Jun
Little House on the Prairie Birthday Party
Last year, my daughter Clara read the book “If You Were a Pioneer on the Prairie” and she became intrigued with pioneer life. Now, she loves the “Little House on the Prairie”. So, for her birthday party this year, she asked if she could have a pioneer themed birthday party.
Party Plan
If you’re looking for some ideas for a “Little House” party, here’s what we did.
1. We sent out invitations that said: “You are invited to our little house at (address). Please join us (date and time) for pioneer games, crafts and fun. Come dressed for the prairie.”
2. When the girls arrived, we had fiddle music playing in the background as Clara greeted them. I just played this music from npr.
3. Our first project was making these simple rag dolls. I pre-cut the fabric and pre-measured the cotton for the head. So the girls just picked their favorite fabric and tied knots to hold the doll together. Since everything was prepared in advance, it only took the girls 15 minutes to make these. I plan to put together a little tutorial for you on just how to make these. You can find a pattern by searching online. Very simple!
4. Then, it was time for chores.
They looked for eggs in the yard. I hard boiled some brown eggs the night before and while the girls were making the dolls, my husband hid them in the yard.
They washed “dirty” socks and wash cloths and hung them on the clothes line to dry.
They made homemade butter. This is so easy to make. We filled a small, chilled, mason jar halfway with heavy whipping cream. Then the girls took turns shaking it. In about 15 minutes, we had a pretty good ball of butter forming in the jar. We dumped out the extra buttermilk and added a little salt to taste. It was delicious!
5. Time for School!
I gave each girl a slate board and a piece of white chalk. We set up a school room with some old-fashioned desks that we already had at home.
Each girl that wanted to be the teacher wrote her name on a piece of paper and put it in a bowl. Every 5 minutes or so, they would draw a new name to make sure that each girl got a turn to be the teacher. They played school for about 30 minutes and were laughing so much that they could have easily played this for much longer.
6. Lunch Time
We wanted to serve a pretty authentic pioneer lunch, but weren’t sure what the girls would like.
So, while the girls were making their dolls, we handed out a simple postcard-sized menu and they got to place their “order” for their lunch.
Name:_______________
For My Pioneer Lunch I would like:
(Please put an “x” next to your selections.)
__Apple __ Slice of bacon
__Egg __Peanuts
__Beef Jerky __Cornbread
To Drink:
(choose 1)
__Sweet Tea __Water
We put the lunches in baskets that I found on sale at a craft store for 50% off and served drinks in a mason jar. Very cute!
7. Gifts
After lunch, Clara opened presents.
8. Instead of cake, Clara asked for Cherry Cobbler and Vanilla Ice Cream. This was a hit and so easy to make! To make this even easier, you can pick up a Cherry filling and Cobbler Mix at Cracker Barrel.
9. Party Favors
Each girl took home a rag doll, slate board with chalk, and a peppermint stick packaged nicely in her lunch basket.
This party was fun, meaningful, inexpensive and so fun. Clara had a wonderful time and made memories that will last for years to come!