A couple of years ago, I reprinted one of my older articles on helping children develop intimate friendships by gathering them together for times of fellowship. I gave some ideas for parties that we had shared in the past and now want to add some more party ideas that we enjoyed with Sonia’s girls’ group.
Several Januarys ago, we had the girls over to do velvet embossing for wall hangings. I taught them how to make Baklava, and we made valentines with tissue paper and glitter markers. We then made little girls out of small clay pots by covering the pots with Mary Engelbreit’s black, yellow and red heart, cherry, and moon fabric. Then I had the girls string yellow ribbon through a small wooden bead for arms in a muff. This they glued on top of the pot and then glued a large wooden ball on top for a head. To this they glued on miniature, curly doll hair and painted on faces. Next they painted little wooden spools red for shoes, pulled yellow ribbon through and knotted it at the bottom of the spool and then glued the other ends of ribbon to the inside of the clay pot for legs. These dangled from underneath the dress so the doll could sit on a shelf with its legs dangling off the side. They turned out so cute. Afterwards, we cleared off the dining room table for a candlelight dinner.
For February, the girls read Pride and Prejudice prior to our party. When the girls arrived, I had them to create lovely place cards for each member of their family. Using scalloped scissors, colored rubber stamps, and glitter pens, they created the cards. I then had them to quill flowers and pretty swirls to decorate around the Bible verse Proverbs 24:3,4. We then shared another candlelight dinner while we discussed the book. After dessert the girls then spent the rest of the evening watching the movie.
The year prior to this party we did a Sense and Sensibility party similar to this one. I believe Jane Austen does an excellent job of truly depicting the characters of both wise and foolish people, making her books excellent lessons on character.
For spring I had the girls share reports on spring, birds, butterflies, cottontails, and flowers. The girls did an excellent job, and we all learned new and interesting facts about spring. Then we shared a luncheon surrounded by bunnies, pots, watering cans, birds, Rice Krispies nests filled with colored jellybeans, and birds’ nests sprayed gold and filled with foil colored chocolate eggs. After our luncheon, the girls made colorful window stars. They then glued pink and beige ribbons on the green eggs that Jon had blown out for us.
This spring I hope to have a Garden Party with flower fairies hung from our chandelier and a garden setting covering our dining room table, which will include a miniature wheelbarrow, stuffed bunnies, potted plants, packets of seeds, gardening gloves, miniature flowered watering cans, flowered hatboxes, Peter Rabbit, and flowered candleholders. I will ask each girl to bring a packet of flower seeds to exchange. We will begin the morning by discussing gardening and flowers. Then I will have them create miniature topiaries using clay pots, Styrofoam balls, crushed rose petals, moss, and sticks. Afterwards they will make sachets using purple tulle, lavender silk flowers, ribbon, and flower potpourri. Finally, we will create firefly lights to hang in their own gardens made out of glass jars, paint, beads, and buttons. After they finish decorating their jars, I will have them coil a wire around the lip of each jar so they can be hung from a tree in their garden. Then I will have them go to the kitchen where Sonia will teach the girls how to make violet jelly from the violets she picks from our yard each year. For lunch, Sonia and I will have made miniature sandwiches and teacakes decorated with real flowers. At each girl’s place they will find a Flower Fairy tin filled with garden seeds for their own garden.
These and many more ideas can fill up a year’s worth of fun-filled days of fellowship and learning.
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