Children love sweets and your child is no exception to the rule.  Growing up we watched Gene Wilder’s version of Willy Wonka and the tiny Umpa Lumpas and now with Tim Burton’s new version of the movie “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” it brings in a whole new generation of fans.  So why not make your child Willy Wonka for a day to where he can own his own candy making factory in his or her own Charlie and the Chocolate Factory birthday party?

First we have to prepare for the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory birthday party.  Invitations being sent should be adorned with images of candy or have candies attached to them.  Be creative and even allowing your young master candy maker help with the invitations attaching the candies to them then send them several weeks in advance.  Use decorations that are candy in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory theme for instance red and white streamers twisted together makes for peppermint sticks.  Use a plastic colorful tablecloth, to protect your table of course, but attach candy images all around the edge to signify the candy making station.

Now its time to turn our attention to the type of candies our little candy makers can make.  Heading to your local craft store, buy chocolate molds to make decorative tiny chocolates.  Using standard chocolate bars just melt them down until they become creamy and easy to work with. Then have the children spoon them into the molds.  Put them in the freezer for about 15 minutes and whala, chocolate candies made by the little ones themselves.  Next have prepared several large sheets of jello jigglers, Have the children use plastic cookie cutters to cut out different shapes in the sheet.  Then have them eat the scraps.  Using clean flower pots, create candy floral arrangements using lollipops, jelly beans, gummy worms and crushed Oreo cookies or graham crackers for the dirt.

Now that everyone has had their fill of sweets, its time to work off that energy.  Do games related to themes that appear in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” like searching for golden eggs filled with small toy prizes using plastic eggs left over from Easter painting them gold.  Play musical chairs with the music from the soundtrack of either Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movie.  Blow lots of bubbles to emulate fizzy-lift drinks.  Use whole walnuts balancing them on a spoon for relay races, games that emulate the different scenes from both movies.

And so the sugar rush is gone and the day is winding down, have the children watch one of the Charlie and Chocolate Factory movies with their favorite snack. This will be a birthday party the children will not soon forget.