A special day to celebrate the birth of your child, nothing should be more joyous. Unless of course you are like me and dread party planning in addition to the fact that parties, even for young children can get expensive….fast. How can you throw a great party that your child will remember fondly without breaking the bank? Believe it or not all it takes is a lot of creativity and some effective planning and you can be on your way to a great party will little expense. Keep in mind the purpose of having a great party for your child is for the child to have a great time as well as great memories. If you are trying to compete with other parents or have the party you may have dreamed of in your youth, you will likely not be able to pull off a great party for your little one that they will really enjoy.

Budget-set it and forget it.

The first thing you have to do is determine how much money you can afford to spend on the party. Once you have a number in mind that you are comfortable with, stick to it. If you are working on a tight budget consider cutting other “entertainment” for the month and apply that money toward your party budget.

Decorate for a dollar.

Not a single dollar of course, but consider shopping at your local discount/dollar store for you party decorations. You can find great deals on balloons, cards, paper plates, silverware and decorations that will make your party look great without busting your budget.

Party food for the kids.

Many people blow their budgets in the food department. When you really think about it, kids aren’t worried about food. In most cases the parents are FAR more worried about what kind and how much food is available than the kids attending. Some simple kid friendly foods that you may want to consider are hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, pizza,cookies, punch and of course the birthday cake.

What will they do?

Now that you know you don’t need to worry about the food, you can begin focusing on the entertainment. Games will vary based on the age of your child and this is one area that will require a bit of creativity. One thing you should take into consideration is having multiple things going on at one time: board games in one area, a face painting station, a movie playing in the background. Kids have short attention spans, if you offer more than one activity at a time you are likely to keep all the kids happy and entertained.

Remember most kids just want to have a good time with their friends and loved ones. There is no need to go overboard and max out your credit cards for an afternoon that you can just as easily provide for a reasonable price.

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