The not so TERRIBLE TWOS

You've made it another year. You have survived the midnight feedings, the crawlng, the walking and now your precious little one is about to adventure gleefully into her second year of life. The only question is, "How on earth do I throw a birthday party for a two year old?" Here are a few tips:

1.Pick a two year old friendly theme. By now you have giggled to countless hours of play, music and television. Pick a theme that your toddler easily recognizes to create the unifying theme for the celebration. Your theme could come from things as simple as your child's favorite color, book, toy, song or video. Themes like Little Einsteins, Mickey Mouse Club, Pink Cupcake and Mod Monkey all have fantastic colors and activities that easily lend themselves to many creative and fun decorations and games.

2. Keep your guest list manageable. Two year olds are often overwhelmed by the excitement of a big day. It may be difficult to resist the urge to invite the entire preschool class or playgroup but limiting the number of guests you invite to an intimate few will help reign in the budget and stave off the birthday meltdown experienced by an overstimulated toddler.

3. Pick toddler friendly, open ended activities. Two year olds are not capable of cooperative group play yet and sharing is a concept that is yet to be mastered. Instead of group activities opt for individual activities that can be played side by side such as play dough, coloring, sand box and bubbles. Be sure to have enough play items for each guest and encourage the parents to remain close to their child at each play station (and peaceful playtime) by providing adequate seating around the area of play. Dont forget small tables to free parent's hands for more hands-on play.



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