September Parties

Nowadays there is an observance or celebration for just about everything. These observances could be an inspiration for different party themes and a reminder to celebrate people. Here is a partial list of dates I found on www.FamilyCrafts.about.com and www.HolidayInsights.com

The month of September is:

Better Breakfast Month (see below for a party idea!)
Classical Music Month (see below for a party idea!)
National Chicken Month

International Square Dancing Month

National Courtesy Month

Hispanic Heritage Month (see below for a party idea!)

National Piano Month

Read A New Book Month

Chicken Month

National Mushroom Month
National Papaya Month
National Potato Month

Baby Safety Month

Honey Month

Self-Improvement Month

Library Card Sign-Up Month

National Rice Month

National School Success Month

National Sewing Month

Women Of Achievement Month

Week Long Observances

1st Week – Child Injury Prevention Week

2nd Week – National Housekeepers Week

3rd Week – National Farm Animals Awareness Week

National Flower Week

17th-23rd – National Constitution Week

4th Week – National Dog Week

National Roller Skating Week

Days

September 1 – Mary Had A Little Lamb published in 1830
                         National Gyros Day
September 2 – VJ Day – Surrender ceremony aboard the USS Missouri formally ends WWII
                         Grits for Breakfast Day
September 3 – Uncle Sam’s Birthday
                         Skyscraper Day
                         National Grilled Cheese Day
September 4 – Father’s Day in Australia
                         National Macadamia Nut Day
September 5 – Labor Day
                         Cheese Pizza Day
September 6 – Read-a-Book Day
                         Coffee Ice Cream Day
September 8 – International Literacy Day
                         National Date Nut Bread
September 9 – Teddy Bear Day
September 10 – Swap Ideas Day
                           TV Dinner Day
                           Sewing Machine Day
                           National Hot Dog Day
September 11 – Make Your Bed Day
                           Patriot Day – World Trade Center Remembrance Day
                           National Grandparent’s Day
September 12 – Chocolate Milk Shake Day
September 13 – Positive Thinking Day
                           Uncle Sam Day
                           National Peanut Day
                           Fortune Cookie Day
September 14 – National Cream-Filled Donut Day
September 15 – Hispanic Heritage Month Begins September 15 – October 15
                           Make A Hat Day
                           Double Cheeseburger Day
                           National Linguini Day
September 16 – Mexican Independence Day
                           Mayflower Day
                           National Working Parents Day
                           Step Family Day
                           POW/MIA Recognition Day
September 17 - National Apple Dumpling Day
                          Citizenship Day
                          Constitution Day
                          Oktoberfest begins
September 18 – National Play Doh Day
                           National Cheeseburger Day
                           National Women’s Friendship Day
September 19 - Talk Like a Pirate Day
September 20 – First Railroad Station Opens
September 21 – Miniature Golf Day
                           World Gratitude Day
September 22 – First Day of Autumn
                           Ice Cream Cone invented in 1903
                           U.S. Post Office opened in 1789
September 23 – Great American Pot Pie Day
                           Native American Day
                           Checkers Day
September 24 – National Punctuation Day
September 25 - Mary Poppins debuted in 1964
                           Good Neighbor Day
                           Food Service Workers Day
September 26 - Johnny Appleseed Day
                           National Pancake Day
September 27 – National Chocolate Milk Day
September 28 – Chinese Mid Autumn Festival (Moon Festival)
                           First Airport opened
                           Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown
                           National Good Neighbor Day
                           National Strawberry Cream Pie Day
September 29 – Scotland Yard formed 1829
                           National Mocha Day
September 30 – Safety Pin invented

Taken from:
www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/september.htm
http://familycrafts.about.com/cs/septemberholidays/l/blsepdays00.htm
http://www.foodimentary.com/today-in-national-food-holidays/september-holidays/

THINGS TO DO WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS

* Visit a skyscraper.

* Purpose to be as courteous as possible to others and go out of your way doing so.

* Listen to classical music &/or go to a classical concert.

* Listen to piano music.

* Go to the library and if you do not have a card, get one.

* Have everyone in the family decide what they would like to improve about themselves & work on that area all month.

* Eat a lot of rice and chicken.

* Read a new book together &/or have each person read a book on their own and report on it at the end of the month.

What is Labor Day? Why do we celebrate it?

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September. The holiday originated in 1882 as the Central Labor Union (of New York City) sought to create “a day off for the working man”.

Congress made Labor Day a federal holiday in 1894. All fifty states have made Labor Day a state holiday.

Traditionally, Labor Day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer. Forms of celebrations include picnics, barbeques, fireworks displays, water sports, and public art events.

Decorations

Tomatoes, corn on the cob, peaches, zucchini and other produce can be placed in bowls on the tables. Keep it colorful. If you don’t want to use produce, use Gerber daisies of different colors.

Decorate with summertime fun things: sand pails, beach balls, baseballs, soccer balls, volley balls, bats, mitts, flip flops, towels, sand toys, sprinklers. Be creative and make it fun.

Activities

Set up areas of the yard for different activities depending on the size of your yard or go to a nearby park. Perhaps you have room for a croquet game, bean bag toss, softball or volleyball game. Have some relay races. Let everyone use their energy since, if you live in a cold climate, you won’t be able to spend much time outdoors after today. Enjoy the outdoors.

Wheelbarrel Races:
Do wheelbarrel races. Divide into equal teams. Each person should partner with another. Have a starting point, a point where they reach and turn around and then go back to start, or just a start and finish line. Each couple starts at the starting line. The larger person should hold the smaller person’s legs. The smaller person has to walk with their hands while the other person is holding up their legs. The next couple does not begin until the one in front of them finishes. Each couple goes until the entire team is finished. First team to get done first wins.

