Inauguration Day - How to Celebrate With Your Kids
Categories: Fun & Activities, In The News

But our enthusiasm last November was contagious, and she pulled herself away from her Barbies long enough to join in on the fun. "Go Obama!" she'd say, when she saw him on TV. And my five-year-old very deliberately checked the box next to his name during her school's mock election. "His last name starts with an O, right Mom?" she asked me. When he won that mock election, cheers rocked her kindergarten room.
Even though their view of the world is still very limited to family, neighborhood, and community, small children seem to get that the election of Barack Obama as President is important in some big way. Older kids, of course, have a much broader world view and are capable of understanding the significance of last November's election.
So whether you're keeping your kids home to watch next Tuesday's historical inauguration, or you're DVRing it to watch as a family that night, here are some ideas for holding your very own family inauguration celebration, right in the comfort of your living room.
You know what every party needs? Decorations! And noisemakers! Amazingmoms.com has some simple ideas -- simple enough for even the smallest citizens, that is -- for getting your house Inauguration-ready ... Presidential place mats, Obama napkin rings, and a Yes We Can! can.
Parades are patriotic, right? Little ones will love making this parade stick and marching around the living room before the ceremony begins. Older kids might like settling down with a more complicated craft, such as this White House made out of craft sticks or this paper plate Obama symbol. And if you'd rather relax and enjoy the show, rather than cleaning up glue and paint, here are some printable Obama coloring sheets.
It's not a party without snacks, of course, and the ideas are endless:
- Go with a red, white, and blue palette -- red salsa with blue tortilla chips, for instance.
- Serve Barack Obama's favorite foods, rumored to be homemade chili, Mexican food, and pizza ... perfect for a party!
- And for desert, put together this delicious, yet purely American flag cake, served, of course, with Ben & Jerry's Yes, Pecan! ice cream.
Recent Posts
- Reviews: What's New This Week (11/06/2009)
- Jim Carrey's "A Christmas Carol" Creepy in a Good Way (11/06/2009)
- Twitter Follow Friday on ParentDish! (11/06/2009)
- Babies Pick Up Mothers' Accents In The Womb (11/06/2009)
- Recall: Adventure Playsets (11/06/2009)

.jpg)
















Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Karen 1-14-2009 @ 8:38AM
My tip is to watch it with the MUTE button on. The media commentary is going to be nauseating.
Reply
ninainindia 1-14-2009 @ 9:21AM
I would start by telling your daughter that President of the USA means leader of the USA, not leader of the "free world". You are not the only free country in the world you know.
Reply
Bethany Sanders 1-14-2009 @ 9:24AM
Oh, Nina, I knew when I wrote that someone would complain!
Of course I realize we aren't the only free country in the world ... it was simply meant to be tongue-in-cheek, not a history lesson.
Thanks for commenting!
LS 1-14-2009 @ 3:39PM
So, are we explaining to them that this inauguration is historic, just like every other inauguration in this country? Because we are one of the few countries in the world who experience free, open, and peaceful changes of leadership every four or eight years?
Or are we jumping on the "worship Obama" bandwagon, and telling our kids that once he says those words, rainbows will suddenly fill the skies and the birds will sing, because all of our problems are over?
Reply
ninainindia 1-16-2009 @ 10:49AM
You are so right and I wasn't even for McCain! Obama hasn't proven anything yet and he is being treated like the Messiah...
Kim Peasley 1-14-2009 @ 7:54PM
Join in a global good-luck President Obama card on Flickr.
Have kids draw a four-leaf-clover or other good luck symbol and hold it up. Then post on the Flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/goodluckpresidentobama/
Not a flickr member? You can post on http://creativezazz.com/fun-stuff/good-luck-mr-president
This is an fun way for kids to join other kids from all over to take part in the inauguration celebration. If they are older than can even help take the pics.
Reply
Gloria 1-17-2009 @ 1:43PM
Bethany - thanks again for the quick reply!
All - Wanted to share another great way to celebrate on ShareMyInauguration.com.
Twenty-four 5th and 6th graders will witness Barack Obama’s historic inauguration and tour DC universities and monuments during their four-day adventure.
Along the way, they’ll chronicle their journey through a series of blogs and vlogs. On the site, you and your kids can share what it means to you…and see what it means to others across the country.
http://www.sharemyinauguration.com/
Reply
Gloria 1-17-2009 @ 2:19PM
BTW - In the interest of full disclosure, I wanted to be sure to mention that this is a great project I'm actually working on. (I hit send before adding this note.) Hope this is helpful to anyone looking for activities.
Maureen 1-19-2009 @ 9:12PM
This probably for kids older than 2 and 5 but school-aged children might really like the free quizzes on QuizWinners.com. The All-American quiz, which has new questions all the time, is a great round-up of patriotic, historical and even present day American icon trivia. Great way to put computer time to good educational use.
Reply
Shannon 1-20-2009 @ 2:29PM
Thanks for linking to my Barack Obama coloring pages!
Reply