My youngest has wanted a sleep-over birthday party since he was 3. Every year he asks I always say, “Not this year. You have to be older.” I kept putting him off. Somehow, 3rd grade was the magically age which seemed far enough off into the future. Well, the future came quicker then I thought. He’s in 3rd grade this year and just turned 9, so I followed through with my promise and my youngest had his first sleep-over birthday party at our house. To jazz up the party, I decided to make some fun printables with a camp theme. Right now the midwest is going through a heat wave, so there was no camping in our backyard. Instead, we had a campout in our basement! Below is my party plan that I followed and instructions on how to make the invites, front door sign, goody bags and cake. Enjoy!

DIY Camp Birthday Party Plan

The Invite

• Download and customize a Camp Birthday invite. You can mail the invites, hand them out or email them. {Template instructions below}.

Decorations

• Download and customize the 8×10 front door sign then print, frame and hang on your front door. {Template instructions below}.

• Outdoor lanterns
• Pie plates as plates
• Craft paper as table runner (write names where kids should sit)

• Chalkboard banner (I bought this at Target and LOVE it…I will be able to use it for so many things)

Goody Bags

• Download and customize the goody bag tags. Cut them out and attach to paper bags using a hole punch and ribbon. We filled our camp goody bags with a S’mores kit–chocolate bar, graham crackers and marshmallows), a battery-operated tea light and a flashlight. {Template instructions below}.

The Cake

• Download and customize the cake topper. Cut it out and tape to the back of a wooden skewer or toothpick to insert into your cake. {Template instructions below}. For the cake my hubby baked and iced a two-layer round chocolate cake. I then decorated it. I used two graham cracker halves to make a tent. I turned a sugar ice cream cone upside down and iced it with green frosting to make a tree. For the campfire, I used Twix candy bars and small marshmallows.

Food & Activities

The boys were very active…

• Camp pizza and camp cake
• Lots of drinks–water, Gatorade, SunnyD
• Ping pong
• Soccer
• Lacrosse
• Flashlight tag
• Fort building
• Video games
• A movie right before their curfew in the basement while they were snuggled up in their sleeping bags.

What you will need for the Printables:

• Computer
• Printer
• Scissors
• 8×10 Frame
• Ribbon
• Hole punch
• Paper goody bags
• Wooden skewer or toothpick
• Tape

Instructions:

1. Download these 8×10 JPG files {click on each image and save to your computer}.

2. Open the files in Picmonkey.com (it is free) and add text using the text edit, or insert file into a Word or Pages document and add text using a text box. Save file to your hard drive.

3. Upload file to a photo center like Snapfish.com or Costco.com and order prints OR print at home.

5. Mail,  hand-out or email  your invites.

6. Frame your door sign in an 8×10 frame and hang on your door.

7. Fill your goody bags then cut out your goody bag tags and attach to your paper bags using a hole punch and ribbon.

8. Cut out your cake topper and tape to the back of a wooden skewer or toothpick to insert into your cake.

That’s it! The party was a success! Everyone stayed the whole night–no midnight calls to parents. Good luck with your camp birthday party planning! I’d love to hear about some of your favorite birthday party ideas?