Summer Party Themes

There’s no better way to celebrate summer and beat the heat than with a pool party—and no party is complete without a great theme. From the decorations to the food to the games, here are four summer party themes to help you create a fun and festive setting.




Luau Party

Transform your backyard and swimming pool into a tropical paradise with a Luau party theme. You can easily find an assortment of luau-themed décor and accessories at your local craft or party supply store.

Here are some fun ideas for Luau party decorations, food, and games.


Luau Party Decorations

Raffia or grass table skirts – adorn patio tables or a buffet table with raffia or grass table skirts to give an authentic island vibe

Tiki torches – line up tiki torches along the entrance to the backyard or around the swimming pool

Leis – hang assorted colors from tree branches or drape across the backs of patio chairs

Inflatable palm tree cooler – for an attractive way to keep drinks cool. A variety of designs and sizes are available and can hold anywhere from 24 to 60 12-ounce cans (plus ice)

Tiki totems – scatter these fun faces around the yard

Fresh coconuts and/or pineapples – arrange on patio tables for inexpensive (and edible) centerpieces

Floral garland –  use as a border around the swimming pool, drape across tree branches, or attach to patio umbrellas

Printed beach towels – hang beach towels with a sunset, ocean, or island print on a clothesline or along the backyard fence to create festive backdrops for photos



Luau Party Food



Hawaiian fruit punch – in a large punch bowl filled with ice, mix your favorite juices (e.g. pineapple, orange, grapefruit, cranberry, etc.) with lemon-lime soda or ginger ale; garnish with orange, pineapple and lemon slices

Tropical fruit salad – cut mango, pineapple, and papaya into cubes; combine with mandarin orange wedges, kiwi slices, and flaked sweetened coconut; drizzle with honey and lime juice

Island chicken kabobs – arrange chunks of teriyaki-marinated chicken breast, pineapple, and bell pepper on wooden skewers. Grill 15 – 20 minutes, turning occasionally, until chicken juices run clear. Serve over white or brown rice

Hawaiian pizza (ham & pineapple) – make your own or order from your favorite pizza place—we won’t tell!



Luau Party Games & Activities

Limbo

Pineapple Bowling

Hula Dance-off – separate pool party guests into teams of three or four and see which team can come up with the most creative hula dance

Hula Hoop Contest – have two or three people (or more, depending on how many hula hoops you have) hula hoop until there is only one person left hula hooping. The person left standing then hula hoops against the next group of people. Continue the cycle to see who ends up the hula-hooping champion.

By Nate Armstrong

Fun Outdoor Activities

Sprinklers

A swimming pool, of course, is a great way to keep cool in the summer while keeping the kids occupied. But if you don’t have a pool, another way to keep cool and active is to connect a three-arm sprinkler toy to your garden hose or sprinkler system. Your kids will love the chance to run around the yard and play in the water.

Water Balloon Tosses

A water balloon toss is another fun and inexpensive outdoor activity and can be played a couple different ways, depending on how many people you have:

If there are an odd number of children, the kids can stand in a circle:

1. 1. Have the kids stand in a circle, with two feet between each person.
2. 2. Begin play by having one kid toss the water balloon to the person on their right.
3. 3. The children continue tossing the water balloon to one another in a clockwise direction.
4. 4. When a player drops or pops the water balloon, he/she is eliminated and the rest of the players must spread out another foot to compensate for the missing person. This is done each time a player is eliminated.
5. 5. Continue to play and eliminate players until only one person is left. He/she is the winner and gets to toss the balloon first in the next round.

If there are an even number of children, the kids can play in pairs:

1. 1. Divide all players into groups of two and give each pair a water balloon.
2. 2. Line the players up in two lines, with partners facing each other, and have each person take a big step backwards.
3. 3. Each player holding the water balloon gently tosses it to his/her partner. If their partner catches it, they each take another big step backwards. If the balloon breaks, the pair is eliminated.
4. 4. Continue to play and until one pair is left.

Scavenger Hunts

You can map out a backyard scavenger hunt that can be played individually or in teams. Make a list of items for them to find and give each person or team a copy of the list, and let the scavenging begin. Include items that can easily be found in your backyard, such as a leaf, pine cone, flower, rock, and twig, as well as outdoor items that you can place around the yard, such as a water gun, a Frisbee, a pair of goggles, and a splash ball. Whoever returns with all the items first is the scavenger hunt champion.

“Drawn-Like-Me” Posters

A creative activity that can be done indoors or outdoors is to create “drawn-like-me” posters. You’ll need a large flat surface like your patio or driveway. You’ll also need a large roll of poster-size paper that you can purchase at craft stores or teacher supply stores. Have each child lay down on a piece of the poster paper, and then trace their outline with a pencil. Then let the kids take over and decorate their outlines with markers, crayons, sequins, and yarn for hair. They can make their drawings look like them or pirates, princesses, astronauts, or whatever they come up with.

