Here are some suggestions to Keep 'em Busy

Following are some ideas for fun activities to entertain kids on a sleepover...actually they are fun to do any time with your own kids, especially during school holidays.
Don't feel it is up to you to entertain the masses throughout the evening, remember that it is just like Christmas again for the visiting kids playing with all your child's toys.  Also board games and simple cards games are always a good option.
 

Decorations: Get the guests to make some decorations for the sleepover room such as a paper bag lanterns for when it gets dark.
Cut out some designs in the sides of a paper bag like stars and love hearts or use hole punches for easy patterns. Put a lump of playdough or clay in the bottom of the bag and stand a glow stick upright in the dough. Once it is dark, snap the glow sticks for instant lanterns which won't be a fire hazard indoors.

The Campsite: Hope for a dry summer night and move them outdoors, at least for the beginning of the evening anyway. Set up a campsite including a disposable or small charcoal bbq and have different things to cook on sticks (always under adult supervision), see Food Ideas.

Make some paper bag lanterns similar to the indoor lanterns using glow sticks and use sand in the bottom of the bags and tea candles to put around the campsite.

Spa Treatments: Have a few spa treatments for them to chose from.
How about a simple foot spa, put some marbles in the bottom of a plastic container (eg storage box), add about 10cm of warm water and some essential oils, the girls can sit and rub their feet back and forth on the marbles.

Or mix up a cooling cucumber face mask and have it in the fridge.
2 medium cucumbers, cut into chunks
4 egg whites
2 tbsp mint leaves
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp lime juice

Blend all the ingredients until very smooth and refrigerate for about 1/2 hour, until cold. Pull hair away from face and secure in a ponytail or cover with a shower cap. Slather the cool mixture to face - leave it on for 20 minutes. Wipe off with warm washcloth, then splash face with cool water. Makes enough for 4 refreshing facials.
 

Torch Fun: Set up a scavenger hunt around the garden and get the guests to search for the hidden packages or a list of items found in the garden with torches once it is dark.
Make up some parcels with small cheap toys or use Yowies or Kinder Surprises. Have at least 2 per child hidden around the garden then send them all out together to find them but they must come back once they have found one, when everyone is back with one parcel, send them out again until all the parcels have been found. Encourage them to help each other if the last one's cannot be found so that they all end up with the same number.

Paper Planes: Have a paper plane challenge to make the best plane. Judging is on best looking design and flight distance. All you need is some paper and crayons, for extra fancy planes provide paddle pop sticks and sticky tape.

Temporary Tattoos: you can get kits with stencils and applicators for the creative kids or just get the old fashioned lick 'n stick variety available at many toy shops.
 
There are some websites where you can purchase tattoo paper so that you can print your own tattoo designs using a laser or injet printer then peel the backing and 'lick 'n stick'.

Wear them out: Make an obstacle course in the garden, incorporate any structures you may have such as a slide or swings and try and use as many different ways of moving as possible, just make sure that there isn't anything too risky and avoid any injuries.

• Crawl under some garden chairs

• Jump 10 times on the mini trampoline

• Jump or dive or hop through hoops

• Walk along a curvy rope or hose

• Round around cones or plastic pots

• Walk across a plank of wood propped up on some bricks

• Hop along a ladder lying flat on the ground

Journal: Create a journal for the sleepover, buy a notebook and cover with fancy paper or get the host child to decorate the cover.

Then during the evening have them record personal information about themselves, have the guests make up the headings, have some suggestions on a piece of paper to get them started, for example,

Name, Age, Hair, Eye Colour, Height, Favourite Book, Movie, Colour, Food, Drink, Item of Clothing, Shop, ears pierced (no of holes in each ear)

For both the journal and identikits, have some pages for them to record what they did at the sleepover such as 'Food', 'Drinks', 'Fun Activities', 'Movies', 'Secrets' etc. The host might just fill this out the next day for their own keepsake.