Last year, we had our first "safer at home" birthday. Being the planner that I am, I was completely thrown for a loop when I had to cancel our trip to Legoland at the last minute, and plan a kids' party with basically no guests. And, guess what? Stores like party city weren't even open! But it turned out to be really special. It was the first time we had celebrated a birthday just our immediate family at home. I felt that I actually got more time with my kids on their birthday, as I usually am very busy on party day with all the various party running duties. My oldest dragon turned 6 years old and he completely enjoyed his day. These ideas are great for a small family party at home, but also can be expanded upon for a larger shindig.
The first thing I did was decorate the living room/dining room the night before while he was asleep. I had ordered as many Pokémon decorations as I could online so when he woke he would be excited for the celebration. I filled party favors cups even though we only had 3 little dudes at the party. I was lucky to come across Pokémon fruit snacks! (When everyone was buying up boxed and canned foods.) The great thing about a Pokémon party is all the little Pokémon toys and Pokeballs your kids already have also serve as decorations. You may notice I clipped on Pokeballs from McDonalds on the blinds and set out little characters around the table. (Of course, I set out the presents too, in order to level up the excitement.)
Next, this dragon had his favorite breakfast, cinnamon rolls, before throwing on his Pokémon shirt for the day! If you want to make your own cinnamon rolls, Ree Drummond has a great recipe.
After we opened gifts we played games. Pin the pokeball was a big hit, even with baby dragon who hadn't quiet turned one yet. You can find this at partycity.com. I also hid all the kids' Pokémon and they had to run around and find them all. Afterwards, the kids had some time to play with the new toys. We didn't have a piñata because I was planning to do that for one of the other boys' birthdays, but a pokeball piñata is pretty cute. If you don't want to overload the kids on candy, you could even put some Pokémon cards in the piñata.
The kids also prepared our the special birthday meal, Pokeball Pizza! Cake followed the pizza. All he wanted was the chocolate cake my mom makes with Charizard on top. Done and Done. If I had access to peeps, I would have also made these: https://bearhavenmama.com/how-to-make-pikachu-peeps/
Finally, as the kids were finishing up their cake, they heard sirens and ran outside. The fire department was out front singing happy birthday to him. At this time during the pandemic, the fire department was regularly offering to sing to kids when they could, but if you have a little one who just loves firetrucks, you can always ask if they would be available!
If you are planning a home party or any Pokémon party, I hope some of these simple ideas work for you! As you can see, little preparation or DIY went into this party due to the short time I had to prepare and pandemic store closures. So, if you are in a time crunch or just not into much DIY, this party is perfect for you! Finally, if you need some Pokémon gift ideas, check these out below for boys and girls alike!