St. Patrick's Day the Toddler Way

How many children should you invite? A house full of small children can get out of control if not entertained constantly. Becca Gladden, a party consultant for The Party Shop, suggests to base the number invited on your child's age.

"A good rule-of-thumb is to invite one child for each year of the host child's age, for example, five children for a 5-year-old," says Gladden. "If you have more parent helpers at the party, you can safely invite about four children for each adult. Be sure you have enough adults on hand to keep things under control, or hire a neighborhood teenager as a party helper."

Shamrock Invitations

You'll need:

• Green construction paper
• Scissors
• Crayons or markers

Draw a shamrock shape onto the construction paper. Help your child cut it out, then write all the information about your party on the shamrock.

Instead of mailing the invitations, hand deliver them with your child. "I find hand-delivering the invitations is much more friendly and personal," says Gladden. If you do mail the invitations, drop them in the mailbox at least 10 days to two weeks before the party.