One of the neat things about the Toy Story movies is that they show kids how to flex their imaginations and make up tales about their toys. Remind them of this, and then give the kids some free playtime with the toys they brought from home. They might come up with clever adventures that their toys embark upon together.
You could even set a time frame--say, 15 minutes--for the kids to come up with a story about their toys that they'll then perform to the adults at the party.
"You've Got a Friend in Me" is the Toy Story theme song. Play a twist on musical chairs to that tune, but since friendship is meant to be inclusive and not exclusive, don't send players "out" when the music stops and they can't find a chair. Instead, take away a chair after each round and tell the kids they must find a way to share the chairs that remain. By the end of the game, when only one chair is left, they'll probably find it hysterical to be stacked together on one seat.
Note: set some rules before the game begins: No pushing, no shoving and no jumping on top of each other to get to the chairs.
Party Food
Have some fun with the food menu at a Toy Story party by tying the meal to the movie's characters.
- Serve baked potatoes with toppings that have personified labels, such as "arms" for celery sticks, "hair" for shredded cheddar cheese, "eyes" for black olives and "lips" for slices of red bell pepper. You probably don't want the kids to make a giant mess of their food, but encourage them to "decorate" their baked potatoes with the edible body parts to make their very own Mr. Potato Heads.
- Serve hot dogs in honor of Slinky Dog, the wiener-dog toy in the movies.
- Don't feel bad if you decide to just order pizza. Pizza Planet plays a key role in the first Toy Story movie, after all.
The Cake
The cake could be shaped like a cowboy hat, or you could use a Toy Story cake pan (compare prices) to make it.
Or, decorate the cake with a simple background, like the blue sky and clouds (another image from the movies), and adorn it with plastic Toy Story figurines (compare prices) or figurines that depict classic old toys, such as radio flyer wagons and teddy bears. That's what Pedretti's Bakery, of Elkader, Iowa, did when hired to make a Toy Story cake for customer Trisha Finley and her daughter daughter Jillian.
Toy Story Favors
Looking for a small gift to send home with the guests at the end of the party? Here are some Toy Story-inspired ideas:
For less than $2 each, you could send each child home with a paint-your-own ceramic piggy bank (compare prices). Painting the pigs could also be an activity during the party. Just be sure to make it one of the first items on the agenda since the paint will need time to dry before everyone goes home.
The favors could be make-your-own cowboy hat craft kids (compare prices)--another activity that could be done during the party or at home after it's over.
How about giving Toy Story coloring books and small packs of crayons? You could even make your own coloring books by printing out Toy Story coloring pages and binding them together following these instructions for making hardback books.
Toy Story Birthday Gifts
Not sure what gifts to give your young Toy Story fan for his or her birthday? Kristen Ryan, About.com's Guide to Toys, featured some of the products that came out surrounding the release of Toy Story 3. Take a look at what she had to say about:
- The LEGO Western Train Playset
- The MobiGo Toy Story 3 Game
- The Buzz Lightyear Rocket Blast sprinkler
- And the Limited-Edition Jessie Doll
Here's a link to even more Toy Story products on Kristen's site.
Don't forget to have your child send thank you notes to his or her guests. You could buy pre-packaged ones (compare prices).
Or have the birthday kid make his or her own by gluing white construction paper clouds onto blank blue notecards. Print out the word "Thanks" in yellow from your computer and have the child glue it on the card, too.
A Toy Story party can be fun for preschoolers and school-age kids, and because of the many characters in the movies, the possibilities for party crafts, decorations and activities are endless. Have fun planning this special day for your child.