John Deere Farm Birthday Party Ideas

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Every little boy loves tractors! There is something about those big green machines. So, for this birthday GO Green! Invitations: Use a template of a simple tractor using green construction paper and outlining with a black marker. On a separate sheet of yellow paper, write the title "Our little Deere __ is turning __, so join us for some good old farm fun!" Plain white invitations can be made quite festive with the John Deere clip art or stickers. A picture of your child on a tractor would also be a wonderful invite and can be copied quite easily and cost effectively using a colour printer or at your local photo center.

The Venue: How about an outing? You could visit a petting zoo, a pumpkin patch, a pony riding center or a local farm. Your one step ahead if you already live on a farm! An old fashioned family bonfire is a wonderful back drop for this kind of event. No worries though, even if your a city slicker you can easily transform your home or backyard into a "farm house" worthy of a John Deere Birthday Party! Decorations: Green & Yellow of course! A wide range of John Deere licensed goods can be purchased through my website or your local party center. Throw in a barnyard feel with hay bails, saddles, scarecrows, pitch forks, cowboy hats and farm animals. Ask the kids to come in their finest denim farm clothes but provide them with a straw hat and bandanna when they arrive.

Activities: You can't have a John Deere Party without a tractor! So, if you don't have a real one for tractor rides, turn a regular old wagon into one with 2 large cardboard pieces, the tractor template, green paint and some imagination! The little ones will love their imaginary tractor rides. If your party is indoors or for some additional decoration, use a bunch of farm animal colouring sheets. Cover a full wall with butcher paper or large white paper roll. Make a farm scene by painting on some grass, a fence and blue sky. Have the kids colour the pictures and then cut and paste the pictures onto wall. Or you can even have the kids colour right onto the paper wall. The kids will have a blast decorating the life sized farm scene.

Games: Needle in a Haystack - Hide objects in a loose pile of hay. Use needles for older party guests and small toys for younger ones. Have them wear work gloves for safety. If you cannot get your hands on some hay you can use several bags of raffia or dried grass clippings. Young or Old, everyone loves a game of Horse Shoes - the younger the child, the closer the shot line. Do I Moo? - Attach an animal sticker or picture to each child's back. Each player must identify what kind of animal they are by asking "yes" or "no" questions. For example, "Can I fly?", "Am I pink?", etc. Catch a Pig - Grease up 1 pink balloon with baby oil for every player and place the whole bunch about 20 feet away from where the kids are lined up. On "GO" have them run and try to catch a pig and place it back in its pen. The pen can be any box or container. It is hilarious and not that easy! Have an area set up where you can practise your cowboy skills by roping some cattle. A simple rope works great as a lasso and a sawhorse from Dad's garage works great as an animal target. Chicken Egg Hunt - Reuse your plastic Easter Eggs by filling them with some neat toys, trinkets or candy and hiding them around the party yard or party room. Herding Cattle - Colour some black cow spots on white balloons.

Using a broom, the object is to swat 8-10 balloons from one side of the room to the other. Use a stopwatch to see who can herd the cows the fastest. Hoe Down - play some Country Music and form a square dancing line or have a line dancing lesson! Menu: A good, old, down home barbecue of hamburgers, hot dogs, chili, potato salad, watermelon and corn on the cob. Serve the snacks and salads out of mini galvanized buckets and fill a wheel barrow with ice to keep your drinks cold in. Have plenty of wooden picnic tables on hand for seating. The cake can be any shape or size but must have bright John Deere green coloured icing. Use a decopac set or simply use your childs favourite toy tractor for the center of the cake. Be sure to sit the tractor ontop of a mud or soil pile! A mud/soil pile is made by crumbling up some dark cookies. Corral the tractor and hill in with a pretzel stick fence.

Loot Bags: All kids love to dress up - a cowboy hat, a bandanna and a pair of kids work gloves would be the perfect gifts to take home with them. You can also purchase John Deere stickers, toy tractors, launchers & keychains for plastic lootbags. Plastic farm animals and candy eggs would be a great addition! All farms have gardens so why not provide each guest with a small pot and a few easy growing seeds like bean, radish or sunflower and have them "sow their seeds." They can take their plant home and watch it grow.

