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    Complete Party Planner
    Complete Party Planner
    Complete Party Planner
    Ebook242 pages1 hour

    Complete Party Planner

    By Annabel Karmel

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    About this ebook

    Any parent in search of novelty or time-saving hints and tips to help plan the perfect party should look no further! The ultimate celebration guide, Complete Party Planner will help you finesse life's special occasions, from birthday parties to Mother's Day, Fourth of July to Christmas.

    You'll find an assortment of fanciful party foods -- Avocado Frog Dip, Apple Smiles, and Cucumber Crocodiles -- easy and creative recipes that embody Annabel's signature attention to your child's health and tastes. Punches and cookies, dips and skewers, these party-tested crowd-pleasers are sure to be instant hits.

    Also included is Annabel's step-by-step introduction to mastering the basics of cake decorating, helping you create cakes that will impress children and parents alike. From the playful Burger and Fries cake to the delightful Princess cake, these recipes will transform any child's birthday into a memorable affair. Alongside the expansive collection of recipes are directions for cute invitations, party themes, silly games, hilarious contests, and neat party favors that will appeal to both boys and girls of all ages.

    Once you've conquered birthday parties, Annabel has included ideas for making holidays year-round easy, tasty, and above all, child-friendly. Whether it's choreographing the perfect Easter egg hunt or whipping up a cauldron of spooky witch's brew and some Dead Man's Fingers sandwiches, these no-fail activities will help assure that all your holiday celebrations are a smash.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAtria Books
    Release dateMar 16, 2010
    ISBN9781416542315
    Complete Party Planner
    Author

    Annabel Karmel

    With a career spanning over thirty years, London born mother of three, Annabel Karmel, has pioneered the way families all over the world feed their babies and children. Credited with starting a food revolution with her trusty recipes and methods, she has become the UK’s no.1 children’s cookery author, bestselling international author, and the mother of all feeding experts with over forty cookbooks including Real Food Kids Will Love and Annabel Karmel's Baby-Led Weaning Recipe Book. In 2006, Annabel received an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her outstanding work in the field of child nutrition, and she has since become recognised as one of the UK’s leading female entrepreneurs.

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      Book preview

      Complete Party Planner - Annabel Karmel

      Complete Party Planner

      Also by Annabel Karmel

      SuperFoods

      Top 100 Baby Purees

      Favorite Family Meals

      The Healthy Baby Meal Planner

      Complete Party Planner

      Over 120 delicious recipes

      and party ideas for every occasion

      Annabel Karmel

      To my children, Nicholas, Lara, and Scarlett, who uncomplainingly ate their way through all the birthday cakes, gelatins, and chocolate cookies in this book yet surprisingly still managed to demolish all the leftover sweets from the photo shoots.

      1230 Avenue of the Americas

      New York, NY 10020

      www.SimonandSchuster.com

      Text copyright © 2000 by Annabel Karmel

      Photographs (with the exception of those listed below) copyright © 2000 by Daniel Pangbourne

      Chapters on the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving and new recipes copyright © 2006 by Cooking for Children Limited

      Photographs on pages 21, 24, 42, 64, 71, 72, 75, 103, 107, 117, 123, 124, 128, 140, 150, 152, 166, 168, 170, 172, 178–79, 186, 191, 192, 194, 199 copyright © 1999, 2005, 2006 by Dave King

      A previous edition of this book was published in Great Britain in 2000 by Ebury Press

      All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce

      this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

      For information address Atria Books, 1230 Avenue of

      the Americas, New York, NY 10020

      Karmel, Annabel.

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      Complete party planner : over 120 delicious recipes and party ideas for every occasion / Annabel Karmel.

      p. cm.

      1. Entertaining. 2. Parties. 3. Cookery. I. Title.

      TX731.K34  2006

      793.2—dc22                      2006045088

      ISBN-13: 978-0-7432-9713-4

      ISBN-10: 0-7432-9713-X

      eISBN-13: 978-1-4165-4231-5

      First Atria Books hardcover edition October 2006

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      ATRIA BOOKS is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

      Manufactured in the United States of America

      For information about special discounts for bulk purchases,

      please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales:

      1-800-456-6798 or business@simonandschuster.com.

      Contents

      Introduction

      Party Planning

      Savory Party Food

      Sweet Party Food

      Birthday Cakes

      Special Occasion Parties

      EASTER

      MOTHER’S DAY BREAKFAST

      TEDDY BEARS’ PICNIC

      FOURTH OF JULY

      HALLOWEEN

      THANKSGIVING

      CHRISTMAS

      Acknowledgments

      Index

      Introduction

      This is a book for everyone who has something to celebrate, and my aim is to make sure that your child’s party goes with a swing. Whether it is a first-birthday celebration or you are looking for new ideas and inspiration to come up with something truly memorable after many years of organizing children’s parties, there is something in this book for you. As a mother of three children, I have learned a lot from my own successes and failures. I remember my daughter showing the first signs of chicken pox and breaking out in angry red spots just as her friends were arriving for a party. Or there was the ill-fated disco party I organized where none of the children wanted to dance, and my son’s sports party in the pouring rain where it was so muddy it took some skill just to remain upright. Yet sometimes the unexpected can make the day, and I overheard one boy tell his dad as he was leaving that he wanted a sports party on his birthday but only if it was raining. It turned out that the boys had more fun sliding around and getting caked in mud than if the sun had been shining!

