By Guest Expert, Kristen, a former wedding & event planner who blogs at Celebrate Every Day With Me about fun ways to celebrate each and every day and the special occasions of life. On her blog, you'll find ideas for party planning, children's activities and creating memorable moments!


The celebration of Earth Day is a great opportunity to spend an afternoon teaching your nieces and nephews about caring for our planet, while having fun at the same time. Your nieces and nephews can learn about appreciating nature and simple ways they can protect the environment.

But let’s make it exciting, Auntie! Start the planning because we are hosting a “Going Green” party!  The three main elements to any children’s party are décor, food, and activities. And who says that you need a lot of people to have a party? You can have a party with only a couple people! Your nieces and nephews will love the special attention and the big deal you’re making just for them.

For the decorations, think green! Since we’re trying to protect the environment, we’ll be avoiding paper and disposable products. Scout out your place for anything green that you can use or re-purpose as table décor. Keep in mind that things do not need to match. Drink out of glass jars. Grab a vase and fill them with blossoms and tree branches from outside or fill a bowl with green apples. Find a couple stones and paint your names on them (in green, of course) to use as place cards.

Schedule your party for the afternoon and keep your foods simple. Make kabobs with green apple slices, green grapes and cucumber chunks. Have vanilla yogurt on hand for dip. (Dare you add green food coloring?) Serve lemon lime Kool-Aid or a green soda for older kids. For dessert, make cupcakes with green icing or cookies with green M&M’s.

During your party, talk about what you love about nature. What is your favorite animal or plant? Ask your nieces and nephews what their favorites are. Share about our responsibility to take care of the environment and ways they can help. (Turn off lights when not in use. Conserve water. Don’t litter. And always recycle.)

A party also needs a little activity, Auntie! Here are a couple options:

Decorate green bookmarks that say, “Go Green.”  Do you have any crafts supplies they can use?  They can draw the recycle sign, a light bulb or even their favorite animal.

Make recycling containers together.  Find or purchase boxes, crates, plastic bins or trash cans to hold your recyclables. If you want to get a little crafty, make decorative labels for each container. On plastic bins, paint rectangles with chalkboard paint and let your nieces and nephews write the name of each category to be collected.

Go for a walk, and appreciate nature. Pick up any trash you see along the way.

Decide what you want to prepare before their arrival and what they can help you with, such as picking flowers or decorating cupcakes. With a little planning, this afternoon can be a special treat yet educational at the same time!