We held our 3rd annual Birthday Party for Jesus this week-end with 11 new friends around our tables.  It was a huge success.  Each of my 3 children invited a few of their new friends (we’ve recently moved to a new community), so the ages of our guests ranged from 3-9 years old.  We gathered in the family room as each child arrived and my mother occupied them by asking about what they do at Christmas in their home.  Kids love to share!

Then as the last of the guests arrived I welcomed them and asked what they knew about Christmas…

“Who knows whose birthday we are celebrating at Christmastime?”

“Why do we celebrate his birthday?”  “What makes Jesus so special?”  “Why do you think God sent Jesus to us?”

“What do you think Jesus would want for his birthday?”

“What did Jesus come to teach us about?”

Their answers are always priceless.  It’s a good start to the day.  Then I tell them that we’re going to spend some time learning about what makes Jesus so special and why God sent him to us at Christmastime.

We started with cupcakes (which I purchased & added some birthday sprinkles) and singing “Happy Birthday”.  We found that by starting with dessert, it took their focus off of that for the rest of the party.  Because let’s face it, the cake is what they’re waiting for, right?

After that we divided them into groups by their age.  Our oldest daughter (7) and her friends in one group, our son (5) and his friends in a group, and our youngest (3) and her friends in another.  That helped us tailor each activity to their age group.

One activity was Christmas Bingo, a game I made up based on the Christmas story.  My mother had given us a Christmas version of Bingo called Jingo, but it was pretty secular with Santa, reindeer, presents, candy canes, etc.  No mention of Jesus.  So I took a stab at a Christian version.

My husband ran the Bingo game & was able to adapt for the ages of the children playing.  #1 & her friends are in first grade, so for them he read the clues on the cards & had them guess what it was & then cover the square if they had it.  #2 & his friends are in kindergarten and they also did a pretty good job guessing at his clues.  #3 & her friends are in preschool, so for them he just read the card & then helped them find the square if they had it.

I ran the craft “station” at the dining room table, making ornaments with the children.  As usual, I should have prepped more ahead of time & left them with fewer choices & fewer steps to do.

My mother read “What God Wants for Christmas” with the third group, and we put her back in the master bedroom with the door closed so that it was quiet, and there were no toys around to distract anyone.

I’d planned to have them each decorate their own Bingo game envelope, but we ran short on time (and energy), so I just quickly did it for them.

They left with the ornament they made, a Bingo game to play at home, the “Happy Birthday Jesus” ornament I bought & wrote on, and the Christmas mix CD I made for them with songs about Jesus rather than Santa.

A good time was had by all, and as the last child walked out the door, we toasted to another wonderful Birthday Party for Jesus and propped up our feet in front of the fire.  This is what it’s all about.