Evening Activity: S’mores and a Story

After a long day of sun, fun, and games, settle down for the evening around an outdoor fireplace or firepit. (Make sure children are under adult supervision at all times.) Set up a s’mores station with marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate bars. You can even get creative with the ingredients, such as using chocolate chip cookies instead of graham crackers, and fruit slices or chocolate peanut butter cups instead of the chocolate bars. As they sit around the fire, let the kids create a collaborative story: Have them go around in a circle, letting each person contribute a sentence at a time. It allows each child to participate and can lead to some very entertaining stories! If they’d rather watch a movie, they may not need to head indoors after all: They can watch their favorite movie on an outdoor TV or inflatable screen. 


About the Author: This guest post was written by Nate Armstrong of Sprinkler Juice.

 

If you enjoy spending time outside by the pool and have a minute to spare, you could become the next Poolside Star! Hayward^® Pool Products is challenging its Facebook Fans to make a splash for cash by entering its PoolSide Stars Video Contest. The grand prize winner will take home $10,000 and could have his/her video used for a Hayward commercial. Here are the details:

 

Deadline: Entries are being accepted now through September 30, 2011.

How to submit: Upload your video to Hayward's Facebook page

Video duration: One-minute or less

What your video should be about: Video submissions can focus on any pool- or pool-lifestyle-related subject as long as it’s deemed appropriate for the Hayward brand. The contest is intended to reflect the fun, relaxation and enjoyment of the backyard experience, says Bruce Porter, Hayward Director of Marketing Communications. “We want people to capture the essence of pure joy that swimming pools represent… The pool experience is about spending time with family and friends, health and happiness.”

Prizes: Grand Prize, $10,000; Second Prize, $5,000; Third Prize, $1,000; Fan Favorite, $500; Most Original, $200; Best Use of Water, $200; and Honorable Mention, $100.

Judging and voting: All winners—except for Fan Favorite—will be selected by a panel of judges. After the entry period ends, fans will be able to vote for their favorite video. The video with the most votes at the end of the voting period will win Fan Favorite and receive $500.

So get your creative juices flowing and have fun making a splash for cash! For more details, complete contest rules, and to see the current entries, visit Hayward's Facebook page and click the Like button.

About Hayward Pool Products

Hayward Pool Products, a division of Hayward Industries Inc., is the largest manufacturer of residential swimming pool equipment in the world. Headquartered in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Hayward designs, manufactures and markets the Totally Hayward^® System, a full line of residential and commercial pool equipment including pumps, filters, heating, cleaners, sanitization, automation, lighting, safety and energy solutions.

The company, which has built its brand on innovation, energy-efficiency, safety and reliability, includes such brands as EcoStar^®, TriStar^®, Stratum^® VRS, Super Pump^®, Pro Logic^®, Aqua Connect®, HeatPro^®, ColorLogic^®, Aqua Rite^®, Navigator^® Pro, Pool Vac XL^™, TigerShark^®, among others.

Hayward products are sold through a network of distributors and 3,000 Totally Hayward Dealer Partners throughout the U.S., Canada, Asia, Australia, Latin America and the Middle East. For more information, contact Hayward at (908) 351-5400 or visit www.haywardpool.com.

No purchase necessary, and no plastic required. All you need is a pool and a few fun-loving swimmers!

 

Now that the kids are out of school and summer has officially begun, kids are likely to be spending a great deal of time at the pool. Whether they are in their own backyard, at a friend’s pool, spending the day at a swim club, or hanging out with their friends at summer camp, pool games can be a lot of fun.

 

When you think of pool games, Marco Polo and Sharks & Minnows are the classics. Even Red Light, Green Light and Simon Says can be played in the water, but it doesn’t take long before kids become bored with the same old games. Luckily, those aren’t the only pool games kids can play when there’s no plastic toy or inflatable object in sight. Here are a few games to keep the fun going. Just remember to enforce safety and make sure kids under constant adult supervision when in or around the pool.

 

 

“True or False”

Number of players: 3 or more

Area of the pool: Best played in the shallow end where all players can stand, so racers can run in the water or swim to either side of the pool.

Setup: The “racers” start in the middle of the pool, an equal distance away from either side. Racers will be swimming to the left or right--not forward or backward. The right side of the pool is the “true” side and the left side is the “false” side. The “announcer” faces the racers and stays several feet away.

 

Object of the game: Racers try to swim to the correct side of the pool first, being the first one to tag the edge and win the point.

