**update-okay, I was starting to reply to everyone for all the great suggestions, and stopped, it's all too much, so I will say it here, thank you! so many wonderful creative ideas!There should be a kids b-day/toys/making crafts resource site, like a blog! don't you think? with great links, craft how-to's, party ideas, and recipies with links to other blogger's kids parties, etc. okay someone, get on that! (I just checked out MSL kids online and all your ideas kick way more bootie.)
I'm sewing the goodie bags themselves right now (and have corrected the spelling of dilemma, yikes! so glad grammie didn't see that-shh)
Miss Sadie is turning 3 on Saturday. (my brother's b-day is the same day, I love this!) We are having a little party for her on Sunday (the theme is "rainbow") and I am having the goodie-bag dilemma. I want to put in cool, nice, hand-made toys, or at least not the crappy garbage toys out of weird plastic. I'd like this amazing goodie bag here, but really should make stuff ( I can't buy 9 of these and have them air-shipped. that's crazy talk.) However, I also have a very unrealistic and long list of things I want to do for this party (sewing a new dress for the b-day girl, making/buying food/ oh, and wrapping gifts, cleaning the house, etc.) and the goodie-bag thing is so killin' me! I am asking for ideas here. I don't really need craft ideas for the party itself-I have access to a ton of kid gear; hoops, big parachute, balls, and crazy obstacle course items. (insurence release perhaps?) but if anyone has some cool ideas as to what to put in the goodies bags, please help. we have about 8-9 kids the oldest is 5 but most hover around 2-3. And I only have 4 days. and I don't want to spend a ton of $$ and have no time. Awesome!
I like this crayons craft project above (from MSL kids) but I would actually have to buy crayons to do this-which I can do, but it seems more cool if you just have a ton that are all used and broken, which we don't really, we only have a few, and Sadie loves them all broken and stubby. I made bean bags as little favors for Sadie's first b-day with her face on one of them (it was a 3-pack) and that was so fun and cool. Maybe that's what I should do, make one cool thing, and have that be the favor, not try to get 3-4 things for a bag. Matchbox cards and mini-slinkies were very popular last year-but can I repeat? I think not.