Groundhog Day Treat

Yearly on the second day of February a famous groundhog in Pennsylvania will emerge from his winter burrow.  Legend tells us an early Spring is on its way if he doesn't see his shadow, but it's six more weeks of winter if he does.  Whatever the prediction, your family will surely rave about this adorable groundhog treat.

To make these treats you will need some baked cupcakes - the flavor of your choice - miniature candy bars, frosting, chocolate jimmies, white jelly beans, black decoration gel, red rope licorice and brown mini candy coated chocolate candies.

Instructions:

1. Remove a piece of cake the width of a miniature candy bar from the center of a baked cupcake. Set the candy upright in the hole, then spread a layer of white frosting on the cupcake and sprinkle chocolate jimmies on the frosting.
2. For the groundhog's eyes, trim the ends from a white jelly bean, stick them in place with frosting, then dot them with black decorators' gel. Add a tiny triangle cut from a the red rope licorice for a nose, brown mini candy coated chocolate candies for ears and cheeks, and a tiny rectangular piece of white jelly bean for teeth. Stand back and admire your creation, your little groundhog is ready to greet his fans

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party

Create an avalanche of fun for your child's winter birthday!  Build your party around a favorite cold weather pursuit - building snow people.
Scroll down to see specific ideas for invitations, decorations, games, crafts, eats, treats, drinks and favors.

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party - Invitations

Creative invitations build excitement and set the mood for a party before it even starts.  Here are a few ideas for you to try:

Make mitten invitations using card stock.  Trace around a child's mitten.  Cut out the shape and add the party details on one side.  Decorate the other side for the occasion.

Cut out the shape of a snowman from white construction paper.  Run a glue stick along the outside edges and add white glitter or use a glitter glue pen to achieve the same impact.  Form the snowman's face and buttons with bits of fabric or paper.  Write party details on the back.

Use heavy white card stock to print a picture of a snowman on the front (there are many free templates available on the Internet).  Print the party details inside.

Create a cut-out snowflake from white construction paper, leaving plenty of white spaces for your party detail wording.  Write your party information on the snowflake, fold it back up and mail it in an envelope.

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party - Decorations

For this party transform your home into a winter wonderland by stringing sparkling clear lights and displaying lots of paper snowflakes.  Greet guests inside with a large snowman poster or cut-out - you can use this later on as a backdrop for souvenir pictures.  Dangle paper snowflakes from your chandeliers, light fixtures and windows to capture a blizzardy feeling.  Hang silver and light blue balloons and streamers to intensify the wintry theme.

Plan to set your table with a palette of shimmery white, silver and light blue.  Use a white tablecloth sprinkled with a mixture of silver and blue glitter and confetti.  Make a 3-D snowman your centerpiece.  At each place setting, make snowflake-shaped placements using felt.  Buy large pieces of silver and light blue felt from your local craft store and cut them in a snowflake shape.  Set white or glass plates on top for a frosty look.  Place cards can be created out of cardstock cut in the shape of snowflakes.

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party - Games

Snowman-Building Contest

What would a snowman party be without a snowman-building contest.  This is a team competition to build the first 4-foot-tall snowman.  To play you will need at least two teams, a 4-foot measuring stick, plenty of snow and some traditional items to decorate the snowmen, such as hats, mufflers, carrot noses, charcoal bits for mouth and eyes, buttons etc.

The entire team can roll the snowballs.  The winning team will be the first team to create and decorate a snowman of at least 4 feet.

If the weather does not cooperate for your party, try the Snowman Wrap Race.  To play this game all guests will need to be paired up in teams of two - each with a builder and a model.  For each team you will need a roll of toilet tissue, a length of red crepe paper, black card stock circles for buttons backed with tape.

Give each builder a roll of toilet tissue, a length of red crepe paper and three circles cut out of black card stock and backed with a large loop of tape.

At the Go the builders race to wrap their partner with the entire roll of toilet tissue, finish with a length of red crepe paper for a scarf and the three card stock buttons.  The first builder to complete the snowman wins the race for his or her team.

Magazine Scavenger Hunt

For this game you will need at least one magazine for each guest and at least two pairs of scissors. Before the party create two lists of winter items.  Include things like snow, ice skates, penguins, winter coats, mittens, hats, ice, snowmen, igloos, earmuffs, scarf, and polar bears.

At the party divide your guests into two teams.  Give each team a stack of magazines, a pair of scissors and a list of winter items.  Set a timer and let the teams search for the magazines for the items on the list to cut out.  Whichever team has found the most items at the end of the time wins.

Freeze Dancing and "Hot" Snowballs

If more games are desired, consider freeze dancing or pass the snowball with Styrofoam balls (a winter version of Hot Potato.

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party - Craft

How about an edible craft for this party - Marshmallow Snowmen!  For this craft you will need large marshmallows (at least for 3 per guest), pretzel sticks (at least two per guest), frosting, and an assortment of mini candy-coated chocolate pieces.  When planning supplies for this craft, plan that some of the "craft" items will be eaten!

To begin this craft set out bowls of large marshmallows, pretzel sticks, frosting and mini candy-coated chocolate pieces.  Each guest will also need a small plastic knife for spreading the frosting glue.

Then let each guest make a marshmallow snowman using the pretzel sticks for arms and the mini candy-coated chocolate pieces for the eyes and buttons.  Guests will need a small dab of frosting to hold the snowmen together and to "paste" the candy pieces on as decorations.

How to Throw a Winter Fun Snowman Party - Eats

If your guests have been building snow people out doors, they are probably going to be HUNGRY!  Start with an all-white veggie and cheese tray with a white dip like ranch dressing (with maybe some snowman approved carrots on the side).  Select from jicama, cauliflower or mushrooms for the white veggies, and mozzarella, swiss, or provolone for the white cheeses.  Then consider serving a melted snowman soup - a creamy potato soup with raisin eyes, oyster cracker buttons and a carrot sliver for a nose floating on top.

For your main course serve something that will reflect the snowman theme - consider meatballs with meat sauce over rice or spaghetti, a meat ball sub or English muffin pizzas.  For dessert serve a snowman cake (directions below) alongside edible snowballs (directions below).