There couldn’t be a better time for a Captain America Party, with Independence Day coming up along with the release of the Captain America movie next month, on July 22nd! We like to make your lives easier by recommending an assortment of extraordinarily super-duper Captain America Party supplies! Then you can focus on having fun and getting creative with the food and games for the party.
Invitations
If you have ordered the Captain America Deluxe Party Pack, then your invitations are practically finished already. You just need to add your child’s name, the date, time and location of the party, and the RSVP information. If you don’t have pre-made invitations, it’s no big deal at all. Use white cardstock or even construction paper, and draw Captain America’s Shield on the front of each invitation. Circles and stars, people. I promise you can do it, even at 2am, when I know you’re working on them, since that’s when I’m working on planning my parties, i.e. when the family is asleep and I have a moment’s peace. Start with something catchy on the inside, like “Calling all members of the justice league, Captain America needs your help…to celebrate [insert child’s name here]’s birthday!” Then include the relevant information about the party, and invite guests to come in the superhero costume of their choice! To welcome your superhero guests on the day of the party, put out trays of “Vita Rays” (gummy bears), each in its own little Dixie cup, to enhance superhero abilities. Also offer superpower “Super-Soldier Serums” from Dixie cups. Explain that the red serum (cranberry juice, for example) is for speed, and that the clear serum (water with a squeeze of lemon) is for strength. These are just examples. It’s really fun to serve normal drinks with fancy new labels and names and then to see how the kids react at any party.
Decorations
Red, white and blue are your basic colors for this party, which is fantastic, because you get a lot of bang for your buck and your effort. The decorations will work well for a Fourth of July Party, a Flag Day gathering, or even a Citizenship Celebration for a friend or family member. Stick to the all-American basics. Hang balloons, streamers and ribbons. A little goes a long way with all of those. Buy only a few streamers, and twist and drape a few in your main party room. Hang three balloons (one red, one white and one blue) at the entrance of the party, and hang three balloons by your food table. A simple, white paper tablecloth should work great for your food table. I found some red ribbon in my Christmas box at home that I would cut into a few pieces, curl, and toss here and there around the plates on the food table. If you don’t have any red ribbon, don’t go out and buy any. Another way to decorate your white table is to make confetti. Have your child/children help with this. Just find some red and blue paper and let them go wild with a hole-puncher. If, however, you are having an outdoor Captain America party, then keep it even simpler. Skip the ribbons and the confetti, and just hang balloons around tree branches and order a Captain America Tablecover to complete the party décor.
Games & Activities
The possibilities for games and activities are endless for a superhero party. We offer a fun Captain America Party Game that everyone will enjoy playing, but there are all kinds of other great activities you can come up with, as well. Fun games include how far you can run in a minute (since Captain America can run a mile a minute), a weight-lifting relay race(with dumbbells, you know, the ones gathering dust in your garage because you can’t decide whether they will help you gain or lose weight), a scavenger hunt to find action figures, and an obstacle course race. You can award homemade blue ribbons to contest winners. It’s always a good idea to make at least one craft at the party, since the craft can double as a party favor. The standard party craft here is to make a Captain America shield. You’ll need large pieces of construction paper, cut into discs, and then covered with aluminum foil. Give each guest a shield, and allow them to decorate either by replicating the original shield with red, white and blue construction paper, or by having fun with patriotic stickers.
Food
You’ll want to go for all-American classic foods in preparing your Captain America party, but remember that modern day heroes might have dietary requirements. I suggest serving meaty kosher hot dogs along side some faux-meat corn dogs for your vegetarian superheroes. Oven fries and just a nice big romaine salad with Ranch dressing on the side are crowd-pleasing sides. Finger foods are otherwise great snacks for your freedom fighter guests, as they will need to eat on the run and often to fight crime and conquer obstacles. Put out Jell-O stars (super easy to make with star molds) and traditional watermelon slices for the kids to snack on. A simple, healthy treat is a berry trifle with whipped cream. All you need is to layer blueberries, cream and raspberries in a big, glass serving dish!
Cake
If you have the Captain America action figure, then I recommend making something like this shield cake, and sticking the doll on top, amongst the birthday candles. Since you’ll be exhausted from refereeing obstacle courses, decorating, and making sure you’ve thought of all dietary requirements and restrictions, you don’t want to be exhausted from making an intricate cake. If your party is outdoors, then order a Captain America cake from your local bakery. You don’t want your handiwork ruined by leaves or dirt. If you are having an indoor party, simply make a white or chocolate sheet cake, depending on which is your child’s favorite. Then have at least red and blue icing on hand. White or vanilla icing is great, but you could also dust with powdered sugar. Draw Captain America’s shield on a piece of paper and match it up to the size of the cake, so you can keep track of what you are doing. Cut the star out of the piece of paper, and start by dusting the star-center of the shield. Then use the paper star to cover the dusted area and spread blue icing around to make a circle. Continue with red, white and then another red circle to finish covering the cake. Use the parts of the paper drawing you did to help steady your hand as you spread the different icings in order to recreate Captain America’s shield. If you have cupcake fans in your house, or if you are taking cupcakes to school to help your child celebrate, these Captain America Cupcake Rings, are ideal!
Favors
Each guest will take home a Captain America shield as a memento, but it’s always nice to go home with a few extra little things. These and Captain America stickers and Captain America rubber wristbands are great reminders of the freedom fighting fun they had at your party!