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Chocolate Party Ideas - 7 Ways to Sweeten Any Celebration With This Rich Candy Treat

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Who doesn't love chocolate?! The rich, sweet taste appeals to everyone from little kids to their great grandmothers.  So if you're looking for that special ingredient to add something extra to your next party, why not choose this delicious treat?  You can make it your entire party theme or just the crowning touch to your celebration.  Here are seven ways you can use chocolatey goodness to elevate your party to the next level.

1. Invitations.  Set the tone for your party by choosing invitations with a rich cocoa brown color scheme.  It's become a trendy color in the past few years, so the invitations shouldn't be difficult to find.  Add a drop of chocolate fragrance oil, scented perfume or even scratch and sniff stickers to the back of the envelope before mailing.

2. Atmosphere.  Just about any candle shop will carry candles scented with this delicous fragrance.  Scatter these small lit candles around the party to create an inviting ambiance.  Decorate with cocoa brown balloons.  You can use other balloon colors to accent the brown, such as silver, gold and red.  If you want to take it a step further, you can have napkins, plates and tablecloths in the same or coordinating color.  Using your digital camera on macro mode, take super close up photos of candy bar wrappers or the inside of a Whitman's sampler or box of truffles.  Make poster size enlargements of your pictures and display them at the party.

3. Chocolate Fountain.  This makes an elegant centerpiece and is a lot of fun.  Although a word of warning, it also very messy.  You can buy these small fountains for a reasonable price and rent larger ones.  For a cheaper alternative, consider a making a rich chocolatey fondue.  You can still dip pieces of fruit, cake, marshmallows, graham crackers and pretzels into the mixture.  But since the fondue tends to be a bit thicker in consistency than the fountain, there is also less mess potential.

4. Games.  If you're having an entire theme party, you might want to also include some games.  Hide gourmet wrapped truffles for a sort of Easter egg hunt.  You could fill a jar with M&Ms and have everyone guess how many candies it contains.   The person that comes the closest can take home the entire jar as a prize.  Play trivia by researching candy facts online.  Use wrapped confections as game pieces for bingo or other games.

5. Tasting.  You could build a whole party around this.  Invite your guests to taste and rate a variety of chocolates.  Break apart each bar and display on individual plates. Make sure you label each plate with it's name, country of origin, and anything else interesting about it.  This way, your guests can distinguish between the samples, when they mark the cards you printed for their ratings.  Don't forget to offer breadsticks and crackers to cleanse the palate between tastings.

6. Unique menu items.  Instead of just the usual devil's food cake, how about croissants filled with this rich ingredient?  Replace standard brownies with cocoa raspberry cookie bars.   You can serve white, milk or dark chocolate covered potato chips, popcorn and orange peel. Believe it or not, they actually sell bacon that has been coated in this delectable confection.  You don't have to go that far, but it certainly would be a conversation starter!

7. Chocolate favors.  Whether you have a candy theme party or a regular traditional event, you can't go wrong if you send your guests home with tasty party favors.  Personalized chocolate-bars are popular.  The candy bar wrappers are imprinted with your message and sometimes even a photo.  You can also find little mint size tins filled with these gourmet treats with the top cover displaying a personalized design customized for the occasion.  Your party favors don't have to be limited to the edible variety.  You can also give away cocoa scented candles, lip balm and bath beads.  Or how about a funny T-shirt or magnet with a quote about this dreamy confection?

So, the next time you plan a party, think about this delicious treat.  Whether you add just a little sweet touch to your celebration by giving your guests chocolate favors, or pull out all the stops and throw a big cocoa theme party, your guests will be delighted.

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3 Cute Easter Bunnies Crafts For Preschoolers

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These preschool Easter bunnies crafts light up the kids faces every time they make one of them. Celebrate Easter this year by making one of the three cute Easter bunny.

Easter Bunnies Crafts 1 - Fluffy The Easter Bunny

Materials:
A piece of hard cardboard
Pair of scissors
Pink paint
pom poms
Three chenille stems or pipe cleaners
Two Wiggly eyes
Loads of cotton balls
Glue stick
Paint Brush
HB pencil

Directions:
Draw a bunny shape using a pencil. Draw a bigger circle for the body and a smaller one on top of that for the head. Add two big ears and a round tail. Using pink paint, paint the bunny's ears pink and allow to dry. Stick cotton balls around the outer rim of the ears. Make sure you can still see the pink inner ear. Now using the glue stick, cover the rest of the rabbits body with glue. Cover the glue in cotton balls. Add a pom pom for the nose and stick on two wiggly eyes on the head. Using the pair of scissors, cut the chenille stems in half and place these on either side of the nose, as whiskers. You can add pom poms or buttons for the front of his body.

