Pirate Birthday Party

If you are having trouble thinking of a creative kids birthday party theme and think you might have to walk the plank, why not try a pirate birthday party with all the trimmings?

Pirate Preparation
Pick the date for your pirate party early, and then get busy making pirate birthday party invitations. You could buy them, but why not make your own? You can cut out shaped invitations-a treasure chest, a skull and crossbones or a pirate ship-or print out clipart to decorate plain note cards. As an added touch, consider inserting a sheet of paper with pirate lingo, like "shiver me timbers," so kids will be well-versed in pirate-speak before the party. Add the date, time, place and requested attire, and mail the invitation out at least two weeks ahead of time.

Pirate Birthday Party Decorations
You can find all kinds of wonderful pirate decorations at your local party store. You can also make your own easily enough. For a pirate birthday party, you will want items that could be found on a pirate ship: Gold coins, stuffed parrots, pirate flags and treasure chests are only the beginning. Consider decorating the party room to look like the inside of the ship. Cover the table in oilcloth (plain-colored vinyl tablecloth), set out plastic mugs for "ale" (in this case, root beer), scatter gold-wrapped chocolate coins across the table and place a large stuffed parrot in the middle of the table. Small wooden barrels or treasure chests can hold silverware and napkins. Hang large bandanas and pirate flags on the walls.

Assemble the Mates
As the kids begin to arrive, have some activities planned to keep them busy. Consider setting up a craft table they can go to as they are coming in. You might have them decorate their own bandanas or eye patches with fabric markers. They can also create their own pirate flag out of poster board.

Once everyone has arrived, it's time to move on to the most exciting activity of all-a treasure hunt. Depending on the age of the children, this can be as simple as having a large bucket, or sandbox, filled with sand and buried "treasures." Younger kids simply get their shovels and start digging. Gold coins, small toys and pennies all make great treasures. For older kids, plan a more elaborate treasure hunt complete with a treasure map and clues. Make the map ahead of time, and use the map to lead the kids to small treasures that eventually build up to one big treasure, like a chest full of candy, at the end.

A Pirate Feast
When preparing food for kids, it is best to keep it simple, and the same rule applies to a pirate party. After all, the pirates were too busy taking over other ships to eat. Pirates were known for rough manners and eating with their fingers, so serve finger foods. Renaming regular dishes adds to the fun. For example, chicken nuggets become gold nuggets; root beer is changed to ale; bananas, pineapple chunks and melon pieces on a skewer become island delight. You can have a cake made and decorated at a local bakery to go along with the pirate theme, or you can make your own. Cupcakes are a fantastic alternative to a traditional cake at birthday parties. Decorate them with blue icing, and stick gold chocolate candy pieces on top of each one.

Finishing With a Bang
Cap off your pirate birthday party by watching a pirate movie. Pirates of the Caribbean is a good choice for older kids, but double-check with parents because not every child is ready for this type of high-action movie. For younger kids, the Veggie Tale movie, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything, is a great option. If your party is outside, pass out plastic swords from the local dollar store, and let them simply run off all the sugar from the cake and ice cream-just lay down ground rules about roughhousing before they start playing. As the party winds down, hand out goodie bags filled with loads of loot. Candy coins, beaded necklaces, toy pirates, squirt guns and similar items are all good ideas.