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| Saving Money on Birthday Parties |
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Use Michael's
Michael's! They have those 40-50% off any one item coupons in their ads and you can sign up of additional coupons on their website. You can find great gifts for kids. They have those dollar bins where you can get blank note cards in for "thank yous". Everything you need to make your party decorations, invitations and for a craft at your child's party.
For our daughter's 6th birthday, we did a paint your own clay pot activity, we bought the pots of 33 cents each there.
By Mrsdawn
The Dollar Store
The dollar store is your best deal. Bright colors make a party. balloons are #1. You can get lots of them in the your color theme. Little girls often like pink and purple and boys like red and blue. Paper streamers hanging across the ceiling give a real party feel and don't forget $1.00 plastic tablecloths which I wipe clean and tape over little holes after a party to reuse. Often, you can buy your paper plates and napkins in a matching color in the dollar store.
I buy one or two large gift bags for table center pieces in the theme of their choice like "Dora" or "Thomas Train". Everything else is just solid colors to match. 2 packages of punch Kool-Aid with a can of frozen lemonade make a gallon of drinks kids love. Simple finger foods and homemade cake for food. Small candies with a bottle of soap bubbles can go into dollar store theme gifts bags.
By Dee Bee
Help From Friends
Enlist some help from creative friends and family. If Aunt "So and So" makes awesome cakes then ask her to make the birthday cake as her gift to the birthday person.
By Natalie
Keep It Simple
I'm not sure exactly how much they saved, and it wasn't a kids party, but I went to a party for a dear friend's 80th birthday. She and her husband held it in their home which was warm and inviting. They didn't decorate beyond their own attractive furnishings and ornaments. There were lots of people there, friends, relatives from overseas, etc.
It was the beautiful simplicity of the arrangement of food that got me. Instead of wearing themselves thin cooking, or having it catered, there was just a large table covered with a while cloth. On the table was a huge haunch of cooked ham, several loaves of crusty bread, butter, pickles, mustard, cheeses, dried apricots, dates, etc. Everyone just cut their own bread and made their own sandwiches.
This was followed by fruit salad and cream, and the birthday cake. It was a lovely, simple meal and a really good night.
By Ellie
Advice For Planning, Organizing and Throwing A Party
I did a 3 year old party, and it was a success, with cake, munchies, decorations, a lot of confetti, and music to "jump" to. You have got to burn that energy up. We also had games, inside and out. Always have a back up rain plan for your party! Pictionary is really popular with the teens and adults.
I always begin with a party budget allowance, and try hard to stay in it. You can really go overboard with party buying. Then I create lists for a party: food list, game list, decoration list and a guest list.
Don't forget to send out your invitations in plenty of time, we like to send ours out at least 2 weeks ahead of time, sometimes 3 weeks or a month if your guest lives out of state.
I try to have plenty of fun too while I work. Kids know when it's "work" for you, and you're all stressed out. I like to do as much as possible ahead of time, and I like to also delegate some of the work. For example, get someone else to do the cake. Get the kids to do the decorating, teens like this.
It also helps to have phone numbers for small kids, and a first aid kit on the side for any age.
If you plan to do something that takes a particular outfit, like a hay ride, or a finger painting contest for the smaller kids, always state on the invitation to bring a cover shirt, or wear casual clothes for the hayride for example. My kids love to know ahead of time when something unusual is planned so they can dress appropriate.
And above all, have fun, control the disagreements between the kids, and encourage them to have fun.
The younger to teens love bag races, and the teens love pie eating contest, and apple dunking. Keep plenty of activities, but not too much. You want to keep the party moving. Don't let the party last too late, or you'll have some tired grumpy kids on your hands.
Make sure with younger kids, they're rides are pre-arranged. Even if you have to make a list for that.
By Glinda
Feel free to post your ideas below!
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