Easter Bunnies Crafts 2 - Rolly Polly Bunny

Materials:
Two clean toilet paper rolls
Any colored paint
Pair of scissors
Fibre tip Pens or markers
Two googly eyes
One ball of cotton wool
White paper
Glue Stick

Directions:
Using any color of paint you wish, paint the two toilet rolls the same. Allow time to dry. Draw and cut out two big rabbit ears on the white construction paper. Now draw an inner ear and color it in pink. Put a little glue on the front bottom part of the ears and attach to the back of the first toilet roll. The ears need to be in between the rolls before you glue the second roll to the back of the first one. Make sure the ears are facing you before you begin to draw the face onto the front toilet roll. Add two googly eyes and draw using fibre tip pens- whiskers, a mouth and a nose on the toilet roll. Now on the back toilet roll glue on the ball of cotton wool, this will be the bunnies tail.

Easter Bunnies Crafts 3 - Fluffy Rabbit Basket

Materials:
Empty plastic container such as a margarine tub
Loads of cotton wool balls
White construction paper - A4
Chenille stems or pipe cleaners
Wiggly eyes
Pair of scissors
Wood Glue
Pom pom

Directions:
Using a clean and dry plastic container, glue the outside of the container all the way round. Sick as many cotton balls on the glue so that the tub is completely covered. Weave together three chenille stems to form a handle. Glue the handle to the inside of the tub on either side. Draw big bunny ears onto the white construction paper and cut out. Glue these to the inside of the smaller side of the tub. the ears need to be next to each other. Add a pom pom for the nose and glue on the wiggly eyes, just under the ears. Use pipe cleaners or chenille stems to act as whiskers, glue these on either side of the nose. Now fill the tub with a soft material and add Easter eggs.

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Easter Chocolate: All You Need to Know About Choosing Healthy Chocolate this Easter

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You don't have to give up eating chocolate just because you want to eat healthily. But you do need to choose the right chocolate this Easter, the type that brings positive health benefits and isn't laden with disastrously unhealthy added fats and sugars.

When you're choosing chocolate Easter eggs this year, remember these facts:

Healthy chocolate What does chocolate contain, that's good for you? The cocoa bean, from which chocolate is made, contains antioxidants, as well as the minerals copper, magnesium and iron, and vitamins A, B1, B2, D and E. Research into chocolate shows that it can improve boost immunity, lower blood pressure and may even help to protect against cancer properties. Dark chocolate can lower cholesterol levels. And the chemical serotonin found in chocolate is a great natural anti-depressant.



Choosing good chocolate Sad to say, a lot of mass-produced chocolate bars do not give you all these health benefits. Why? Because they contain very little cocoa solids, and way too much sugar, fats and other additives. Also, manufacturing processes have probably robbed them of what little nutritional value they had. To get the health benefits of chocolate, choose dark varieties, containing 65 per cent or more cocoa solids. These types of chocolate taste rich, with a complex flavour - and provide you with all the health benefits of the cocoa bean.



Recognising good chocolate Look for a glossy surface, and dark colour with reddish-black undertones. The chocolate should break crisply when you snap it. Look for brands with no or low added sugar and a cocoa-solid content of 60% or more. Try to find trade brands, and also look out for organic chocolate such as Green & Blacks.



How much chocolate to eat Top quality chocolate should be savoured, so don't wolf those eggs down at a sitting. Make them last over 3-4 days. At other times of year, one or two squares of good chocolate, eaten twice or three times a week, can be part of a healthy diet, as long as you're also getting plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables.

This year, at Easter, remember these chocolate facts, and buy an egg that tastes great and does your health a good turn.

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What Easter Day is All About

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This year to make a friend or family members Easter that bit more special, try sending them a free e-card. Free e-cards are quickly becoming the fast, affordable way to thank people, or congratulate them.

Easter is the conclusion of Holy Week as well as the Lent season, which is a period of forty days, excluding Sundays, symbolic of Jesus Christ's forty day fast in the desert, during which devout Christians perform deeds of spiritual cleansing and penitence.

