Polar Express Christmas Party

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All aboard to a Polar Express Christmas party! Last year I hosted a Christmas party for my framily (friends that are like family). The theme was from my favorite Christmas movie of ALL time, “The Polar Express”. Here is how you can recreate your own!

Start by sending out these super cute invites to your guests!

Decor:

Of course the Polar Express is all about the train right? So let’s start with how I made a ‘train’ and added tracks leading to the door.

I printed out giant golden POLAR EXPRESS letters and attached them to our Ranger which was parked outside the door. Or you can purchase this giant train stand and place on your porch!

Then leading up to the door, I placed a train track runner on the ground. Purchased the runner on Amazon for $18.

Upon entry our guests were greeted with the The Polar Express theme song from the movie. I also decorated my chalkboard with a North Pole Sign and on the back I wrote my favorite quote from the movie.

Get Your Tickets:

In the movie when the children board the train they are handed a ticket. At each stop the conductor punches their tickets with a letter. I found these awesome printable tickets that look like they are from the movie. We mailed them to the parents so they had them beforehand. That way they could hand them to me when they entered. I also requested a 5 letter word for each child from the parent. For instance, if one of the kids was having a hard time with school we would choose the word, “SMART”. When the children entered I had the list on hand so I could punch one letter from their word. (This continued with completion of each activity such as crafts, eating, games, etc until the word was complete). For the word punching I purchased this kit and it was great!

Attire:

The guests were told to arrive in pajamas. We of course, had to go with the theme all the way as hosts. I was the conductor and wore this hat along with a blue jacket, blue pants and some black boots. My husband was Santa and the kids dressed as as few of the children from the movie! Corina wore yellow pajamas like these, with a blue robe. Sydney found a night gown like this one at Walmart in pink. We didn’t forget the pups, they wore antlers to look like cute reindeer.

Food & Drinks:

Remember when they sing and drink hot chocolate? Well, we MUST have some in order for it to be the Polar Express party! Hot Cocoa bombs are all the rage right now and for this party I created bombs in the shape of bells, like one from the movie! Here is a video on how I did just that! You can download the hot cocoa sign with this link. These North Pole Express cups from My Mind's Eye would be perfect for the hot cocoa! We also had a white punch with cranberries. I used white Hawaiian Punch and combined it with Sprite. Then topped it off with some cranberries.

For dessert I made a Christmas charcuterie board. Just head to your local Walmart or grocery store and pick up any candy or treats that resemble Christmas. Pile them all up on a board and your done! Amazon has these Believe plates and napkins that would be perfect for this theme.

Or My Mind's Eye Has these train shaped dinner plates, bell shaped dessert plates and train ticket shaped napkins, that are adorable!

Crafts & Activities:

I made the craft super simple this year to save on time. We like to have ornaments as the crafts so that the kids have memories of the fun they had each time they decorate their tree. So this time I bought small, matte, silver sleigh bells and some fine point sharpie markers. They wrote, “I still believe” and their names on the bells. (Printable is in the link here). I love these gold sleigh bells on Amazon, they are so cute!

Gingerbread Decorating Contest: We always have a family competition for who can decorate the best gingerbread houses. This year to go along with the theme, I used this Wilton train gingerbread kit I found at Walmart. I also purchased more candy so they could really deck their trains out. (Remember to premake the trains so they have time to dry before the party!) Then we upload pics of each train to facebook and have people vote. The family that wins, gets a prize!

Lastly, you can use this polar express decor kit for random decorations throughout the house. The photo backdrop with the train is from Amazon. You can scatter signs that say, “Believe” or “Believe in the magic of Christmas” and any sleigh bells you may find!

My Mind's Eye has this super cute train and bell banner!

Can’t wait to hear how your Polar Express party goes! Happy Hosting!