Fall has long been a season of celebration.  Harvest parties have been in existence for centuries.  Why not have a party this year using suggestions from “The Penny Whistle Halloween Book” by Meredith Brokaw and Annie Gilbar?  We’ve excerpted a few of our favorite ideas.

PUMPKIN DECORATIONS

• Hollow out and fill with dried flowers, leaves, and branches.
• Make a “family” by using pumpkins of different sizes.
• As a party game, children can decorate pumpkins.  Supply feathers, buttons, glitter, paint, glue and let imaginations soar!

HAVE A FARM PARTY

• Children can design invitations by tracing an animal pattern or cutting out pictures of farm animals and gluing to paper.
• Everyone comes dressed as a favorite farm animal.
• Decorations: Bales of hay, cornstalks, gourds and dried corn, western bandannas, rakes.
• Games: “Find the Farm Animals”– hide plastic or small rubber animals.  “Make a Barnyard Mural”–tape butcher paper to the wall (or lay it flat out on the floor.)  Supply crayons and markers for drawing or animal cutouts to trace or paste.

Encouragement: A publication by Angela DiCicco and Gail Signor