Birthday parties don’t have to be a source of anxiety.
I remember it like it was yesterday. My oldest daughter Hope was turning 7. We had just moved to a new state and she wanted to have a birthday party for her entire class. As I thought of the 30 plus kids in her class, I panicked as images raced through my mind: hoards of unruly kids tearing through my house, amped on sugar, leaving a wake of destruction behind them with their frosting smeared faces and hands. I, huddled in a crumpled heap of frustration and exhaustion in the corner.
As I awoke from my nightmarish visualization I realized: kids parties don’t have to be an exhausting, overwhelming chore. With a bit of organization and some creativity, Hope and I could not just plan a 7th birthday but we could make memories together that last a life time.
Looking back, I can see the 5 simple steps that made her day amazing. You don’t have to panic at the thought of a party either. I’ll share my gems of wisdom with you. Read on.
1. Remember the audience.
Kids are simple. Think back to Christmas; you fretted over buying THE perfect toy and they were more excited to play with “the cool box.” Talk with your child and see what they are interested in. A clue might be plastered to their bedroom wall. Hope loved the beach. Her room was decorated to the nines with Hawaiian print, sandy beach images, and bobbly-wobbly dancing hula girls. It wasn’t too hard to decide that a beach theme was what would make her soon to be 7 year old heart sing.
2. Think outside the Box
Once you two decide on the theme, think of creative (and cost effective) ways to decorate. To stretch your party planning dollars further, use items you already have in an inventive way. We used Hope’s room decor to give her party a Waikiki pizzazz: Hula dolls as center pieces. Bold colored Beach towels as table runners and dollar store flip flops and sand pails full of piñata candy as party favors.
3. Entertainment is child’s play
Once we established the theme and had fun dreaming up the décor- we moved on to decide entertainment. I am not one for chasing kids and lots of structure (or huge messes at my house) so Hope and I settled on a venue elsewhere. You could use a club house, a park, a restaurant, a pool (make sure all your guests are water proof…) even a relative’s house that is better suited for entertainment. For Hope, we had the party at the river (only a few minutes drive from where we lived). Each guest received their own floaty noodle- you know those long, brightly colored Styrofoam things you use to float in the pool with? (Walmart is a God send!) and a sand pail labeled with the guest’s name. I’d like to say I did it for the personal touch but really, I knew the names would make it easier to keep track of what belonged to whom. An easy up made for a great escape from the sun and was decorated with Hawaiian themed items from oriental trading company (
http://www.orientaltradingcompany.com/) .
4. Invite the parentsOnce we established the locale, Hope and I made out the invites. (You can make them with clip art and your computer, but them at your local party store or send e-vites online) We used a hula girl invite and added some grass to her skirt for a 3-D and personal touch. I knew I didn’t want to chase kids by myself all day or take on the responsibility of making sure every kid made it through the day above water, so Hope and I decided to invite the parents. We scheduled the party at 2:00 pm. This made it easier on me. At 2-ish, snacks are appropriate and you are clear from having to provide dinner as well. We also let the parents know that snacks would be served for them and their teeny whainis also.
5. Keep the food simpleLastly, we decided on the food. As party favors, the parents all got their own tiki glasses for punch and had some other snacks more suited to an adult pallet like turkey wraps (use mayo in packets that don’t need to be refrigerated to avoid sending your guests to the emergency room with food poisoning) and a fruit tray kept on ice. Since coolers fit into the beach theme we decorated them and used them as part of our snack buffet. Brightly colored bowls of chips and crackers and party mixes adorned the table. Party tip: pre package snacks such as chips in pretzels in their own bags to keep the sand on the beach and out of your snacks.
So you see, with a bit of planning and a whole lot of quality time Hope had an amazing 7th birthday that her friends still talk about to this day. I know you child will too! You’ll see, with a bit of planning and a lot of fun your child can have the party dreams are made of.
ing cupcake.
ing cupcake.
