Going to be
at Funtown USA for someone's birthday? Celebrate throughout the day with
these fun ways to keep the birthday fun going!
These ideas
are sponsored by the Great Funtown USA Adventure Challenge - Watch
the video below for details!
Before you even
leave for your day at Funtown USA, decorate the INSIDE of your car
with streamers and balloons (of course, being sure to not obstruct
the view of the driver.) This will get the excitement going for
the day ahead before you even get there!
Make a game
out of their actual age number - see how many times you can find
that number throughout the day at Funtown USA. For example, if the birthday
boy/girl is turning 21, everyone must look for the number '21' throughout
Funtown USA. Award one point to the FIRST person who finds a new one throughout
the day and add up the points at the completion. You might find
numbers on height requirement signs, menus, ticket pricing signs,
phone numbers, etc.
Plan
a fun scavenger hunt throughout the day at Funtown USA. There
are all different types of scavenger hunts to go on, each with
a different format. Although for some parties having different
teams compete with each other can be a lot of fun, for someone's
birthday when there is one person to honor, it's typically best
to have everyone on the same team - everyone gets to help the
birthday boy/girl be successful when one person wins, they
all win! These can be a lot of fun to create, but can take some
extra work to make creative (sometimes you'll need more than
just a list to excite some teens, for example.) Consider
our GREAT ADVENTURE CHALLENGE AT Funtown USA - a package
for them to open once there filled with all kinds of puzzles
and things to do! CLICK
HERE to learn more!
Have a stack
of cards already made out by the birthday boy/girl's friends and
family. Throughout the day at Funtown USA (preferably while they are in
line for a ride/show/attraction) hand them a different card. They
will be reminded of how much they are liked and loved throughout
the day by those that weren't able to join them inside the park!
Pick different
events that happened in the birthday boy/girl's life - events that
happened somewhat close to each other. For example, different sets
might include: (first tooth, crawled, sat up) or (learned ABC's,
ride a bike, poured his/her own milk). This will work for adult
events as well including (first girlfriend, first job, broke leg.)
Everyone else there will have to guess the ORDER that the events
happened. Award points as you go and determine a winner at the end
of the day. This is a great activity to play while there are lulls
in the fun (I.e. while standing in lines)
This activity
is typically best with family (or friends they've known for a very,
very long time) and although it might take some coordinating, it
can have a great impact on the birthday boy/girl. Divide up the
years among everyone going to Funtown USA with the birthday boy/girl.
For example, if he/she is turning 14, then divide up the years 1-14
among everyone. The goal is to have a unique story to share about
each year in his/her life that can be shared with everyone throughout
the day. For those that are older, it's ok to skip every few years
for the sake of capturing their whole life span. Make sure the stories
are told in order. This also works especially well when you focus
on their achievements throughout his/her life!
Make up shirts
for all those going to Funtown USA with the birthday boy/girl that say
something fun like "It's Tim's Birthday today!" or "Point
and smile at Tim - he's 18 today!"
Wrap a single
gift many times, preferably with different colors/types of wrapping
paper and containers (though not necessary.) Give the birthday boy/girl
the gift at the beginning of the day and tell them that they can
unwrap ONE layer in each line that they wait in. Don't tell them
how many layers there are - let them wonder if each layer will be
their last! If you don't plan on going on many rides/attractions,
you can also have them unwrap one layer every hour.
Sing Happy Birthday
in EVERY line that you wait in. You'll be surprised how often other
folks don't mind joining in the song especially in those longer
lines when there's not a lot else for folks to do.
This is a great
game to play for a larger group (4+). Ahead of time, prepare a list
of fun tasks to do at Funtown USA at write the out separately on small
pieces of paper - at least enough for each person going. It's best
to have someone else (who is NOT going with you to Funtown USA) write
them out - someone you can trust. Throughout the day, the birthday
boy/girl periodically pulls one task out and reads it out loud.
He/she then CHOOSES who in the group must complete the task right
then. The rules are that EVERY person completes one task. The birthday
boy/girl cannot look ahead at the different pieces of paper to see
which ones he/she wants to assign or do for himself/herself. This
can also be a great thing to do in the different lines you might
wait in.