The nasty “P” word: Party Planning, getting ready for the big day

Party planning is like a marathon.  It’s good for you & it can be fun but if you don’t do it right you can get seriously injured. (Alright, so I’ve never seen someone actually collapse from exhaustion from planning a 3 year old’s Chuckey Cheese Birthday, but at the end of the day, with cake smeared pants and confetti coming from, only God knows where, you darn well feel like it .) Yet, there is a light at the end of the sugar- hyped tunnel.  There is a key to unlock the magic door of Party bliss (or avoiding total party meltdown). Ready? …. Preparation.  I know, that ugly word my mother overused, the one word that shows me I am truly turning into my mother, Preparation…. .  I don’t like it, so let’s get to the point:  Great parties don’t happen by accident, it takes planning. Realizing that I have a lot more birthday parties to throw in my future, I sat at the feet of a few people who do it well. Here’s what I learned.  Bad news: Parties take planning and planning means lists.  Good news: I hate lists, so I’ll keep it as short as possible. 

Party CountdownThe Plan: 8 weeks before

Finalize guest list

Estimate your party budgetBook your entertainer:

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Set party date and Time

Find Location

Select a theme

The Guests: 7 weeks before           

If you’re going to, Hire a caterer               

Create and send RSVP’s               

Decide activities & goody bags, then purchase necessary items.                               

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Take Stock: 6 weeks before

Plan your party menu

Take inventory of table wear, place settings and décor.  Acquire what you lack.

Order any party rental equipment.

The Home stretch: Five days before               

Call to confirm your caterer and entertainment               

Buy Piñata and Fillers               

Order cake or make and freeze one.

Three days before

Hit the grocery store for snacks, mini juice boxes, food and drinks for adults and paper goods. Don’t forget: ice, birthday candles, extra garbage bags and paper towels.

Two days before               

Wrap presents               

Pack up the goody bags               

Take care of camera and video equipment : batteries, memory, film.                Mentally run through itinerary, make sure you have more than enough to fill the time.

1 day before               

Restock 1^st aide kit               

Assemble cake or cupcakes               

Put up décor and set a place for gifts               

Set up craft supplies and games               

HINT: IF you’re serving ice cream, pre-scoop it into cupcake liners and freeze until cake time

The Big Day!           

Tie balloons to mailbox or front door               

Pick up cake               

Place cake accessories are in a handy spot               

Chill drinks in cooler               

Relax, smile and have a good time.

5 simple steps to a memorable kids birthday party!

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.  Images raced through my mind of 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 visualisation I realised: kids parties don’t have to be an exhausting, overwhelming chore. With a bit of organisation 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 pizazz:  Hula dolls as center pieces.  Bold colored Beach towels as table runners and dollar store flip flops and sand pails full of pinata candy as party favors. 

3. Entertainment is child’s play 

Once we established the them and had fun dreaming up the decor 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 labled 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 (www.orientaltradingcompany.com) .

4. Invite the parents

Once 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 simple

Lastly, 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. I know you child will too!  You’ll see, with a bit of planing and a lot of fun your child can have the party of their dreams .