Of course now that I'm a Mom I can understand where she was coming from... not that I enforce a complete ban on sleepovers, but I feel the most comfortable when I know my kids are safe at home in their beds. Imagine my excitement then when a friend of mine started hosting Pajama Parties. They have all the fun of a sleepover, except when the fun is over you go home and sleep in your own bed.
The Pajama Party:
Plan you party on a night the kids can stay up late, but be considerate of bedtimes for various ages. If they are under 8-years-old the party should be wrapping up before 10pm.
In your invite encourage all of the attendees to come dressed in their favorite pajamas and bring their favorite pillow and blanket.
Activity Ideas:
DECORATE A PILLOW - Make a small pillow in the shape of a crown for each girl. Pillows are easy to make, but you may want to make them in advance unless you have an extra sewing machine and extra help. Pick up plastic gems, ribbon, beads and charms from your local craft store. Let the girls tie the ribbon into bows or hang charms with it. Have an adult attach the girls designs of ribbon, gems and beads to the pillows. The girls can take the decorative pillows home to accessories their own room.
KID SIZE PILLOW FIGHTS - A pillow fight, where no one gets injured, can be so much fun. For the injury free pillow fight make your own miniature pillows. The ones I make are the size of a bean bag (about 4x6 inches) and are filled with soft polyester pillow stuffing. You will probably want at least 2 pillows per child. Take the children to a safe running area free of sharp corners and let the pillow fight begin. The children will throw the pillows across the room at each other and try to dodge incoming pillows. The pillows have to leave your hand before they hit someone, and we have a no throwing at the face rule. The pillows are so small and soft that they have little speed and do not hurt on impact. This is a Parents Can Participate activity. In fact, the kids love targeting the adults.
SOCK PUPPETS - Buy packages of long tube socks, swatches of felt fabric in various colors, craft eyes, yarn and other craft supplies. You will also need a hot glue gun and glue sticks. Place the children in groups and let them plan a puppet show to present to everyone. Then using the socks and provided supplies they can create their own puppets to use in the show. An adult will need to be in charge of the glue gun. Do cake and presents while the puppets dry and then have all of the girls sit on their blankets and pillows to watch the groups present their shows. You can provide popcorn and treats to make it theater like.
QUIET TIME - After the fun activities, the food and the gifts gather everyone together on the floor with their pillows and blankets for quiet time. We recommend the following stories or movies:
Movie: Sleeping Beauty (This one may scare little princesses.)
Stories: The Princess and the Pea, Sleeping Beauty or Puppet Shows
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