Want to take control of celebrating your child’s birthday by inviting friends and family into your home? While the task can seem daunting, when it’s broken down into thoughtful pieces, you can pull off something truly fantastic.
Logistics
Consider the time of year and whether or not you will have the bash inside or outdoors and how many people can comfortably attend. Crowds can equal chaos, so itʼs best to eliminate that problem from go.
Once you know how many individuals you can invite, you can set the guest list. Depending on your child’s age, he or she may get involved here. If your youngster is school-aged, he or she will surely have certain friends they want to give invitations. If you are considering sending those invites to school, be sure you know the school’s or teacher’s policy first. Sometimes, particularly in grade school years, children bringing invitations into a class are expected to invite the entire class so that no child feels left out. If this is the case, and you want to avoid this, you’ll need to find a work-around like contacting parents and emailing or mailing an invitation directly. A good rule of thumb for toddlers and preschoolers is to invite the number of the child’s age plus one more. For example, if your child will be four, let him or her choose five guests to invite.
Once your guest list is set, aim to send out invitations between three to five weeks before the party. The number of guests will help determine what supplies you’ll need, how much food to prepare (including the cake size) and more.
Enlist Help
Remember that even if your child’s birthday party is in or at your home, that doesn’t mean you have to slave over every detail. Be honest with yourself: does your child care about decorations? Do you have to let the kids make mini pizzas or would they be just as happy with pizza delivery? Sometimes store-bought cake and ice cream may actually be your youngster’s preference. Remember it is their special day.
If you want to do cooking and decorating, remember that you likely have other family members and friends that would be happy to help if you just ask. Think about who is good at what and what he or she enjoys. Does your sister love to bake? Let her! Is your child artistic and do they want to try making decorations? It can be a fun part of the experience. An older child may be the perfect recruit for writing out invitations. You write out the details on one, and ask him or her to fill out the others accordingly. Round up a crew to help with clean-up post-party, too. After all, the celebration is a family affair.
Don’t Overthink Entertainment
Oftentimes, what your child wants most from a birthday party is the company of friends, believe it or not. How they are entertained is age-dependent, but they will surely have ideas about this. Don’t struggle with how to keep them busy. Ask your child for ideas. Most likely, once friends get together, things will just happen and fall into place. Having a couple of fallback ideas doesn’t hurt though.
Party favors are something else many children don’t spend much time worrying about, and neither should you. If the children are young, you could have specially-themed plastic cups they all use. Simply washing them and sending them home as a memento might be enough. You can even consider sending care packages home that parents will enjoy: bags with hand sanitizer, band-aids, wipes, lollipops and other handy items to have on the go. And at a certain age, children don’t need party favors to take home any more. They’ll appreciate time celebrating a friend and the memories more than anything.
Keeping it Simple
If you want to heed the aforementioned tips but are struggling for ideas, here are a few to get you started…
Themes
Favorite TV show, video game, movie, musician, animals, colors, tea party, science, cars, beach, ocean, mythical creatures, sports, carnival, circus and the like.
Food
Pizza, walking tacos, chicken nuggets, pancakes, sandwiches, fruit and vegetable kabobs, chips, pretzels, popcorn, snack mix and other easy finger foods.
Dessert
Cake, cupcakes, donuts, cookies, cookie cake, ice cream, ice cream cake. Some options, like cupcakes and cookies – even ice cream sundaes – could allow for decorate-your-own options, doubling as a fun activity.
Activities
The joy of this list? These games work with any party theme: hot potato, potato sack races, freeze dance, Tug-O-War, Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Musical Chairs, Red Light/Green Light, Simon Says, scavenger hunts, 3-legged race, Marco Polo, Capture the Flag, Ring Toss and karaoke.
Slumber Parties
Once your child reaches sleepover age, he or she is likely to want to have a few friends over for a slumber party at some point. Believe it or not, while the children are in your home for a longer period of time, there will be only a handful of them, and it doesn’t have to be stressful.
First, remember to set some ground rules. Is there a bedtime or time for quiet? Make sure everyone knows what it is. If it’s nice outside, perhaps there is a time when you tell the kids to play outdoors so it’s not constant indoor chaos. Be sure to have a safe place for them and that there are activities to enjoy, that they stay hydrated, have sunscreen on and take other safety precautions.
When they are inside, consider things like a movie marathon or on a beautiful summer night perhaps you can project the movie outside for your own drive-in movie experience. It could carry a theme or just include a string of your child’s favorites. Maybe the evening takes on a “board game night” theme. If they are old enough, maybe the group works together to cook a dinner to enjoy.
Experience Celebrations
Instead of a full-blown at-home party, your child might just want to have a few friends over to enjoy the day with. This is the perfect time to gather everyone up for a trip to a baseball game, visit to the zoo, to the movies, to an arcade, bowling or even indoor rock climbing. You don’t formally have to book a party at any of these locations. Later, you can return to your home for present and dessert time. Easy, breezy and with little mess – it’s a win for everyone!
Sparty – A New Way to Party in Berks
If you are looking for a fun, unique party location for your child, Wanda Baker and Anita Blew may have the answer in Sparty. The friends achieved their dream of opening a spa boutique where friends and family can combine luxurious spa treatments and sassy partying when Sparty opened this past March at 944 Penn Avenue in Wyomissing.
“The Sparty team takes pride in the personal touch they bring to every party. The amazing decor, children's dress-up closet and accessories will be sure to bring a smile to everyone's faces...and memories to last a lifetime,” say the owners.
From runway shows and spa makeovers to Daddy & Me dates, the Sparty staff will help you create the perfect celebration for your child. More details can be found online at spartydiva.com or by calling 610.743.6520.
Stay tuned: Sparty’s owners are excited to announce they are in the process of trademarking their own name! Look for it to be unveiled soon!