How to play: The announcer says a statement that all of the racers will be able to determine as true or false. For example, “In 11 years, I will be 21 years old” (a true statement if the announcer is 10) or “Mixing pink and orange makes green” (false). Each racer must quickly decide whether he thinks the answer is true or false, then swim to either edge of the pool to indicate his answer. (Racers do not say “true” or “false” out loud.) If a racer believes the statement is true, he must swim to the right side of the pool and touch the edge; if he believes the statement is false, he must swim to the left side and touch the edge. Whoever tags the correct edge first gets a point.

 

If one player touches the edge of the wrong side, the announcer must reveal that the player is incorrect. The other players then have a chance to swim to the correct side and win the point. The first racer to reach five points becomes the announcer.

 

Note: After saying each statement, the announcer must pay attention to see who reached the correct side first.

What makes it fun: The announcer can be as creative, silly, or tricky as he wants in the wording of his true/false statements, often making the racers laugh and hesitate for a few moments before deciding which direction to swim. However, the statement should be something that all players can figure out and not something that only the announcer or only one of the players would know.

 

 

 

“Toothpaste”

Number of players: 3 or more

Area of the pool: Any depth; players can swim across the width of the pool for shorter swimming distance.

Setup: The “announcer” stays at one side of the pool and faces the “racers” who start at the opposite side of the pool.

 

Object of the game: One player and the announcer to race against one another, each trying to tag the other side of the pool first.

How to play: The announcer thinks of any kind of category—“colors,” for example. He says the category aloud, and then holds his ears and counts to 10. During this time, the racers must each think of a color and tell each other their answers, making sure the announcer doesn’t hear. Each racer must have a different answer. Let’s say Racer 1 chooses “pink” and Racer 2 chooses “green.” When the announcer is done counting, he faces the racers. One racer simply says “pink and green” so that the announcer knows the two answers, but does not know which racer chose which answer. (If there are more than three people playing, there will be additional racers.)

 

The announcer then says one of the answers (“green,” for example), and immediately starts swimming toward the racers’ side. The racer whose answer was green must immediately swim toward the announcer’s side. The first swimmer to reach the other side and shout “Toothpaste!” gets to be the announcer. (If the announcer wins, he remains the announcer.) The non-swimming racer(s) must pay attention to the race so he can declare who won.

Safety: Since two of the players are swimming in opposite directions, all players must be spaced far enough apart before the race begins so they can safely swim across the pool and tag the edge without running into the other swimmer.

What makes it fun: None of the players know which racer is going to swim against the announcer until right before the race begins. Kids can also be creative or silly in their choice of categories and answers.

 

 

 

“Iced Tea, Lemonade”

Number of players: 3 or more

Area of the pool: Any depth; racers can swim across the width of the pool for shorter swimming distance.

Setup: The “announcer” stays at one side of the pool and faces the “racers” who start at the opposite side of the pool.

 

Object of the game: To reach the other side of the pool first, tagging the announcer’s hand and guessing the correct answer.

How to play: The announcer thinks of a movie, then states the initials of the movie title. Each racer begins to think of possible answers, and the announcer puts his arms out straight toward the racers. Any racer can say “more sugar” to get additional clues from the announcer. As soon as one of racers thinks he knows the answer, he swims quickly toward the announcer. Whoever touches the announcer’s hand first and then says the correct name of the movie is the winner. If that racer is wrong, he must swim back to the other side, and the other racers have a chance to answer. The racer who answers correctly becomes the announcer.

What makes it fun: Some movies have the same initials while others are hard to guess; the need for additional clues and multiple attempts at guesses makes players determined to be the one to reach the other side first and finally guess correctly.

 

 

 

“Categories”

Number of players: 2 or more

 
Area of the pool: This is a jumping game and should be played in the deepest part of the pool, or a depth that is safe to jump into.

Setup:  One person starts out as the “jumper” and stands out of the pool, a few steps back from the edge. The “announcer” (non-jumper) stays in the pool, but well out of the way of the jumper.

 

Object of the game: To quickly shout a correct answer right before hitting the water as you jump in.

How to play: The announcer thinks of a category (such as “jungle animals”), then tells the jumper to go. Just as the jumper takes a few steps and is ready to jump, the announcer says the category aloud. The jumper must shout a correct answer (“monkeys,” for example), while jumping and have his answers be heard before going underwater. If the jumper says his answer fully before going underwater, he gets a point (but this game can easily be played without keeping score). After the jumper goes, he swims to the side, and it’s the announcer’s turn to jump. If playing with more than two people, the other players must wait their turn. The person who will be jumping next chooses the category for the person going before him. All players should pay attention and listen to the categories so that no categories are repeated. The goal is to force the jumper to think of an answer at the spur of the moment.

 

Safety: Players should take a few steps before jumping into the pool, but they should not run. The person who jumped in must swim safely to the side before the next person jumps in.

What makes it fun: Trying to simultaneously think of an answer and say it while in mid-air before plunging into the pool is quite entertaining for all players! Thinking of new and interesting categories is also fun and keeps the game challenging.