How to make your child’s birthday party successful

PARTY TIME!

Just recently, my son had his birthday party. He turned the big THREE! It was such fun party to plan it for him. My son and his guests enjoyed it so much. Here are some tips on what you could do for your child whether it be your first or your 5th child:

Theme

Before you plan anything, you have to decide on a theme for the party. If your child is above the age of two, you can ask what tv show or movie they like and that will help narrow down the choices. My son loves the show Dino Ranch the most so we had combination of dinosaurs and farm theme. When you decide on a theme, it is good idea to make an invitation related to the theme so people know what to expect or what gift to get.

The invitation should include your kid’s name, location, date, time and RSVP. The age is optional to include. You can make personalized mail or digital invitation. I created the invitation from Canva so if you’d like an editable invitation, be sure to subscribe newsletter to gain access to it. Send the invitation out at least three weeks before the event and follow up with people who did not RSVP three days before the party.

Location and Budget

Once the idea is figured out, a budget needs to be set. How much you want to spend will determine what your child’s birthday party looks like. The budget will help you know how much you need to spend on food and drinks, decorations, party favors, and extra. If you do not set a budget, you will spend more. With the budget, it will help you choose location, date, and time of the party. You can throw your child’s birthday party at your home, backyard or a fun filled place such as a movie theater, Chuck E Cheese, and trampoline zone. You will have more flexibility and a cheaper budget if you do it from home.

It is encouraged to have 2-4 hours of party for toddlers and little kids, but can be longer for older kids. If the kid is under two, it is best to do in the morning because they will enjoy more and be in better mood. Making a list of who you want to invite will help determine the budget as well. If you plan to invite only some classmates from school, do not send invites to school because it has to be for ALL classmates if you do.

Supplies

Make a list of all the supplies you will need for the party and if you need, ask for help. You could ask someone in the family or a friend to help supervise the party, to take pictures or/and organize games. If you can afford to, you could hire someone to help you instead. Depending on the location and kind of party, do not forget to buy/bring food, drinks, balloons, party hats; musics, plates, napkins, table cloth; ice cups, ice chest, toilet papers and utensils.

If you are doing the party outside of your home, visit the place so you have an idea of how this will run and what you will need. Often times you can use the things from home to decorate for the party and try not to think too literal on the theme to purchase decorations. For example, if you want Spider-Man theme, you do not need to purchase literal every single decors of Spider-man. You can purchase Spider-Man color related such as red, bold blue, black so that way you still can use them for the future parties for different theme. Try buy things that you can reuse again.

Order Food

Make the menu list of what food, sweets and drinks you want to provide. Food is the most important to provide for the guests. You can prepare food, but keep in mind to think not just for the kids but also the parents too. Some possible best food options: salgados (Brazilian finger food), pizza, Chick-Fil-A nuggets, burgers and simple food that the kids like. It is suggested that you make appetizers for the parents to enjoy too. It is encouraged to shop and prepare the food 1-3 days ahead so you will not stress out for running out of time to finish food because you will have other things to do.

Be mindful that if your party is not at your home and it is at the public place, it is possible that you cannot bring food. If your budget permit, you can order catered food. Do not forget to order/bake the birthday cake. It is encouraged to buy more drinks and cups than what you need because guests drink a lot. Do not fill kids with caffeine because parents will thank you later. Water and juices are great options to provide for the kids.

Select 2-3 sweets to give options to the kids and try avoid nuts to be mindful of people who might have allergies. I provided sugar custom cookies related to the Dino Ranch theme, cake pops that look like dinosaur eggs and a grass looking cake (white almond with chocolate filling) from Rouses. I have Brazilian tradition of serving brigadeiros which is like truffle for all birthday parties and it is always a big hit!

Party Favors

When you have a birthday party, it is polite to provide party favors for guests to take home as a way of saying thank you for coming. There are several ways to do this. You could provide filled tiny toys bags, candy filled bags, stuffed animals, tickets to go places like zoo/movies/parks or fun kit to make something at their home. The burlap bags are filled with mixture of candy and small toys from Brazil.

DIY corn made out of popcorn is easy to make. You can go see the tutorial in Dino Ranch highlight. The pink bags are sweet popcorn from Brazil and the truffles are brigadeiros.

The sugar cookies is a cute way to have kids enjoy while eating them. The cow print are candies from Brazil.

Activities

Knowing what entertainment that goes with the theme will make the party more enjoyable. You could rent fun jump, movie projector, pet zoo, short games to play. We had massive playhouse, rented fun jump and borrowed bull dummy to play rope with. It is good idea to set the programming time for the games. If you plan to have music at the party, prepare to make playlist to have it ready for it starts.

Hope this help you make your child’s birthday party successful. If you enjoy this blog, you should check out the Milestones Celebration of the First Year and Baby Shower. If you have any questions, please feel free to comment or email us!