Luau Party 7-9yr - Sand Bucket Toss

We had a luau party for my two older daughters who were turning 9 and 7.  They each invited 3 friends for a total of 8 girls. 

Our invitations were done on brightly colored stationery paper with a flip flop border with matching envelope that we ordered from Oriental Trading using our word processor and a Hawaiian font.  The invitations said, A Birthday Hawaiian style…Doesn't it sound great!  (Child's name) is turning (age), so we've got to celebrate!  We'll limbo and learn to hula and listen to a Hawaiian beat.  Once you see the place, you'll sure to get in the mood.  So bring your favorite beach wear for some luau fun.  It's sure to be a blast and we hope to see you there!  When: (your date)  Time: (we held ours from 1 pm to 8 pm), a long time but it went really fast   Where:  (Last name) Resort and Beach Club (address)  RSVP: (phone number)    Please remember to bring along your favorite beach wear!

We decorated two areas in our house.  First, we decorated our downstairs family room, this is where most of the action took place throughout the day.  We moved furniture and took down some pictures but it turned out great.  We divided the room actually in half and used that for the party area.  We hung brightly colored streamers across the ceiling in pink, purple, yellow, blue and green.  We also hung parrots, palm trees and fishes (a kit from OT that was actually balloons and with stickers to make it into a fish) from the ceiling.  We hung a door curtain that said Let's Hula with silk flowers hanging down and then put the same colored streamers from the ceiling to the floor on both sides of the door curtain to divide the family room in half (we have a small beam that goes through the middle of our family room). 

On our patio door, we made a raffia looking fringe banner (we made these out of brown paper bags) and hung hibiscus lantern light set to go across the top of the door.  On one wall, we hung a Happy Birthday garland with a hula girl in the middle.  On the big wall, we hung the Scene Setters Ocean Window Views (these are really neat looking) and a large Luau Party sign.  Below the Luau Party Sign was a small ledge and on the ledge we hung more brown paper bag raffia and a flower lei garland.  On the ledge, we set two tissue paper pineapples and a hula girl.  On the other wall, we hung the Scene Setters Palm Trees. 

In one corner of the room, we made two 3-D palm trees.  I got two square boxes that were about 10 inches wide on each side and about 5 -6 feet tall (my boxes were from weed eaters, I also heard that cardboard carpet roll would work too).  We covered the box in brown paper bags and then cut the palm tree tops out of green tagboard( you will need two sets of tree tops for each tree and cut a top slit in one and a bottom slit in the other one and put the two together to make it 3-D).  We cut slits in all four corners of the box and slid the tagboard in.  Last we added maroon balloons for the coconuts.  We placed all the presents under the trees.  On the support pole, we wrapped it in white x-mas lights and taped glittery cut outs of flowers and flip flops. 

We added a beach ball and inflatable ring toss flamigo for some fun.  In the dining room and kitchen upstairs, we decorated the table in a yellow table cloth with a hibiscus table runner.  I added two hurricane glass candle holders filled with sand and seashells and a tropical smelling candle.  Around the base of the candle holders, I put a yellow silk flower lei.  In the middle of the table between the candles, we placed a fresh pineapple and two coconuts.  We had lime green plates, hula girl napkins, and purple cups complete with silk hibiscus flower straws.  We hung tissue paper fish and sea horses from the light.  On the patio door, we again hung more brown paper bag raffia banner, a paper lantern light set and each side of the door we hung a 8 foot metallic palm tree decoration. 

On each chair, we added streamers and an helium balloon.  On the stair railing, we used more brown paper bag raffia banner, a flower lei garland and helium balloons.  On my island in the kitchen, we added tropical tablecloth.  This was snack central for the girls.  I used sand buckets (found at Target) to hold goldfish crackers and Skittles.  A brightly colored bowl to hold chips.  I found after Valentines Day at Target, a beverage bucket at half off, to hold all their juice boxes and water.  It was finally time for the party to start. 

When the girls arrived, they changed into their beach wear and my daughters gave each one of their friends a silk flower lei.  We had luau themed music playing the entire time.  We started with a craft project.  The girls made tissue papers flowers out of brightly colored tissue paper and pipe cleaners.  I then hot glued the flowers to hair combs so they could wear them in their hair.  They turned out really cute. 

Next was the first game,  we played sand bucket toss.  The bucket is placed about 5 feet away and with the shovel you try to toss 3 ping pong balls into the pail.  Whoever gets the most in 1 try wins. We moved on to our next craft project and we made tropical photo frames.  I found a foam kit at Wal-Mart that had the frames, some tropical sayings and shapes, glitter glue and letters and all they had to do was put them together and decorate them.  I purchased additional tropical foam shapes from OT.  They turned out great.  We took group pictures with each of my daughters friends and then I printed them off and the girls got to take them home with them. 

Off to some more games,  we played a beach relay next.  I filled two beach bags each with a grass skirt, sunglasses, beach hat, lei and beach towel.  They girls decided they wanted to race 7 yr old against the 9 yr old but you could pick teams or draw for teams.  The first person in each team at the go" signal had to put everything from her beach bag on and run to a beach chair which was 15 feet away sit in the chair and run back take everything back off and put it into the bag and hand it to the next girl in line etc.  The team who crosses everyone over the finish line first wins.  I had two prize buckets (sand buckets).  One had smaller prizes in it for team games for example bubbles tatoos and candy and the other had bigger prizes in it for individual games like photo albums sticker albums tatoos keychains notebooks diaries lighted pen which I got all from the $1 section at Target. 

Next game was a hula hoop head off.  This again was a team game and the girls all stand sideways holding hands.  The first person picks up the hula hoop and crawls through it without letting go of their neighbors hand (they can not let go of hands) and passes the hula hoop off to their neighbor until the hula hoop reaches the last person in line and they crawl through it and place it back on the floor.  First team to finish wins. I was going to try to get supper started so while I did that the girls learned how to hula dance.  I had my local library find two DVD's just for kids on how to hula.  They girls had a great time and it was fun to watch.

For supper we served chicken nuggets jello cut into fish shapes (a big hit) fresh fruit kabobs chips Hawaiian pizza juice boxes and water.  We made non alchohlic pina colodas for a taste of tropical.  Some of the girls tried them but they were not impressed with them at all.  While we waited for the pizza and nuggets to bake we opened presents.  I had each girl present their present and took a picture of them with my daughter.  After we ate we made a tropical charm bracelet ( a kit from OT).  These turned out great and they girls really loved this craft project. 

Then it was limbo time.  We played the tradition "Limbo Rock" music.  We had two prizes for this though since the there was a height difference between the two age groups.  After the Limbo we had cupcakes.  We had simple chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting with flower sprinkles and them added a hibiscus pick (from OT)and placed them on a cupcake dessert stand.  They looked really nice. 

After cupcakes the girls had free time do to what they wanted till it was time to take them home.  At the end of the party we handed out treat bags with a name tag on each with their name in Hawaiian filled with a flip flop notepad hibiscus pencil & pen set fruit snacks a crazy straw and a flip flop necklace.  I also left anyone that didn't win a prize out of the large prize bucket to pick one out since I had some left.  The girls went home saying they had a great time and my girls said it was the best birthday party they had had.  I think they really enjoyed being in swimsuits and shorts with snow on the ground outside.  We are also sending out Thank Yous in the same flip flop design as the invites. 

This party was a lot of fun to plan and do.  I got all of my party supplies from Oriental Trading Factory Card Outlet and Birthday Direct. Hope this gives you some ideas.  Happy Planning!                    "