• Plan a memorable party for your child's seventh birthday.birthday party image by Liz Van Steenburgh from <a href='http://www.fotolia.com'>Fotolia.com</a>
  
  Seven is a delightful age and a great occasion for a big birthday party. Sevens are finally old enough to maintain their "company" manners for at least a couple of hours, and they're so social that even the simplest get-together is an exciting occasion to them. If you're throwing a birthday party for a newly-fledged seven year old, you're in luck; they're interested in everything, they're skilled enough to participate in anything and they know how to have fun when the circumstances demand it.
  
  

Pirate Party

• If you can get hold of a giant cardboard box---such as a refrigerator box from an appliance store---you can throw a birthday party your seven-year-old will never forget. Kids of this age love any playhouse, but once you've laid that box on its side and cut and painted it to resemble a pirate ship--the "HMS Seven Seas," of course--you'll have a playhouse that will carry the party all by itself. Encourage guests to come in costume, or hand out eye patches and bandana headgear as they walk through the door. Divide them into groups and give them treasure maps full of hints that will lead them through the house and yard to a cache of chocolate coins buried in the sandbox or hidden behind the couch. Decorate a brown-frosted cake with more of those useful gold-foil coins; pipe on black icing "hardware" and you have a treasure-chest cake as a crowning touch.
  
  

Crafty Party

• Seven year olds---both boys and girls---love to make things, so have a party where the entertainment also provides the party favors. Start things off with invitations printed on heavy cardstock and cut into jigsaw-puzzle pieces so the guests will have to put them together to decipher the message. Cover a large table with butcher paper to protect against stains and glue, then set out bowls and trays of the supplies needed to make whatever craft your child wishes. You may have everyone decorate dollar-store sunglasses with glitter, sequins and seashells, make beaded jewelry, or paint tye-died t-shirts. Continue the theme by setting having a "dessert bar" with plain cupcakes that kids can personalize with frosting, sprinkles, chocolate chips and small candies.
  
  

Costume Party

• Even if a seven year old fears he is getting too old to play "dress up," he will love an excuse like a costume party. Either let the guests' imaginations run wild or announce that it will be a "themed" party and that they should come dressed as super heroes, Disney princesses or video game characters. Have a costume party and make sure everyone wins an award, from "funniest hat" to "most elaborate get-up." Provide plain masks and let everyone decorate one to match their costume. For a fun twist, make the refreshments "disguised" too; serve rice-cereal treats made to look like meatloaf alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream "mashed potatoes" with caramel sauce "gravy."