03 August 2010

how-to host a children's birthday party


HOW-TO HOST A CHILDREN'S BIRTHDAY PARTY
by Marie LeBaron of makeandtakes.com

Here are 5 tips and tricks for hosting a children's birthday party, as we all know party planning can get a little tricky.



1. How many is too many?

I suggest you only have as many children at the party as years the child is turning. So if your child is turning 3 then only invite 2 friends, turning 5 then invite 4 friends. We now have siblings that want to join in the party fun, so take them into account as well. It takes a lot of energy to entertain kids, at any age. So limiting the number can help you give them the attention they need.

2. How long should the party be?

If your child is under the age of 6, I suggest no longer than one hour. I had four 3 year olds for 2 hours and we whizzed through all the games I had planned in 30 minutes. I had to think quick for the remaining time! Once your child is older, the kids are better at taking their time with the games and opening presents, so you can plan for more time.

3. What to do during the party?


Decide if you want to have the party at your home or at a party place. I’ve been to some great parties held at fun adventure lands. Those will cost more money, however all the details are taken care of.

If you have the party at home, you want to divide your time into sections. I like to have the kids color or play with balloons until everyone arrives. Then gather and play between 2-4 games. I like to coordinate our games with the theme we picked. Also, remember that the games always go faster than you think they will. What I thought would take 20 minutes finished in about 10. Then we eat lunch, sing and eat cake. After cleaning up, we open presents. I like to do this last so the kids can play with the new toys until their parents come back.

4. Should there be a theme?

I suggest you choose a theme for your party. Most children have an opinion about this or you can choose for them. It can be very involved with characters like pirates, cowboys, or princess. Or it can be as simple as a color or polka dots. Here is a
birthday party resource guide for you to check out a few fun birthday themes.

5. How much money should be spent?

You could spend your life savings on a party or even a few dollars can make it great. I try to make most of the items needed like, invitations from art paper, bake the cake ourselves, and games that are put together from supplies around the house. Part of the fun is crafting together and getting ready for the big day.

What are some tips and tricks you've used to make your birthday parties run smoothly?



the how-to series was created to encourage confidence in creativity. to focus on what we can do rather than what we can't. i am excited to showcase your talents and unique ideas. if you have a specialty (and i know you do), please submit your how-to guest post by emailing me. marta{at}martawrites{dot}com. i will be delighted to feature your how-to in the future.

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do." - John Wooden 

6 comments:

Hil said...

Great tips! This will come in handy for me in October. I will be looking at the resource guide for the remainder of my morning... so many fun things listed there!

Cami said...

Thanks for the tips. My three year old is turning four at the end of the month and we've started talking about the party!

Kristi @ Creative Kristi said...

Maybe things are different in Maine but I've never been to a birthday party (in all my 26 years of life) where the parents LEAVE the kids there. The parents are party of the party guests....

So I always take that into account when planning the guest list.

Kristi @ Creative Kristi said...

sorry I just re-read that and it sounded mean lol I just meant it to sound surprised haha!

Dawn said...

Great how-to!
My sister-in-law just held her son's 3rd birthday and there were definitely too many children there. My SIL also said, afterwards, that she hadn't expected so many of the parents to stick around. They all expected food and drinks, which she hadn't really prepared for.
So, like the commenter above, I would say to prepare for parents and their needs, too.

SewSara said...

I think family parties are the way to go, if there are cousins around. :) Great post ... thanks for the tips!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...