Planning an Australia Day party

I'm excited about an Australia Day party I'm planning for the 27th (a day late, but we don't get a public holiday for the Thursday). We haven't done this for a long time, but figured it was a good excuse to get some folk together.  It's turned out to be a good excuse for getting to know some Aussies who are around, but, well, we don't know them all that well.


So we have one Aussie family from school (but only Dad and two teenage daughters can come, plus an Australian friend of theirs who's passing through town), and one Aussie-Japanese family from church (Australian dad, Japanese mum and two pre-school aged kids). We have one American family (who our kids know pretty well) as ring-ins. Plus our family. 


The Americans are feeling a little nervous, can you believe it? They thought they might need some help, some phrases or something to help them fit in. We never did get around to completing that conversation (we were watching our kids wrestle at an interschool meet — more about that tomorrow). But I wonder what I should tell them? Any (tasteful) ideas?


Food-wise I'm planning an "indoor" BBQ. All the trappings of a barbie, but without the outside grill (and with almost no backyard and close to zero temperatures at night, that's probably wise). I still have to lay my hands on some beetroot. And I'm planning to make a pavlova for dessert. Yummmmm.


Entertainment-wise, I'd love to watch The Castle, but don't think it is all that suitable for all these kids we'll have here (should figure out how to have an adult-only movie night some time...). So instead I'm thinking of pulling out all those Australian/Australian themed games/ puzzles we have. We have at least two jigsaw puzzles (Opera House and a map of Australia). We also have Australian Monopoly and Squatter. 


What do you think? About seven adults and ten kids, ranging in age from two to sixteen. What would you do in a small house for a Friday night Australia Day party?