The goddess of spring worshiped by Northern and Central Europeans prior to Christianity's introduction was named Eostre, which is believed to have stemmed the word 'east' as well as Easter. The more joyous of the two major Christian holidays, Easter marks not only the resurrection of Christ, but also the revitalization of the natural world.

Though it is the oldest Christian festival, the Church didn't set the date of its celebration, the first Sunday after the full moon following the Vernal Equinox, until 325 C.E. The significance of the Vernal Equinox has been a factor in the celebrations of many ancient cultures, from the Romans to the Egyptians, and it is on these seasonal festivals that symbolism of Easter is largely based.

As Jesus and his original followers were Jews, Easter is also inextricably linked with the celebration of Passover. For example, what is now known as the Last Supper is thought to have been a Passover Seder.

As with Christmas, Easter is a religious holiday that has become secularized over the centuries of its observance. Due to the high appeal of its customs, people around the world celebrate the holiday as a chance to gather with the people they love and enjoy the coming of spring.

Two of the most recognized Easter symbols are rabbits or hares and eggs, both of which are symbols of fertility, rebirth, and the continuity of life. Eggs are all the more significant because their consumption was originally forbidden during the Lent season.

Thus, they were reintroduced into the diets of devout Christians during the traditional Easter meal, for which occasion they were painted to express the cheer and delight identified with the holiday.

Painting eggs may have originally come from the spring festival practices of Egyptians and Persians. The custom continues to be very popular, especially in Europe, where painted eggs are given to friends, family, and kids as gifts symbolic of life, and among children as an amusing activity with which to celebrate Easter.

In the United States, the belief that the Easter bunny actually lays eggs laid the foundation
for the Easter egg hunt, in which eggs are hidden around the yard or garden for children to discover. Egg rolling contests, such as the annual one held on the White House lawn, are also customary.

As opposed to the purple garments worn by Catholic clergy throughout Lent, the Pope wears white robes as a symbol of the resurrection of Christ.

The date of Easter Sunday can vary as much as 35 days from year to year.

Millions of free e-cards are sent each year, and this year you too should try sending a few, and make someone's day that bit more special.

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Easter Kid's Crafts

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The Easter holiday is a fun one where kids get to enjoy the idea of a mythical creature bringing them hard plastic eggs filled with small treats, and marshmallow bunnies. Of course, one way to make the holiday even more exciting for these little ones, is to make Easter kid crafts with them. The following is a few fun ideas for Easter kid crafts:

Bunny sock puppets: Easter is all about the bunnies, and this Easter kid craft is the perfect way to get rid of all those mismatched socks, while still bring a smile to the face of your kids. For this craft, you need the following:

One sock for each Easter sock bunny puppet. White, black, pink, and brown socks work best, but really any old sock will work as long as it does not have holes in it.

Felt: Again you want natural looking colors, as these will be cut to make the bunny ears for your sock puppet.

Scissors.

A button for the bunny nose.

Hot glue gun and glue.

Google eyes, make them the right proportion for the size of sock you are using for the bunny sock puppet.

Felt tip markers to draw on extra facial features for the bunny.

To make this craft you are going to use felt to cut into bunny ears. You are going to want to glue eyes on, and a button as a nose, then draw on the mouth. You are going to glue the ears on, and there you have it, a fun little sock bunny puppet.

Egg decorating: Another great Easter craft is the traditional one of decorating eggs. One of the best ways to make this a craft any child can do is to avoid real eggs. Real eggs can result in big messes. So, instead of a big mess with broken yolks and the like, consider making paper eggs to decorate.

For this craft you will need some heavy card stock in white and other Easter colors. You will want to cut it into several different shapes and designs to use it to decorate the egg. You may also want to use things like gems, and glitter, ribbons, and paints. You can use any number of things to decorate your eggs. Let your little one's imagination run wild as he or she paints, glues, colors, and decorates his or her Easter eggs. You will want to let it dry completely between layers of decoration, and you will want to create a place where you can let them have fun without the worry of ruining carpet or something else.

There are all kinds of Easter crafts that can be made, you can stick with the more traditional figures of Easter, or you can branch out and create something more unique. The choice is yours, and depends entirely on your child, and what they think of as a fun Easter craft.

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Easter, a New Life Within (How my Family Celebrates Easter)

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Easter seems to have two different meanings in the mind of most people. There is the spiritual meaning of Jesus Christ rising from the dead, thus showing the world that death should not be feared if we believe in Him. Then, there is the other side that ignores the spiritual meaning and concentrates on Easter Bunnies, egg hunts and the traditional Easter ham and sweet potatoes dinner.

