3, 2, 1, Ignition….BLAST OFF!
A child’s party does not have to be a huge gut-wrenching event. Make it easy on yourself and choose a theme you know your child will love. Everything after that will come easily. Does your child go to sleep with visions of NASA dancing in their head? Indulge your budding aerospace engineer with an out of this world birthday party. This may not seem like a fantastic theme, but really the possibilities are as limitless as space itself.
Key Points
- Show a movie for a simple space party that kids of any age will love.
- For younger kids, consider having a Lego building competition or a lightsaber duel.
- Make a circular cake that's decorated like one of the planets!
Space Party Theme
The Older Stargazer
Space parties for preteens or young teens are something to consider! It's important to check with your teen first before throwing them a themed party, as by this point in their life many kids have outgrown themed birthday parties. Preteens and some younger teens may still appreciate a themed party!
One idea is to have the party in the evening. Enjoy a meal and cake first, and then have everyone head outside for stargazing. This is a great time to surprise your birthday kid with a brand-new telescope! Set the telescope up and have guests take turns looking at the celestial objects that lay far beyond our planet.
Another activity could also be the launching of your very own rockets. Many hobby stores have rocket kits available for purchase. This might sound scary, but it's not as hard or as dangerous as it might sound! There are tons of different rockets out there, so either take your kid with you to pick some out, or pick a few different options out.
The Never Fail Backup
If all this sounds a bit too nerdy, try a good old fashioned movie party. There are almost as many space movies as heavenly bodies. Take your pick, add junk food, and most teenagers are all set. This sort of party works best as a sleepover, since most teens are going to want to watch a movie at night. Serve your guests a hearty dinner, and then send them off with their snacks!
Movies aren't limited to pleasing teenagers. Most young boys over the age of four know who Luke Skywalker is and really want to be him. Older children might enjoy something like Interstellar, Apollo, or Gattaca. Whatever movie you pick for your partygoers, they're sure to have a blast.
Newest Cadets
In addition to movies, there are several games that are sure to entertain younglings. Provide them with a pile of Legos and a time limit. Then, instruct them to build the best space ship they can in five minutes. Their creativity will do the rest. Be sure to snap a photo of them with their creation and send it to their parents.
Let them play out their Luke Skywalker fantasies by having a dark Jedi Lord visit the party and challenge each cadet to a duel. You will need someone to dress the part and light sabers, but the entertainment is well worth the added effort. Your little space cadets will love it. This can be a great way to introduce a light saber gift to your birthday kid. Imagine how surprised they'll be when they're handed their very own light saber to fight with!
If you're up for having a lot of young kids in your house overnight, consider having a space-themed sleepover! Your guests can play party games in the earlier hours, and then head out into the backyard for some stargazing in the evening! See if anyone can recognize any of the constellations, or if someone can name all of the planets from closest to the Sun to furthest.
What Do You Eat in Space?
Food is the easy part here; you can serve anything you wish, just make it look funny. Add toothpicks to the veggie tray. Put tin foil on the doughnuts. Use glittery frosting on the cake. Anything you can think of to make your buffet offerings look out of this world.
You can also grab some “astronaut food” from an online site. Astronaut food isn't as fancy as it sounds; it's generally just freeze dried food. There are plenty of options here, from fruit to ice cream sandwiches. There's even freeze dried candy! Your guests will love being able to pretend that they're eating real astronaut food.
For a cake, consider making a circular one and frosting it like one of the planets. Pick the one that's your child's favorite, or the one that's the easiest one to decorate! Your little (or big) astronaut will appreciate your efforts. If cake decorating isn't your forte, consider bringing on a bakery to do it for you!
The sky, literally, is the limit!