The teams have been set, the venue has been prepped and you are trying to plan the perfect Super Bowl party. You already know who to invite and your house will, of course, be immaculate for the reception. But what to feed the ravenous hoard that descends upon your house? Better yet, what to do with all of those children who attend but don’t want to watch football? Here are some plays to help your offense score great food and your defense prevent disaster to help you plan a day that everyone will enjoy.
The first and most obvious issue is what to feed everyone; your budget can take a mean hit if you plan on feeding a lot of people all by yourself. In the interest of time and money savings, it’s best to have everyone bring a dish to share. You could save yourself further headache by assigning dishes to certain party goers for example your uncle who makes great wings so he can bring them, the sister who makes an amazing seven bean salad can bring that. This works out nicely if you are craving a dish from somebody in particular. This is also a good time to ask parents about food allergies and make sure that there will be food for the child if necessary. Finally, there’s the alcohol requirement; if you don’t want to buy a lot suggest guests bring their own. Let everyone know you will provide juice, water and soda.
How do we keep those little mites busy during the game? Once in a while, you will get a few children who are deeply invested in the football game. These little ones will sit still or cheer and you won’t even notice their presence. Unfortunately, keeping the other children busy may be more difficult. Setting them up in their own party area, if you have the space, gives them some freedom and ability to be a little rowdy. Definitely set up a separate food table for them where ever you decide the children will congregate. Children have a tendency to double dip their food and that can be nasty to some parents and non-parents alike.
The party space could have a television that allows them to watch their favorite movies or cartoons and while television is an obvious distraction for children, arts and crafts are nice as well. Your local craft store should have lots of brown felt that you can cut into football shapes. Then you can pass them out to the children along with some decorations and allow them to make a very nice Super Bowl memory. And finally, if you have the space and an older preteen child who isn’t very interested in football, you could arrange a football game for them outside or sledding, if there is snow.
The Super Bowl is a great time to get together with family and friends. Once you have decided who is coming being on offense for the menu and defense for the kids activities should be next. It’s easy to score a touchdown with simple, cost effective meal and entertainment planning.
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