My Favorite Birthday Party Theme for Two Years Running

By Jen P, Charlotte Smarty Pants

Every Saturday since we launched this site, I've asked every Smarty Mom the question "What is the Best Birthday Party You've Ever Attended/Hosted?" It dawned on me that I've never personally answered this question. So here goes! My latest and greatest fave is a girly theme and it's so easy breezy to host, that it's scary! Think American Girl meets Pajama Party and it will be the biggest hit in town!


So you start with the invitation. Peep this presh invite designed by our very Smarty own, Krista B:-) She is so talented! Make sure your guests know to bring their favorite doll (does not have to be an American Girl doll) and wear their pjs and this can serve as a mock-sleepover. We scheduled our party from 5-8p to accommodate the night-time theme.

Next is the hit of the party - the handmade doll dress by Remily's out of Charleston. I've blogged about this talented mompreneur plenty of times and I just can't stop going back for more. I ordered these doll dresses to serve as the theme decoration, the party activity and in the end, the best party favor you'll ever send home. The $16 price tag may initially sound steep for a party favor (depending on the order quantity, I'm pretty sure Mary will cut you a discount if you mention CSP:), but if you factor in all of it's handy functions, it's really a steal. You can even order a matching tee for the birthday girl to dress like her doll - how cute is that?!


I set up stations for the dolls. One area is a sleeping corner, one is a hair salon, and one specifically for baby dolls with a cradle and high chair. The hair salon was the most popular station, so I would recommend that you purchase a few extra doll hair brushes for the party. I gathered as much doll furniture as I could find, you can borrow from friends if you have to. Lucky for me, I have two daughters who have been collecting AG items since they were two, so it was not a difficult task.

The party moves so naturally. When the guests arrive, they run up to the party room with their dolls in hand and have a dance party. I always make a birthday party playlist including all of the birthday girl's favorite tunes. You can also send this home as a party favor. Freeze dance and the limbo were big hits this year. After 30 minutes of dancing, the girls are served their pizza dinner - I always serve carrot sticks and cucumbers with their pizza, but who are we kidding? They are only interested in eating cheese pizza and cake, they don't even look at the veggies! But I feel like a better mom and hostess when I serve a healthy option. After pizza, the girls eat cupcakes, then open presents and then go up to the doll room for playtime. This year, our guests were kindergartners, and they could have played in the doll room for hours. I had to cut them off to finish the party with at least the beginning of an American Girl movie - choose from Kit Kittredge, Samantha, Felicity, Molly, Krissa, and more. Make sure you order in advance from Netflix because Blockbuster locations are hard to find and when you do, they don't have much of a selection in this category.

The girls play hard, have a blast and each guest takes home a wonderful gift. What could be better? Share your favorite easy birthday party ideas!

Posted by Triad Smarty Pants at 5:00 AM