First Birthday Party Games for the Whole Family

A first birthday party is a chance to celebrate the many ups and downs (and, let's face it, diaper changes!) in a baby's epic, milestone-filled first year. But the adults invited to the party will be waaaay more involved in the actual party than the birthday baby—aside from the birthday cake-eating part, of course.

With that in mind, we've come up with this handy list of fun birthday party games and activities that'll entertain everyone at the party, from the neighbors to Grandma!

On the invitation for the party, ask guests to bring along a baby photo of themselves to the event. Collect the pictures as the guests arrive. Hang them on a bulletin board and label each picture with a number. Then, place a piece of paper and a pencil at each place setting. During the party, have the guests write to whom they think each picture belongs. Whoever gets the most guesses right wins a prize...or, at the very least, a bigger piece of birthday cake!

Play this simple game by wrapping a small gift several times. It's helpful to use a different color or pattern for each layer. Between each layer, place a piece of paper with a message on it, like "Make up a birthday dance!" Then press play on a song and pass the package around. Stop the music at random. Whenever the music stops, the person holding the gift unwraps one layer and reads what the note says. The person who unwraps the last layer keeps the gift!

The people you invite to a baby's first birthday party usually are close friends or family. Challenge them to answer questions about the baby. Create a list of 20 questions regarding your baby. Start with something easy such as, "What's their middle name?" Include some more challenging questions, like "When did they start crawling?" or "What was their first word?" Mix some easier multiple-choice questions into the quiz. Have a few questions ready in case you need a tiebreaker. Then give a prize for the best score and a gag gift for the worst score.

Fill a large clear container with teething biscuits or baby snacks. Count the number of snacks as you put them in the container. Give each guest a card or piece of paper to write their guess of how many items are in the container. The person closest to the actual amount wins a prize. Bonus: You can keep the jar of snacks for the baby!

The birthday baby will enjoy watching the party guests crawl and laugh while participating in a baby-toy relay race. Divide guests into two teams. Set two laundry baskets on one end of the room, and your guests and a pile of toys on the other end. The first player on each team takes a toy and crawls to the basket, drops the toy in the basket and crawls back to tag the next person on the team. The first team to bring all the toys to the basket wins.

Give each guest markers, crayons and paper. On the word "go," players start to draw the baby. Surprise guests by calling out "switch" after 30 seconds. Instruct each person to pass the unfinished drawing to the individual to the right. Keep going, switching every 30 seconds, or mix it up to keep everyone on their toes. When finished, combine the drawings into a collage to hang on the wall during the rest of the party.