How to Plan a Cowboy Party

Does your little boy love to dress up in cowboy attire and play cowboy and Indian games? Well a cowboy theme party might be the perfect idea for his birthday party! So grab some cowboy boots, a cowboy hat, and square dance your way through a great celebration!

• Invitations: Send out cowboy hoedown invitations to let your guests know about your birthday party. Use cowboy wording on the invite like “Saddle up for a wild west party” and “Get ready for a cowboy stompin’ good time.” This will get your guests excited about the cowboy party theme! Send a Toy Story invite for the kid who loves Woody, the toy cowboy. Find the perfect invite on Punchbowl's digital invitation site, which has a wide variety of Disney themes.

• Decorations: Decorate with ropes, bandannas, and cowboy hats. If your party is outside, you can even set up some bales of hay for the kids to play on or to use as a photo shoot area for pictures. You can also decorate for your cowboy party with signs that say “Waterin’ Hole” or “Saloon.” Hang red, white, and blue streamers and balloons and use red and white checkered tablecloths on your tables. Another fun touch to personalize the event is to post “Wanted” posters with pictures of your guests around your party space—the kids will get a kick out of seeing themselves on the posters! The birthday boy could also dress up as Woody from Toy Story with this fun costume from Punchbowl's Shopping Aisle.

• Food/ Beverages: Serve all of cowboy’s favorite foods like hot dogs, beans, and corn bread. Some great appetizer ideas are watermelon, tortilla chips and salsa, and pigs in a blanket. A cowboy cake is also an essential item for your cowboy birthday party menu. Make yours in the shape of a cowboy hat or a cactus. If you are running low on time, you could also use a cowboy cake topper as a quick and easy cake decoration. Cowboys also love root beer so be sure to serve plenty of it at your cowboy birthday party!

• Activity #1 - Boot Toss: Set up a cowboy boot and have the kids try to toss beanbags into the boot. You could also break the kids up into teams and have a race for which team gets their pile of beanbags in the boot in the fastest amount of time!

• Activity #2 - Lasso Hoop Toss: Have the kids practice their lasso skills by tossing small hula hoops around a wooden rocking horse.

• Activity #3 - Pin the Tail on the Horse: This is a fun spin-off of the well known game “pin the tail on the donkey.” You could also pin the badge on the sheriff or pin the hat on the cowboy.

• Activity #4 - Tin can shoot off: Place 3 tin cans on a bench have each kid take turns shooting at them with a squirt gun. The kid with the fastest time gets a prize!

• Party Favors: Some great cowboy party favors are cowboy hats, toy harmonica, bandanna, or a squirt gun. You could also purchase a cowboy-themed goody bag and fill it with Jolly Ranchers, bubble gum, and other favorite candies. Don't forget the sheriff's badges for the kids to wear at the party!