Throwing a Family-Friendly Football Party

Football parties can be a blast, but the kids always seem to get left out. Lifestyle expert and New York Times bestselling author Cheryl Najafi joins Away We Grow host Diane Mizota to share her tips for getting the whole family involved in the fun.

Related: Touchdown! 5 football party themes for kids

"The secret is to get them involved at the very beginning," says Najafi. "Give them tasks. Make them feel like it's their party as much as it's yours."

Najafi notes that decorations get kids really excited, so she suggests creating fun craft projects for them. For example, the kids can create pennants and decorate juice boxes to look like mini footballs.

"The theme of football should be incorporated into the party," adds Najafi. Use chalkboard paint on glasses so that you can write fun things on them, for example. You can also decorate your table with Astroturf made to look like a football field.

Related: How to throw a football party for football lovers

Household items can also be repurposed to make additional fun decorations. Take yellow cloth or paper and wrap strips around napkins or paper towels (like Bounty Select-a-Size). Najafi calls these "penalty flags" because after the party they can be used for cleanup. "I'm not wasting anything," she says.

Remember, the kids don't have to understand everything about the football game to have fun and feel involved in the party. Najafi recommends that you have them watch for other things, such as how many times a team fumbles the football or how many times a crazy fan is shown. She also creates a football pool, letting the kids pick scores that they think might happen, making a little game around the big game.

The main thing to remember, says Najafi, "is to have fun. Don't stress. With a little bit of pre-planning everything will fall into place."

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