You don’t have to play this game in teams. You can have one big line and the first couple to cross the finish line wins.

Three-Legged Races:
You can do this as teams or as individuals. Each person needs a partner. Tie a piece of cloth, string or rope around each couple’s leg. When everyone is ready, they have to run to the finish line. First couple or team to reach the line wins.

Burlap Bag Races:
Divide into teams. Each team gets a burlap bag (Trash Bags for each person can also be used). The first person in line gets in the bag, holds onto and jumps to a designated line, turns around and returns to the next person. That person gets in the bag and does the same. Each team member continues until the first team finishes.

Egg and/or water balloon tosses can be fun, too.

If you have a pool, do races in the pool. Whatever you do, have fun. Enjoy the day.

Ask people to wear fatigues, uniforms or clothing from the 40’s. Play 40’s music. Have a WWII war movie playing. Invite some veterans over and honor them. Celebrate the war being over just like they did back then.

FOOD: Serve fish sticks, alphabet soup, Kraft macaroni and cheese, Spam, Oscar Mayer Bologna and Wonder bread. For treats serve Girl Scout cookies, Oreos, Cracker Jack’s, Krispy Kremes, Fritos Corn Chips, Jell-O and Twinkies.

Since September is “Better Breakfast Month”, have a party with a breakfast theme. Serve all breakfast foods. Ask your guests to come in robes, flannel pajamas, slippers, or what they might have on if someone rang their doorbell first thing in the morning.

You could do it first thing in the morning or whatever time of day you like.

Have a “Come As You Are Party”. Depending on the number of your guests, designate drivers to pick up people at 8:00 in the morning to bring them to breakfast at a local restaurant. The only thing is they have to come with you the way they answered the door. You can invite your guests by telling them to reserve the entire day and you’ll let them know where to meet and when. Let them know in advance how much the day might cost them. The driver will have to coax them out of the house and into their car. Have a prize for the person who looks the best and who looks the worst.

Invitations

Have musical notes, instruments and/or sheet music on the invitations. Ask the guests to dress for the symphony.

Decorations

Decorate with musical instruments, musical notes, sheet music, pictures of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn and other famous classical music composers. Play classical mucis during the evening. Have servers dressed in black and white with white gloves. Make things look as formal as possible.

Food

Serve finger food that the servers pass on silver trays, if possible. (You can purchase plastic silver serving trays.)

Activities

Dance the minuet or do some ballroom dancing. Have a prize for the best dancing couple.

Invitations

Make them colorful. Ask the guests to dress in some native Hispanic costumes.

Decorations

Decorate with sombreros, classical guitars, maracas, piñatas, cactus, serapes, flags from Hispanic countries….

Play Hispanic music.

Food

Have foods from different Spanish cultures. Go to our food section for Mexican recipes. Here are a few websites from other Hispanic countries.
www.tasteofcuba.com/cubanrecipes.html
www.elboricua.com/recipes.html
www.knowledgehound.com/topics/central_america_recipes.htm
www.spain-recipes.com
www.gosouthamerica.about.com/cs/cuisin1/a/SArecipes.htm-21k

Activities

Break a piñata filled with candy.

Make up a game with Spanish words on it. See who can translate them the best. You may want to make it multiple choice for those who have never taken Spanish.

Give everyone a piece of paper and a pen. Ask them to write down the names of as many Spanish speaking countries they can think of in a designated amount of time. The person with the most right is the winner.

Decorations

Decorate with German flags. Use the colors of the flag for tablecloths, napkins, plates and cups (if you are using paper or plastic).

Use beer steins for drinks. Set beer steins, Bavarian hats, kazoos around as decorations.

Food

German sausages, hot German potato salad, sauerkraut, sweet and sour cabbage, red cabbage, German-style chicken, soft pretzels, caramel apples, root beer and black forest cake.

Activities

Do the chicken dance.

Divide into teams. Have clothing items that would be fitting for a scarecrow. Each team gets a bag with the items in it. The first person in each line runs to a designated spot and puts on the items. Then they run back to the next person in line, take off the items, put them in the bag and hand the bag to that person. Play continues until each member of the team gets dressed like a scarecrow. First team to finish wins.

Go outside for this race. Divide into teams. Each team gets a beer stein filled with root beer. They run from the beginning of the line to a designated spot where there is a bucket. The person empties the root beer into the bucket, runs back to the next person in line and gives them the stein. Play continues until each member of the team has emptied root beer into the bucket. The winners are the team with the most root beer in the bucket.

These are just a few ideas from the list. I am sure you can come up with many ideas once you let your creative juices get going.

Native American Party

Invitations

Make them in the shape of a teepee, tom-tom, and headdress or have these items on the invitation. Ask guests to wear Indian costumes.

Decorations

Teepees, tom-toms, bows and arrows, headdresses, bowls of fresh vegetables, corn, feathers, drawn pictures of deer, pictures of Indians and horses, peace pipes

Food

Fry Bread, Rice, Sweet Potatoes, Legumes, Nuts, Game meat – deer, buffalo, bear, bison
Check out Native Indian recipes in food section.

Games
Shoot a bow and arrow at a target. Person to get the most or the closest to the bull’s eye wins.

With small children - Set up two teams. Adults become horses the children ride on. They ride to a designated spot and back. Then the next pair goes until all team members have completed their ride. First team finished wins.

With children – Do a craft by making Indian headbands. Use construction paper. Make a band that will fit around their head. Let them trace a feather on construction paper or have real feathers available. Cut them out. Glue them onto the headband.

Build a campfire. Sing around it and make s’mores, even dance around it.