GI Joe has been around for quite some time – 45 years, to be precise. http://www.hasbro.com/gijoe/en_US/discover/timeline.cfm Since he is as beloved as ever by small boys, you may want to know how to plan a GI Joe party. Army theme parties in general are very popular. http://www.birthdaypartyideas.com/html/army_party.html So, party supplies and everything you need for a GI Joe party should not be too hard to find. It certainly helps maintain GI Joe as a celebrity since he released a movie in 2009 – “Rise of the Cobra.” http://www.hasbro.com/gijoe/en_US/discover/timeline.cfm

When seeing a soldier in camouflage, some small boys are prompted to believe it’s a real live GI Joe! This sparks the imagination and parents are frequently asked for a GI Joe birthday party. The age range is usually about 5-8 years old. http://holiday-entertaining.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_best_gift_ideas_for_6_to_8_yearold_boys If girls are to be included, GI Jane is gaining momentum even though she is not an official Hasbro® toy. http://www.hasbro.com/search/_/Ntt-GI%20Jane?Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial GI Jane was a character in a 1997 film, starring Demi Moore. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119173/

When searching for party supplies for a GI Joe theme party, you will find a wide selection at the larger party stores, either online or at their retail locations. However, because GI Joe has his recent movie, “Rise of the Cobra”, sets of party supplies with this theme are very popular right now and very easy to find. In fact, a lot easier to find than standard issue GI Joe. The film is rated PG-13, so you may want to encourage the birthday boy (we’ll plan this GI Joe theme party around a birthday) to have a generic GI Joe party. http://www.theterrordrome.com/2009/06/rise-of-cobra-combat-heroes-confirmed-at-retail/ Are the guests going to come as their favorite GI Joe character? There are many. http://www.joeheadquarters.com/charlist_joes1.shtml You may want to mention it on your invitations.

A great way to centralize your GI Joe party is with camouflage décor. With this as the basis, you can go a number of different directions. As a matter of fact, you may want to check out the many options for camo! http://www.airmilitaire.com/default.asp?S=E3&Document=Camouflage+colors&NID=4523034 Woodland? Desert? Smokey branch? Just for reference, there is pink camo for your GI Janes at the same site. You can use camouflage for some of your supplies and decorations, then GI Joe for others. Here are a few ideas.

One item that is available in camouflage is a tank centerpiece for the party table. If you use a plastic camouflage tablecloth with the tank in the middle, you can buy GI Joe action figures (or maybe you have GI Joe figures on hand) to gather around the tank. There are several choices, such as the GI Joe Cobra 25th Anniversary Combat Heroes Set. There may be some guests grabbing the figures to engage in battle, but that’s part of the fun. You may figure out a way to let the kids keep them as favors, but they will have to “share nicely.” You might want to buy extras just in case. You can find kids’ camouflage helmets on the Internet, found by searching “Child’s Camouflage Helmets.” This may come in handy for your own child’s outfit, or be given out to all the guests as party favors.

If you have a local military surplus store and the time to shop, you can get some really great accessories for an Army GI Joe party. An alternative is the online Army Gear sites where you can not only make purchases, you can get some ideas. Bumper stickers and window decals, American Flags, a variety of camo netting, and “Uncle Sam Wants You!” posters.

As the guests arrive, issue each one a “dog tag.” You can find “Personalizable Camouflage Army Dog Tag Necklaces” which you can use as nametags, with the guests’ names on the back. If the guests are now outfitted with helmets and dog tags, it’s time for war paint. http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/camo-paint.htm Provide an example in the way of a poster or image of how real Army face paint is supposed to look, purchase the appropriate colors, and let the guests do their own face painting. Or, they can apply it to one another. That’s how they do it in the army – the buddy system.

There are tank piñatas available. You have several to choose from if you search the Internet. Or, since we suggested a tank centerpiece, you may want to select a fighter jet piñata. In addition to the candy assortment, you can also find “Camouflage Assortment” small party favors to mix in as well. Or, those can be divided into the goody bags.

Another suggested activity is described below along with the food ideas – decorate your own “Military Issue” pound cake in camo colors.

For music, or an audio backdrop, there are Military Audio CDs that have various possibilities, such as “Armed Forces Running to Cadence.”

Just for fun, you can buy some of what they used to call K-Rations and are now referred to as MRE, which is “Meal Ready to Eat”. http://www.mreinfo.com/us/mre/buying-mres.html One idea is “MRE Nut and Raisin Mix with M&Ms”. Each guest can have a packet at his or her place. Civilians are not allowed actual government regulation MREs, but they look pretty military in their stark brown packets. There are a lot of MRE options if you would like to expand on the theme. You can actually plan your whole menu around them if you like, complete with the little heating packets that make them a hot meal vs. a cold meal. http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://s2.hubimg.com/u/182797_f520.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hubpages.com/hub/ration-pack-testing&usg=__UqDYxetTOcifUd8h4nAJUIb2SYk=&h=390&w=520&sz=38&hl=en&start=4&sig2=pC7WkjMCHM86vdzcb1sG8Q&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=FOWKH6ec80XLIM:&tbnh=98&tbnw=131&prev=/images%3Fq%3Darmy%2Bfood%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1&ei=eSxyS_fWI6eutAOokJjkAQ

If you go online and search “Toy Canteen,” you will find at least one that reads, “Official Army Canteen” and looks a lot like the real thing, except it’s plastic. You can serve beverages in the canteens, one per guest.

You can get cookie cutters shaped like jets, helicopters and army tanks as well and use them to make sandwiches cut into those shapes.

If it’s a birthday, most bakeries that offer theme cakes will either do “Army” or “GI Joe” cakes. Another dessert idea, if it’s not a birthday, is MRE snack cakes. You can turn this into an activity! If, at the end of the meal, each guest is served (for example) an “MRE Vanilla Pound Cake,” they can decorate their own. If you provide icing blended into camo colors, the kids can camo their own MRE cakes. Pretty darned army! Start with a big batch of white icing, then separate it into batches. Using Wilton flavored gel, which is not only more comprehensive than most food coloring colors, it is specifically designed for cake icing, blend the camo colors. http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/coloring/colormixingchart.htm

You might want to go back and check your camo colors. http://www.airmilitaire.com/default.asp?S=E3&Document=Camouflage+colors&NID=4523034 Desert camo looks a lot easier to blend than woodland camo, even though it’s woodland camo we tend to think of when we hear the word camouflage. The kids can apply the icing with popsicle sticks for easy cleanup. There may be some icing testing involved. Black icing makes for black lips, which actually may be a popular choice. “Camo your mouth.” Anyway, they will wind up with a small cake, from a military-looking MRE pack, with camo icing. To make this treat complete, you can actually find “army-shaped cake topper candles,” which bear a strong resemblance to GI Joe – helmet, goggles and all. They are the ideal topper for your small MRE vanilla camo birthday pound cake. If you search under “army cupcake toppers,” you will find many other options if it’s not a birthday.