Pet Store Party

When people ask if we have pets, my typical response is "yes, two boys." They're wild enough. But truth be told, they're dying for a pet. My answer: regular trips to the pet store. And we have so much fun you'd think it was, you guessed it -- a party!

INVITATIONS

Choose a favorite animal to be the star of your party (examples here on the wild and mild side). You might consider asking guests to bring a can or bag of pet food in lieu of a birthday gift (more on this momentarily).

ACTIVITY

Take a trip to the local pet store or animal shelter. If you've got more than 4-5 kids in the party, call ahead to ensure you'll be welcome. While most kids can entertain themselves the whole time just by peeking in the cages, looking for the lizards hidden behind plastic tree leaves, and making up wacky conversations with the parrots, you could come prepared with a few games of your own. Try an age-appropriate scavenger hunt (can you find the Yellow Canary? a 20-lb bag of Alpo? a furry purple kitty toy?). Learn where the animals originally came from. Or see what animal best matches each guest in the group.

A thoughtful twist is to turn the birthday gift booty over to the animals. Guests might be invited to bring a can of food, a dog toy, etc. in lieu of a child's gift. The group can then present the gifts to an animal shelter (or to the pet store who will often donate them in turn).

THANK YOU'S

Take each guest's picture with their favorite animal and send it home in a customized thank you card. If he/she gave a gift to an animal, you might include a "pawprint" of thanks from it too.