Welcome to the North Pole! What kid wouldn’t want to take a trip to this frothy destination this time of year? It’s a unique seasonal party idea that will transport your kids and their friends to the North Pole for an afternoon of delight. Here are some ideas to pull this party together:

• Send an invitation shaped like a North Pole sign, with all of the details included. You could request that the kids come in red or green to help add festive color as well.

• For decorations, place a large North Pole sign on the front lawn or on the front door, welcoming the guests to the North Pole.

• If you don’t have the real thing, decorate the door and front of the house with fake snow. A sea of pearly white balloons throughout the party area would also add festivity. Hang snowflakes from the ceiling.

• Your traditional holiday decorations will be perfect for this party theme. You should not have to add much more to your décor to bring the party to life.

• When the kids arrive, invite them into the kitchen with the smell of holiday cookies wafting in the air. Let them frost and decorate the baked cookies, or have gingerbread men out ready for baking—the kids can add raisins and chocolate chips for eyes and buttons before baking. This is a great activity to do while the kids are arriving.

Crafts

Jingle bell necklaces: Place an assortment of jingle bells in bright bowls for the kids to thread onto thin satin ribbon. Help them tie knots to hold the jingles on the necklaces. The kids can wear these during the party and take them home as a goody.

Snowmen: Stick large, medium, and small Styrofoam balls together with toothpicks, and then use glue to decorate them like snowmen with puff paints, paint pens, fake snow, construction paper, buttons, etc. Give the snowmen top hats made out of black construction paper and a carrot nose made out of orange construction paper.

Winter scenes: Using construction paper, markers, glitter glue, cotton (for fake snow), etc., the kids can make their own wintry scene to hang around the party room and to take home with them.

Activities

• Read a North Pole story to the kids about Santa and the elves.

• Make sure kids know where the North Pole is. Show them on a globe, and throw out some fun facts about the real place.

• Recruit a few high school kids to dress up like elves and make a visit to the kids. Have them paint rosy red cheeks on the kids, with some glitter for added sparkle. Let them describe the jobs they do for Santa at the North Pole.

• Have the kids write letters to Santa.

• Make reindeer feed to keep Santa’s reindeer strong for their upcoming important journey. Have oats, dry cereal, pretzel sticks, etc. in separate bowls and let the kids combine them. They can take a baggie of the “feed” home with them as well.

• Make gingerbread homes, either individually or as a group.

Menu

• Serve cocoa, egg nog, or spiced cider. (If using teacups, put a snowflake on the bottom of one, and that one will be filled first!)

• Cookies that were made at the beginning of the party would be good to enjoy as a party snack.

• Carrots, celery, and other vegetables with a dip is another good choice; label it as “reindeer grub.”

• Serve snowman sandwiches made with a snowman-shaped cookie cutter.

The kids can take home some of the cookies they decorated, the reindeer feed, and their crafts. A trip to the North Pole is special ... all on board for Express fun!

--Lisa Kothari, Peppers and Pollywogs