Throwing a birthday party at home does not have to be stressful. A little planning can go a long way to help you turn a potentially chaotic mess that you approach with fear and trembling into a wonderful event that your birthday child will remember for the rest of his life.
So what’s the key to a stress free birthday party? Here are 4 tips for making the birthday party planning as well as the day itself super fun and stress free:
1. Plan ahead - Work with a birthday party checklist to keep you on track as to what needs to be done and when. This little step alone can help to take the pressure off because you have built in reminders and there is no “did I forget anything” stress on your mind. Have separate sections on your list to keep track of the items you need to buy as well as a timeline to help you work toward the day. Include even the things that you know you won’t forget like “bake a cake” or “buy paper goods” just so you know that everything is there and will be taken care of. This also helps if you have people helping you with the party as they will know what’s been done and still needs to be done based on your checklist.
2. Involve your child - Remember that your birthday child is the important one so he should be consulted and involved in the planning of the day. Let him pick a theme and work with you to make sure you’re ready for the day. Take him with as you shop for the goody bag treats, paper goods and other items and get his okay on everything. It may take some extra time but having him involved will really make him feel special - and that’s the goal of the day after all!
3. “Hire” an assistant - If you do nothing else for your birthday party - do this! Bring an older sibling or cousin into the picture to help you on birthday party day. They can be the clean up crew or even be in charge of the games and activities, freeing you to focus on your child or the guest’s parents, etc. You can, of course, pay them a small stipend for their work or give them an extra special gift from you for their help. And who knows, you may be helping them create an event planning career for themselves at the same time!
4. Have someone else take the pictures. You want to remember the day in photos but often the last thing on your mind during the actual party is taking pictures because you’re so busy with the kids or the parents or getting the candles on the cake that the camera gets left on the counter unused. Snag one of the other parents or a neighbor friend to be in charge of the photography of the day. Make sure you communicate which pictures you want to have taken if you have special ones you want, but otherwise, let them just snap away. The beauty of digital cameras is that you can take tons of pictures and delete the ones that don’t work.
With just a little extra planning and preparation you can have a fun, memorable party without pulling your hair out. Keep your birthday child as the focus and the rest of the day will go smoothly! Enjoy!