Name tags help make the party more personal.  Nametags help the adults and party hosts to be able to call each child by name.  This facilitates activities and encourages more organization.  Plus it is even more fun for the children when an entertainer can address them personally.  It makes their experience at your party something to talk about and no one wonders who "Hey You"  on the video tape is.

Have your candles and matches ready. When cake time comes it will be easy to find everything if you have it set out in advance.  Another helpful hint is to pre light your candles before the party.  Candles take a second to catch when the wicks are still coated in wax.  By lighting them briefly before it is time to sing you will be assured they will light right away when you have 15 kids all waiting to sing.  We also recommend using an instaflame (fireplace starter) type lighter. Unlike matches you are assured that with one click you have a flame.  Plus the elongated lighter neck make it easy to reach the candles over the kids.

Make sure to plan enough time for your guests to arrive before you have your entertainment scheduled.  We usually suggest on a two to three hour party you have the entertainment arrive 30 minutes to an hour after the party starts.  If you are planning to do a meal or snacks you may want to have your food prepared and set out as guests are arriving.  Keep in mind you will have guests arrive at different intervals so making it easy for them to fix a plate will fill the initial void of what to do with your guests before your entertainment arrives.  If you are planning to eat a big meal we suggest having your entertainment arrive an hour or more into your event.  If you are planning snack or pizza a half hour to forty five minutes is about right.  If you aren't eating then leave around a half an hour for your guests to arrive and get settled.  In all cases you know your guests better than we do and should take that into account in your planning. We always suggest that you make sure most everyone will arrive before your entertainment. There is nothing worse than having to cut out an activity because seven new children arrived right at the end of the performers time.  They feel cheated and the performers usually feel bad that they can't do more.  Most performers are going to facilitate getting you ready to sing around the birthday cake.  If you are ready to cut the cake it is an excellent time to cut and serve followed by presents.  If you allot a half an hour to an hour at the end of your party you should have enough time to eat cake and open presents.  Remember mom's and dad's don't always arrive right on time at the end.  If you are opening presents and a guest must leave early, be courteous and open their present quickly before they leave.

Plan an activity for the children to do before your entertainment arrives.  We suggest setting out coloring sheets for the children to color and show off to the character.  This is easy to do and creates a great "busy time" activity.  Just get a coloring book and cut the pages out, set out some crayons and you are ready to go.  If you want to take it a step further you can use  paper clips or clothespins to hang the pictures along a string.  You can even have the character "judge" your coloring contest when they arrive.  It is always best if everyone gets a small trinket for their good work if you have a "judged" contest then no one feels left out.  Another suggestion is to let them make their own party hats.  There are several creative patterns you can use to make different style hats.   However the tradition crown style is always easy to do. Use a Burger King™ kid's meal hat as a size pattern and cut out crowns from colored paper.  Then take time to put each invited child's name on their hat in black marker.  Have a couple extra just in case.  Then set out markers, stickers and anything else you would like and watch them create a work of art to wear!  The kids will take them home and remember what a great time they had.  Plus these hats double as name tags!  Another fun suggestion is to let them decorate name tags.  Get some stickers and markers and the large style nametags and let them have a blast making their own name into a work of art.

Take pictures with each child and the entertainer to send out as thank you notes after the party.  A good time to do this during a character party is while your host is face painting.  This gives the kids something extra to do.  You can even have the birthday boy or girl in each picture as well.  (that is if you have a patient child who likes to smile).  This is a great way to make a memory for all the children that attended your party.  Plus if you get your film developed 4X6 or greater you have your own built in postcard.  We suggest putting two large blank nametags on the back.  One to write on and one to address the card,  then you can mail it out just like a postcard.  If you have a digital camera consider getting the e mail of all your guests before they leave--saves on postage too!

Too much to do and not enough attention span.  This tip is meant to enhance your entertainment experience.  For those of you who are not hiring in entertainers it may not be as pertinent.  Many times it is distracting for smaller children to have to sit through lengthy shows.  We designed our character visits around the concept of ever-changing activities so no one things lasts too long for little people.  Our magic & variety entertainment shows are best for 4 and above. In either case if a home provides a lot of toys or a large play area in your basement or even an outdoor play "castle" this can be a distraction to the show at hand.  Little ones don't realize these performers ar only at your event for a short time.  This tip is provided with the consideration of "you want to get your money's worth".  When having an entertainer over you may want to consider choosing a location without a great deal of distractions for them to compete against or informing the children that while __ is there they should pay attention to what _____ is doing.  By no means are we suggesting not to have it in a comfortable area.  Just you may consider blocking off the play house and the kitchenette or the play dough factory while the character or entertainer is doing their part for your party. Having your children's attention is important and it is often time frustrating to be left alone to round up and be in charge of gathering children who won't leave the cozy little playhouse except to go through the plastic McDonald's drive through.  This is the extreme circumstance but a party runs much smoother with a little guidance and help from a familiar face to the children.  Even if it is just to tell them to park the BIG wheel and come in for the show.