2Nd Birthday - Red Lodge, MT

This isn't about food, but I thought I'd mention it since you said you've got a little car fanatic. . . . Ramps and cars are so much fun for everyone! You can get cheap toy cars at the dollar store or Target and have them be party favors, and then make games with ramps made from various materials--cardboard, rain gutters, vinyl strips from Home Depot, etc. The kids can have races and experiment with leaning the ramps off playground equipment and benches. My kids love ramps and like seeing what will roll and what will crash and what's faster and on and on. It's cheap and endlessly appealing for a wide age range (including parents! ;)
Have fun!

hamburgers, hotdogs. i wouldn't worry about decorations

For decor, I'd say just maybe a car-themed tablecloth and some balloons. The park is atmosphere enough! For food I'd do simple finger foods - fruit kabobs (melon balls on toothpicks), small triangle pbj sandwiches, cheese cubes, and cupcakes! Have fun!

If you want to keep it simple, than I agree, a tablecloth and a couple bunches of balloons. For the park, anything that you would take on a picnic, plus a cake. I wouldn't bother with ice cream. For drinks, I would buy some bottled water, or if you want juice for the kids, some juice boxes or capri sun juices. Keep it simple, remember that you are going to have to clean up without a sink to help.

Best of luck,
S.

I have done several park parties and if you want to enjoy the party i would suggest that you buy pre-made food--fried chicken,6 foot sub sand, veggie tray fruit tray or even just a couple of water melons, i bought the drink igloos and served lemonade and ice water, you could also make a non mayo pasta salad with itilian dressing and frish herbs, olives cheese chunks and pepperoni, that was a big hit .
Make sure you bring a box of wipes for all the ditrty little hands too.
Bring a stroller and a play yard for the birhtday boy so you are not having to chase after him all the time . It might be in your best interest to bring him a new bike or something he will like playing with right there where the party is and not spending the whole day at the play ground.
As for decorations i used tons of streamers and helium balloons . (bought the helium from sams club ) table covers and scattered candy and confettie across the tables too. Kids love it . I recently went to a park party and they filled up a tote box with water and had water balloons for all the kids to enjoy. (suggest that they come in swim wear or have a change of cloths. That was the highlight of the party . Have fun and don't stress!!
Good luck and god bless!!

I just did a park party for my four year old in June. All we brought was cake (plates, forks and napkins) which we put on a card table with a plastic table cloth. Then we brought camp chairs and some folding chairs that we have because the park didn't have picnic tables or benches close. We did a pinata for candy for them to bring home, and handed out a bubble goodie bag at the beginning so they could have fun with bubbles while everyone was arriving. And that's it. We didn't do a ton of decorating, food or other stuff. Oh, and we brought Capri Suns for drinks. Easy and toss-able. The park toys were enough for keeping them entertained, and the plates and goodie bags were party themed. If your son likes cars, you could do a car themed cake or decor. You could hand out a matchbox car or two in a goodie bag for the guests to take home. Ours was a lot of fun, and really wasn't that much work for us. Just keep it simple. Good luck!

We were all set for our little boy's 2nd bday party in May and then he was sick the day of. So even though we didn't have it, here are a few things I was going to do. :-) I bought a Little Tikes size picnic table (collapsible and thus portable) as the tables at our park are huge. Also had a couple of kid-size camp chairs too. Bought an oversize Cars-theme color book and figured interested kids could color at that table and when it was time to eat, put a few items on there that kids could reach. I agree on keeping the food and decos simple. As for guest prizes, I bought individual bubbles for everyone along with mini-play doughs to take home. Am sure it will be lots of fun! Enjoy!

Keep it simple! Park parties are a lot of fun, but I vowed I wouldn't have another for a while after this last time (2 yrs ago). Hauling all the supplies, setting up, cleaning up, making sure you get the spot you want, etc.

I think the premade food idea is great, and/or bringing in pizzas (have a friend or family member go pick them up). We Barbequed burgers, but that was just more stuff to haul to/from the car.

For decorations, I'd say just some balloons - tie them to the picnic table(s) or a tree, and then top it off with some themed party plates/napkins, etc. I always like to give a single 'larger' gift to the party attendees - rather than those party bags with all the 'junk'(most of which would be choking hazards for little kids anyhow). One year I gave out those squishy dinosaurs/dragons, another friend gave out coloring books (themed with her party).

If you can get a spot near an actual playground, then you won't need to worry about party games or entertainment for the kids.

go to parents.com they have a free Birthday Party Planning tool which ask a series of questions and generates a list of pary ideas. Found in the May 2008 Parents magazine