I would like to say that I do not know why you cannot have both meanings in your life. My opinion is that instead of being opposite, these two meanings are as one. Because of Christ and the spiritual meaning, I am free to be happy and celebrate the new life that Christ has promised. What is representative of new life more than baby chicks, eggs, rabbits and any of God’s wonderful creations? I can go to church and then come home and have an Easter egg hunt, Easter dinner with my family and wonder at the many creations of God.

In my mind, there is no way these two things can be opposite. They are all woven together like a perfect tapestry. What better way to explain to children the meaning of life, death, and afterlife than through our traditional rituals? Besides, I don’t think God is up there saying, “you should only go to church on Easter.” I like to think that He is a loving God with a sense of humor and smiling as we run around looking for Easter Eggs.

I have often wondered why this holiday has to be either or (the same for Christmas). Let us celebrate New Life through Christ with our family as we embark on this season of promise.

Easter also represents newness that can be created each day. Every day is new and if I have failed miserably one day, the next morning is a NEW DAY. We have all heard the adage; today is the first day of the rest of my life.

George Bernard Shaw, an Irish Playwright (1856-1950) said, “Life isn’t about finding yourself – life is about creating yourself.”

Tom Stoppard, a British playwright (b. 1937) wrote, “Every exit is an entry somewhere.”

Holy Bible, King James Version: Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death; that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in the newness of life. Romans 6:4

We certainly do have much to celebrate! Having said all of that, here are some of the fun things our family does at Easter:

This year our family will be celebrating in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Fortunately, all of my children and grandchildren live in Florida.

We always have a traditional dinner that includes ham and some of our other favorites. You may want to log on to Frannie’s Fine Recipes from the Heart, which is: [http://mysite.verizon.net/reso4qht/franniesfinewordsfromtheheart/id26.html] Sometimes we include the Creamy Squash Casserole, or Angel Biscuits. You can find both of these recipes on my site that I have mentioned above.

Most of the time, family members bring a favorite family side dish. For many years, we have included our famous bunny cake. Actually, it is from Baker’s Angel Flake Coconut. I found it on the Internet at: http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/easter/hiphop.htm (complete with a great picture).

We usually die eggs outside in the beautiful Florida sunshine. The weather is usually perfect this time of year. Everyone has to dye at least one egg – even the adults.

Besides real dyed eggs, I buy the plastic eggs and insert a prize. It can be money or a gift certificate or a promissory note to do something for another family member. Sometimes, I buy the scratch off lottery tickets for $1.00. I only buy a couple. (Lottery tickets are only for the adult hunt.) It is just a fun thing. What if someone actually won the lottery?

It is a tradition in our family, that after the children find the eggs; they then hide the eggs for the adults. By then, the children want us to hide the eggs again for them. I can’t think of a better way to participate in child’s play verses sending them out to hide and seek eggs by themselves.

Something else I started was the jelly-bean contest. Usually, you can find a large egg-shaped jar at a department store or craft shop. I will fill it with jellybeans after I count them. Everyone makes their guess (written) on the amount of jelly- beans the car contains. The winner is rewarded with the jar of jelly-beans.

We buy inexpensive prizes for the children. We make sure each child gets a prize. The prize is for finding the most eggs, the silliest egg, and the most unusual egg. Well, you get the idea. Every child needs to feel special and win!

One year, I made matching white lacy dresses for our four daughters. Each dress had a different color ribbon around the waist. I thought they looked so adorable and wrote a poem to express just that:

Easter’s Promise

Little Easter beauties

Dressed up in white.

Big delightful smiles;

Oh, what a precious sight.

Little hands waiting

To capture the Easter Eggs

And run through the

Grassy yard with racing legs.

Baskets filled with jelly beans

And a chocolate bunny

Are eaten by little girls

As the spring day promises to be sunny.

Since Easter means new life,

There’s nothing more fitting

Than seeing you created by God

A beautiful picture from where I am sitting.

Our Easter celebrations are so unusual that my daughter received a phone call from her sister-in-law in California. It seems she wants to come to Florida for Easter with her six year old daughter, Sydney. In her words, she wants Sydney to experience an old-fashioned Easter within a family setting. We will not disappoint Sydney.

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