Jay told me he wanted to invite some friends over for an Angry Birds birthday party this year. He told me this months ago and I was grateful for the warning because we would have a newborn when his birthday came around! I tried to think ahead but I knew I would have to keep it simple. And simple turned out to be perfect. We had a ton of fun and baby M slept through the whole thing--perfect! I wanted to have a fun game for the kids to play while we were waiting for the guests to arrive. I made a Sling Shot Game and it was the perfect activity and it kept everyone busy and having a great time. I had all kinds of blocks available for the kids to build structures with. They built their structure and then they placed the green pom poms in them for the piggies. I had a variety of sling shots and Angry Birds available to fling at their structures. They loved it! After the kids had fun knocking down their structures we went on a {little} Treasure Hunt --one with secret codes! The treasure they were looking for was this nest of eggs (the eggs the green pigs stole!) I filled the eggs up with Angry Birds Fruit Snacks. I prepared enough Treasure Hunt clues for each guest. But they were in a secret code. This clue took them to the playroom. I used white 3x5 cards and wrote the clues out with a white crayon so they couldn't see the clue. I numbered the clues on the other side so I would remember what order they went when I placed them. Then I gave each child a washable marker. As they went around from one clue to the next each guest had a turn to "decode" the clue by coloring their marker over the card to show what it said. So easy! And they LOVED it! One of our favorite traditions is reusable gift wrap. For each birthday I make a birthday shirt (see below for that) and I also make a gift bag that matches the theme of their birthday or goes along with something they like that year. It's fun to use the bags from the past and remember the fun years we've had and the celebrations we've had together of our special birthday boy! I happened upon some clearance Angry Birds t-shirts and made one into a bag for this year. The space bags worked perfectly with it too! I used one of my clearance shirts that I found for Jay's Birthday Shirt this year, and just added the 7 to the bottom right of the shirt. I love {little} projects like that! (You might recognize the "7" fabric from other upcycled projects this winter ;) Jay wants to wear his birthday shirt everyday. I'm not kidding. He loves it :) I happened upon some sling shots at a garage sale this summer (perfect!) but here are some other places to find them: Oriental Trading Etsy: One of our family's favorite games is "Don't Eat Pete." So I made an Angry Birds version (you can print it out below.) The kids LOVED this {little} game! And it's so easy to play and prepare! The candy in the bowl was our "bird seed" and we used it to cover up each Angry Bird on the paper. Then we went around the circle and each child had a turn being the one choosing the bird that "doesn't want to be eaten" and his neighbor went out of the room while it was being chosen. Then he came back in and took a candy off each Angry Bird until he got to the one that had been "chosen." When that happened everyone yelled, "Don't eat the bird!" and his turn was over. The goal is to get as many treats as they can--what's not to love about that kind of game ;) It was a hit! Here's a copy for you to enjoy (but not to sell.) Angry Birds Game I used this [free!!!] printable Angry Birds party kit for setting up a lot of the rest of the party. It made putting the rest together truly a {little project}. Here's what I used the Party Kit for: Jay's Party invite: sample included on left in photo above. I imported it to My Memories Suite --which I love! (use code: STMMMS60806 to save $10) Using this software it was easy to customize it. The Angry Birds font is even included in the party kit! I made cupcake toppers with toothpicks and a little glue. I {heart} cupcakes so these were perfect and simple. The colored sprinkles were enough to fancy them up! The printable birthday banner--super simple and fun! The kit comes with empty banner pieces to write the birthday boy's name in too! And the Party Favors: I found the Angry Birds activity books at Joann Fabrics in the $1 book bins. I had Angry Birds Fruit Snacks and and Angry Birds Cheese Nips in {little} baggies with the bag topper that is included in the kit. The Angry Birds Honey Grahams are also a perfect snack! Jay wanted an Angry Birds calendar and I found this one that is free to print, so I'll share that too :) And Jay colored this Angry Birds coloring page sign to hang up on the front door. It was the perfect {little} 7-year-old touch. We had a very happy (not angry) birthday boy! Happy Birthday Jay!