Outside Summer Birthday Party Ideas

Hosting a birthday party outside can be ideal in many ways. You are open to more theme ideas as well as activities. Food preparation and serving can be much easier and clean up is less than what you might find with an indoor party. Use your imagination when it comes to a theme for your party and particularly consider the benefits of the space you plan to use when it is time to pick a theme.

This theme is fun for both adults and children and can also be very fun to prepare for. Hand out grass skirts and/or leis at the door and welcome your guests to Hawaii. Tiki torches are inexpensive and can be used throughout the yard as decoration as well as hanging lights and cutouts of palm trees. Scatter tropical flowers (real or fake) on the serving tables and around doorways. Playing Hawaiian music in the background will set the mood. Set up several wading pools or a sprinkler and ask children to come dressed for water play. Food for a Hawaiian themed party can include pineapple, kabobs from the grill or traditional Hawaiian pork. Little ones can feast on scaled down versions of this food such as mini hot dogs and fruit slices. Garnish drinks with a piece of pineapple or a mini umbrella.

What better way to have an outdoor birthday party in the summer heat than to make it a swimming party. You can set up wading pools, slip 'n slides and sprinklers in your own yard, or rent a space at the local swimming pool. Incorporate water into the party games as much as possible. "Toss the water balloon" or "Marco Polo" are just some examples. Keep the food simple, such as sandwiches or barbeque and set up a table where snacks can be had throughout the party. To be on the safe side, it may be a good idea to invite parents or to have extra adults on hand to make sure no one is in danger in the water.

Bugs are popular with children and there is no better place to find them than outdoors. Equip each child with a bug catching jar and allow them to decorate and put their name on it. Send them on a bug hunt and award prizes for the most bugs, the most interesting bug and so forth. Green frosted cupcakes arranged in a line with licorice for legs can become a caterpillar and is a good way to distribute the birthday cake to many without a lot of hassle and clean up. Give any other food you serve a bug themed twist. For instance, apples or celery sticks topped with peanut butter and raisins become "ants on a log." Include a magnifying glass or butterfly net as a party favor.