Kid's Casino Party 7yr

LUCKY SEVEN KIDS' CASINO PARTY My son's birthday fell on 07-07-07 so obviously we decided on a LUCKY SEVEN theme which then evolved into a kids' casino.  However, I had to tread lightly so that parents didn't think I would be turning their kids into little gambling degenerates!  Luckily (pun intended), a search of amazon.com's dice and card games for kids helped immensely.  I've thrown alot of parties, and this one was by far the best receieved.  The parents and kids both loved it!  Hope yours is as much fun!  THEME COLORS Red, black, and green  INVITATIONS You've hit the JACKPOT! / Get in on the ACTION and celebrate Robbie's Fifth birthday with other HIGH ROLLERS. / ODDS are you'll be a winner. No BLUFFING! / Date: Saturday, July 7, 2007 / Place: Cumberland Casino /Operating Hours: 4-7 p.m. / Don't GAMBLE away this opportunity: RSVP the PIT BOSS by...  We also enclosed a poker chip with the invitation and informed the kids to bring it to the party to win big."  DECORATIONS (found at shindigz.com & ustoy.com) kelly green tablecloths (to resemble casino tables) card suit cutouts dice danglers dice balloons casino balloons casino confetti casino plates black & red napkins cups and plastic ware card suit serving bowls playing card centerpieces (for the food tables)  MUSIC I downloaded a bunch of casino songs from the internet: Viva Las Vegas anything by Tom Jones etc.  A Google search should provide an adequate list.  GAMES/ACTIVITIES Thankfully I know a bunch of cool dads who "volunteered" to act as dealers.  I provided them with green visors and gambler's vests (shindigz.com) to really make it authentic.  As the kids arrived they were given a cup with their name on it and one poker chip.  Then we sent them off to the tables to play the games: Lucky Seven Left/Center/Right Slot Dice Pattern Block Dice Feed the Kitty and Dicey.  (All games from amazon.com.)  These games were fast and easy.  The kids had to pay a chip to play.  The winner of each game received three chips and all the other players received one chip.  The kids ran from one table to the next collecting chips.  This went on for about an hour.  Then we played two games of Bingo with prizes from the dollar store.  After eating we had a poker chip & playing card pinata (found online).  It was filled with candy and more poker chips.  We had cake next.  Then I asked each kid to count their chips and awarded prizes for the most amount of chips and least amount of chips (fuzzy dice from the dollar store).  Finally the kids were directed to cash in their chips at the casino gift shop.  I purchased a bunch of small toys from the Oriental Trading Company and labeled their "cost" in chips from one chip to six chips.  The kids got to "buy" their prizes.  As the kids made their purchases I quietly went around adding more prizes to their bags since not all kids had the same amount of chips.  FOOD A casino buffet: pizza salad small bags of chips fruit.  At each table I had snacks in casino themed-bowls (goldfish & cocktail peanuts).  CAKE We ordered a sheet cake with green frosting that said in red letters: "It's your lucky day Robbie!  Happy Birthday!"  I added a fan of playing cards dice and poker chips for decoration.  All in all this was a pretty easy party to plan and execute.  Having the dealer dads freed me up to direct kids to different tables and make things run smoothly.  I also had some pre-teen guests run the gift shop.  They liked the responsibility and again I was free to circulate and add prizes to bags.  I hope your party runs as smoothly!"