      Parental involvement means far more to your child than spending money on a lavish party. The smile on his or her face mirrors the love you show for your child. Be a part of their fun, don’t sit on the sidelines, join in with their growing up—it’s such fun. One of the most successful parties I gave my son was a soccer party, and the highlight was inviting all the dads to play a game at the end against the boys. Despite the dads not having played soccer in at least twenty years, I’ve never seen a more competitive bunch. Needless to say, the boys loved every minute of it, but I think a lot of the dads suffered later on in the day!

      Advance planning and organization are the secrets to success, and party preparation is all part of the fun. Once your child is old enough, he or she will enjoy being involved in helping to make the party invitations, choosing the games, or helping prepare the food, and this book is packed full of fun activities for you to share with your child.

      KEY FOR SYMBOLS

      easy for children to help

      N    contains nuts

      suitable for freezing

      An approaching birthday is the biggest event in a child’s life, and although the charm for us wears off around the age of thirty-five, children look forward to it all year, counting the weeks to the special day with feverish excitement. Active participation is definitely a key to success. For my older daughter I organized a cooking party where—horror of horrors—no food was prepared in advance and it was up to the children to make their own. They had enormous fun rolling out dough, cutting out cookies, and making milkshakes. Yes, it was messy and you needed a team of willing helpers, but, boy, was it worth it to see their little faces beaming with pride at their newfound culinary skills. For my younger daughter I organized a beauty and jewelry-making party where the girls’ faces and hair were done, their nails painted, and before-and-after pictures taken. In between, the budding supermodels also had the chance to make jewelry and play party games.

      From the original and fun invitation that sets the mood to the last crumb of the novelty birthday cake, I hope that this book will help ensure that your child’s party is truly memorable.

      Planning Your Party

      TIP

      For little children of two and under, invite parents along as well. Toddlers need more attention than one or two adults can give. At this age they won’t need organized games, so have lots of toys for them to play with.

      I always think that there is something quite personal about having a party at home, but it does involve quite a lot of organizing. You will probably need to move some of the furniture so there is enough room for the children to play games, and if there are a lot of children, you may need to rent tables and chairs. But if the thought of a whole bunch of excited kids running amok in your house fills you with dread, the answer might be to hold your party somewhere else.

      Think about where you would like to hold the party in plenty of time, as some venues may need to be booked months in advance. Some ideas for possible venues include a local church hall, a school hall, an indoor gymnasium, and the local park. Other venues such as a skating rink, swimming pool, soccer field, museum, zoo, theme park, circus, theater or cinema, waterslide park, or a junior go-kart track will determine the theme of the party.

      Involving Your Child

      Whatever you choose to do, involve your child in the decision making and party preparation. Birthday parties are a big event in a child’s life, and it is really important that your child be included in this way. There are many things that your child can be involved in, perhaps drawing a picture for the invitations, which you can then photocopy, or choosing the kind of games to be played. Sharing the party planning with you will be very exciting for your child and give him or her an enormous sense of importance—quite right and proper for the big day, after all.

      Entertainment

      Children’s party entertainers tend to be very popular, but they are expensive and the good ones will need to be booked well in advance. Of course, it makes life much easier to let the entertainer organize the entertainment for you, but in my experience, nothing will delight your child more than your efforts and the time you put in to make sure the party goes with a swing. There is such a fantastic variety of party games for all ages, and I find that children want to take part rather than be spectators. Don’t make the party too long—two to two and a half hours is just about right.

      TIP

      If planning an outdoor party, do not assume the weather will be good. Have an alternative indoor venue that is close by.

      The Party Countdown

      8 Weeks ahead

      Book the venue and entertainer (if appropriate).

      4 Weeks ahead

      Decide on how many children you want to invite and make a guest list with the help of your child.

      Decide on the theme or entertainment.

      Make and send invitations.

      Organize costumes (if appropriate).

      Decide on your helpers, who may be parents, relatives, or friends.

      Rent tables and chairs (if necessary).

      1 Week ahead

      Buy paper plates, cups, napkins, balloons, candles, cake board.

      Buy decorations, like banners and streamers.

      Plan the games, buy any special props, and make a list.

      Choose the music: Each age group has their favorite music from nursery rhymes for very young children to the latest pop songs for older children.

      Buy nonperishable ingredients for the food.

      Buy going-home presents (if necessary) and prizes and wrap them.

      Make a list of food for the party. Spread the food preparation over several days and make any party food that you want to freeze in the week before the party.

      2 days ahead

      Call any RSVPs who have not responded.

      Draw up the final guest list.

      Shop for the remaining food for the party.

      Baking day: Bake the birthday cake and make the cakes and cookies.

      Make up the

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