A Year of Slumber Parties. Aubre Andrus
parchment paper or wax paper, and
spread evenly. It doesn’t have to fill the
entire pan. Have an adult melt additional
colors of candy melts according to package
directions—bright colors like pink and blue
are best. You need only a small handful of
each. Spoon and splatter the colors onto
the dark candy. Let it cool and harden for at
least 20 minutes, and then break into chunks
and serve.
Games
For these two glowing games, collect six
empty plastic water or soda bottles with no
labels and insert an activated glow stick into
each. Fill them with water, and tightly replace
the caps. Play in a room or area where flying
balls and water won’t damage the floors or
furnishings!
RING TOSS
Place the bottles in a straight line or 1-2-3 for-
mation about 5 feet away. Take turns throwing
activated glow necklaces like flying discs and
seeing how many land on a
bottle. Players get 1 point for
each bottle. Whoever gets
the most points wins!
BOWLING
Place the bottles in a 1-2-3
formation. Use a heavier ball, such
as a basketball, for bowling. Take turns while
standing at least 10 feet away and rolling the
ball toward the bottles. Whoever knocks
down the most bottles wins!
Activity
NEON DANCE PARTY
Turn the white lights down, the black
lights on, and the music up! But first,
make sure your guests are decked out in glow
necklaces and bracelets. Add more fun with a
neon toy hoop that, with an adult’s help, has
been sprayed with nontoxic glow-in-the-dark
craft paint a day or two before the party. Bust
it out during the dancing for a mesmerizing
light show!
Favor
LIGHT-UP LANTERNS
These lanterns glow at night. Dot the outside
of clean plastic jars with glow-in-the-dark
puffy paint. Let them dry. Fill them with
inexpensive plastic neon bracelets, glow sticks,
and hair accessories, and give them as favors.
The Next Morning
BRIGHT BREAKFAST
Neon food coloring can turn a pancake
stack into a bright sight. Ask a parent to
prepare pancakes according to package
directions. Separate the batter into three or
four bowls, one for each color. Starting with
three drops of food coloring, stir in enough to
make each bowl of batter brightly colored.
Cook the pancakes as directed, and let guests
choose their favorites.
February
SWEET SWAP
Everyone gets some sweet surprises at this “make and take”!
Invitation
The gumball machine may be fake—but the
gumballs inside are not! Fill a refillable plastic
ornament with gumballs. (Look for “clear acrylic
fillable ball ornament” from an online party
supply store.) Cut a strip of paper, write up the
party details, and use adhesive dots to attach
the strip to an upside-down 3-ounce paper cup.
Attach an adhesive dot to the bottom of the
ornament, and secure it to the cup.
Decorations
GUESS THE GUMBALLS
Fill a large glass jar with gumballs to make a
centerpiece. Ask guests to guess how many
gumballs are inside. They can write their
guesses (and names) on sticky notes and place
the notes on top of the jar. Whoever guesses
closest gets to take the jar home.
CANDY BALLOONS
Wrap inflated balloons with colored
cellophane, found at party supply
stores. Tie the ends with curling ribbon. Now
they look like giant pieces of candy! Scatter
them around the floor, or ask a parent to help
you attach them to the wall.
Drink
SWEET SIPPERS
What goes great with chocolate? Milk, of
course! Give all of your guests a glass of milk,
and have them stir in either chocolate or
strawberry syrup. Use licorice sticks as straws.
1.
2.
Dessert & Craft
SPRINKLE TREATS
These treats are easy to make and fun
to eat—and they look super cute.
YOU WILL NEED
Small lollipop sticks
Double-stuffed sandwich cookies
Marshmallows
Pretzel rods
Candy melts in assorted colors
Assorted sprinkles
Wax paper
1. Insert small lollipop sticks into the centers
of double-stuffed sandwich cookies so
they look like lollipops. Also insert lollipop
sticks in the tops of marshmallows.
2.