep an eye on the anniversary celebrations tonight, and here’s to many more years of movie magic!

Theme Thursday: Scoooooby-Dooby-Birthday!

Posted by Josh on September 17, 2009 in Theme Thursday

scooby-doo-tv-01Who would’ve thought that it’s really been 40 years since the Mystery Mobile set off on its first adventure, four meddling kids (and a talking dog) unmasked their first monster, and the Scooby Snack became a food group (kidding… eat your vegetables). It’s true, Scooby-Doo is 40 years old. In honor of 40 years of animated crime-fighting, here’s some special birthday tips on throwing a Scooby-Doo themed party, from DLTK:

Take your Scooby Doo party a step farther and do a Scooby Doo MYSTERY theme! Watch a few Scooby Doo shows to give yourself a bit of inspiration.

Use Halloween decorations including webs, bats, ghosts, cauldrons, etc. throughout the house
Play spooky music in the room where’d you’d left the gifts — lead the children there to find an old piece of parchment with a story on it (you can make parchment with regular paper and tea or coffee).
Make up a story about a ____ haunting the house, Oh no! The ghost has stolen all the birthday presents! You’ll have to follow the clues to find them. (The ____ depends on what time of year your party is at and how young the children are… if your birthday is in February, you might want it to be a leprechaun, near Halloween perhaps a Ghost, if it’s in December, perhaps an elf, for younger children perhaps a kitten stole everything).

Click here to read some of the potential clues.

Enjoy your Scooby party, and here’s to more years of foiling the bad guys.

Birthdays on a budget

Posted by Birthday Cate on September 14, 2009 in General

In these troubling economic times… ugh, let’s try this again.

Birthday parties are great, right? But who wouldn’t mind saving a little money throwing their next blowout birthday bash? I think I could handle that.

The Washington Post blog “On Parenting” has some great tips on how to save a few bucks playing host:

Through some strange fluke of astrology, nearly everyone of importance in my life was born during an 8-week stretch of summer. Labor Day doesn’t mark the end of summer so much as the end of the birthday party season. It never comes soon enough. Especially this year, when watching the dollars was more important than in years past.

There are a handful of lessons I’ve learned from trying to throw summertime birthday bashes that keep the kids happy without blowing up into a how-did-we-spend-THAT-much! debacle. Here are the top ones:

  • Don’t ever throw a party that the kid won’t remember. I can see an exception for the first birthday, which ends up being an opportunity for parents and grandparents and godparents to celebrating surviving that first sleepless year. But skipping the next couple of annual parties seems to make sense. Sure, get a cake, take pictures, create a record. But the party seems superfluous for just about everyone.
  • Don’t ever rent a moonbounce: The average length of time a kid can jump in a moonbounce before they get bored is about 12 minutes. That 12 minutes of boinging about is hardly worth the cost … or the giant plastic thing that eats up your entire backyard. And, as we all learned in physics, the faster particles move, the more likely they are to collide. You can pack a lot of colliding into 12 minutes.

Don’t miss the rest of the ideas, click here for more.

Here’s to a great next party, and many more to come!

Theme Thursday: Pony Party

Posted by Birthday Cate on August 27, 2009 in Theme Thursday

cool-ponyPonies and horses have always been a favorite with kids of all ages, so I thought I’d make sure I dedicated a theme Thursday post to the venerable pony party. Luckily, there are plenty of ideas out there, and many of them you can pull off even if you’re on a budget. Here’s a great list I found on amazingmoms.com:

HORSE OR PONY BIRTHDAY PARTY DECORATIONS
Set your table with matching horse party items and solid colored plates in yellow, green and blue. Cover the table in a white sheet, my personal party favorite! Cut horse photos from an inexpensive calendar (dollar store). Glue them to a strip of green felt, or butcher paper to fashion a unique table runner. Add individual place settings, using toy horses. Write the guests’ names on the horses, with a permanent marker. Tie a balloon bouquet to a favorite Breyer horse and place it as a table centerpiece. Decorate the party area with balloons and streamers. If you have horse tack available, then add that to the party area with a few posters of horses.

HORSE PARTY GAMES AND ACTIVITIES
The games and activities you choose for your party, will depend on the size of your party space, whether your party is held indoors or outdoors and the ages of the children. Prepare 2-3 games and one craft activity. We also recommend that you be prepared with an extra no-fuss game, just in case.

[click here for many more of these pony-themed ideas]

Tip Tuesday: Piñata Tips

Posted by Birthday Cate on August 25, 2009 in Tip Tuesday

1246683370-donkey_pinatasKids love piñatas! What could be better than candy (or healthier snacks or little toys which I recommend) raining down from the sky. Here are some tips for pulling off this birthday staple from lifetips.com:

If you’re planning on playing with piñatas during any celebration, follow these few guidelines to keep everyone safe and happy.

  1. Find a sturdy place to hang the piñata from, like a tree or basketball hoop.
  2. If the kids are old enough, provide a blindfold and stick. Then spin them around a few times and let them hit the piñata more than once before moving on to the next child.
  3. Very young children should go without a blindfold.
  4. Always keep several feet clear around the child who is hitting the piñata. You don’t want anyone to be accidentally struck.
  5. Consider pull-string versions of piñatas for an indoor birthday event or with toddler aged children. Pull-string piñatas have ribbons flowing from the bottom and once they are pulled a few times, the bottom falls out and candy showers down on the children, just as it would with a traditional piñata.

Tip Tuesday: 1st Birthday Party Supplies

Posted by Birthday Cate on August 18, 2009 in Tip Tuesday

Everyone knows the party basics: Cake, balloons, streamers etc. But it’s a little bit different on your child’s first birthday, and you’ll need to come prepared. Here’s a list I found on Lifetips.com that I think should make that first birthday extra special.

  • 1st birthday supplies like large, colorful plastic balls and plastic containers to practice fine motor skills will keep infants as well as toddlers entertained.
  • A fabric tunnel and tent to crawl through, walk through, or run through will keep toddlers and younger children busy.
  • Large, fat, washable crayons and a large roll of white paper for doodling will give a creative outlet for all your younger guests.

The Penny Turns 100 – Celebrate With This Fun Activity

Posted by Birthday Cate on August 12, 2009 in General

This month marks the 100th anniversary of the Abraham Lincoln penny. On August 2, 1909, the US mint began producing the iconic coin, and although pennies have been in production since 1792, the Lincoln penny was the first with a presidential portrait. For more information about the history of the penny, here’s an interesting TIME article piece, but I’ve found a really fun and creative way to make your own toy pennies with frozen juice can lids, from Examiner.com

What you need:

Frozen juice can lids (as many as you want)
Coin template
Blank sheets of sticker paper
Color Printer
Scissors

1.  Start collecting the metal lids from frozen juice cans.  Most brands have the same size lids, so you should be fine collecting whatever you like to drink.

2.  Download the coin template right here.

3.  Using sticker paper, print out the coin templates, as many as you want to make.  My two-page template is designed to make 12 double-sided coins

4.  Cut out each coin from the sticker paper and apply to the center of each lid.  The coin images are smaller than the juice can lids in order to avoid the rims of the lids.  Each coin has a front and back image.

5.  Give your kids their new toy coins and let the fun begin

Read more »

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