They didn't have any suggestions for how to get the older kids to do the clean-up, though.

Coming up in one month: The Babies! third birthday party -- the first one that really counts, as far as they're concerned. They didn't really know much about Birthdays 1 and 2, other than they got to smear cake on themselves.

But number 3 is different. Now they know who they are and who other people are and how to get Daddy to give them more cookies even before they finish the rest of their breakfast, so this party needs to be something fun and interesting for them, too.

I was trying to figure out what to do, since we'll have our nieces and nephews and other relatives over, and I finally asked a friend who'd recently helped provide some 50th birthday party ideas for a guy at work. He steered me over to "Celebrations.com," where they have all sorts of ideas for parties. Parties for birthdays, anniversaries, barbecues, and, most importantly, kids parties.

That's where I found the idea for a "Hide & Seek" party. Celebrations.com suggested this as ideal for toddlers, and I have to agree. I can host the twins' party as a hide and seek party simply by getting some boxes and pre-decorating them in bright colors (like appliance boxes and TV boxes from the mall stores) and have those around the house. Then, we play a couple of different games of hide and seek: Kids hide and parents hide them, then parents hide and kids find them.

Then, they've got a new twist on musical chairs: Put each toddler in a box and close the lid. Play music and have the kids pop up when it stops, like a "Jack In The Box" and the last kid to pop up is out, until you get down to one. They also suggested a treasure hunt for party favors.

All good ideas, and all ideas that aren't expensive (important!) and ideas that won't leave a lot of mess (really important!) and ideas that won't have a bunch of kids under 12 bored and messing with my stuff out of boredom (super-important!!). Plus, it'll be fun for the grown-ups and keep the whole thing interesting.

If you're looking for your own party ideas, make sure to check out Celebrations.com. And don't forget to send the Babies! a gift, c/o ME. (I understand they like $10s and $20s.)