How to Give a Perfect Birthday Party Without Getting Broke

Birthday parties are slowly becoming more fancy and extravagant. But is there a possibility of throwing a birthday party without getting broke? Glad you asked that! You don’t have to necessarily break the bank to give that amazing birthday party for your kids. I’ve got you covered on this one.

Keeping Up with the Joneses

Peer pressure can be really intense and lavish bashes have become part of our culture. You don’t want to disappoint your child.

The expenses just seem to add up, what with theme parties, live music, fancy finger licking food, thank you gifts, blah, blah, blah. Here are the thumb rules for giving a great party with inexpensive birthday party ideas.

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Tips on How to Throw a Perfect Birthday Party Without Getting Bankrupt

1. Do Not Compete

I know, this is the difficult part, but totally worth it. But keep repeating the mantra – I am not competing with anyone.

Just because your neighbor had a big splash with clowns and ponies and the bouncy house, you don’t have to follow suit. You love your kids all the same and you’re not exactly hankering for an award. Be yourself and firstly select from economy birthday party locations. It could simply be at your home.

2. Keep an Eye on that Guest List

Don’t let it get out of hand.  You don’t have to invite all the kids in the neighborhood. Only those who invited your kids, of course! That goes without saying. Moreover, there’s no obligation to invite the parents.

Have a limited crowd and you’ll be amazed at the amount you can save in other categories. What’s more, your child will be happier with his/her close set of friends. Don’t overwhelm the kid with big, unruly crowd.

3. Ditch the Party Favors

It’s mostly filled with junk and kids don’t much care for it, I daresay. Also, candy and other party favors are pretty expensive. Just give it a complete skip or if you don’t have the heart to do so, you could just buy a small, inexpensive toy for the kids. You know the $1 kind of thing that you get at Target or whatever.

All kids like a goody bag, but they don’t particularly bother about what’s inside it. Don’t go broke filling it with clothing or other expensive gifts. Throw in some bubbles, something you got from the sidewalk, some decorated pencils and so on and you have your perfect inexpensive party favors.

4. Time it Right

See that the party timing does not fall at lunchtime or dinner time. You could probably time it somewhere in between meals, so you only have to serve some snacks, cake, ice cream, juices and some economical party food.  Scout around for some cheap catering ideas for parties and you could cut down on the food cost.

• Also Read – Best Ways to Save Money Living a Frugal Life

5. Scrimp on that Cake

As for the cake, you don’t particularly have to order one. Why not bake one yourself? The kids will probably not care either way. If you are not a fancy baker, you could bake one from a cake mix.

Or better still, just order a plain cake from the local store and then jazz it up with decorations and figurines on the top. For that matter, cupcakes can also be great and economic.

6. Going Digital

You can find plenty of free templates for cheap party décor and invites, on various websites. Don’t forget to add an RSVP line on the invite. If you have a proper and accurate headcount before the big day, you could save on food, ice cream, party favors and so on.

You can also print templates for gift cards, favor bags, customized birthday banners, coloring pages for kids and other cheap birthday decorations, according to the theme of your party.

7. Plan your Games

Plan the games yourself. But please leave out the musical chairs, tailing the donkey, and Tic Tac Toe for starters. You can surely be a little more imaginative. There are plenty of ideas you could find online, which works for your kids and don’t cost much. Be creative.

• Try music and dancing, either indoors or outdoors.
• Try games like wheelbarrow race, cartwheel contest or a three legged race, all classic party games. You can Google these and begin practicing for the big day.
• Make the cake into a game: you can just set bowls of sugar, sprinklers, chocolate chips and so on and allow the kids to decorate their cakes and create their own magic.

8. Opting Out

You can simply opt out of giving a birthday party. But you need to do it right when the kids are little, or they could get too used to it. Most children are very adaptable and will go along with any kind of celebration, so long as they get attention and something different from the normal routine.

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But I feel you! The day has got to be something special. Again, we could cut down the expense here and still make it special. For kids, it’s not always about the cost; it’s the fun and surprise of it all. Quality time spent with your kid on the birthday could mean a lot to him/her. You could throw in some inexpensive birthday gifts.

• You could take your kid on a beautiful drive around the harbor or to the beach or any other special part of your town or a nearby place.
• Go for a picnic with your kid and close family members. You could take food prepared at home. Laugh and have fun. The experience is more important than a physical gift.

Wrapping Up

Whatever you do, keep a limit for spending on the birthday party. More importantly, STICK to your budget.

Now you know there are plenty of fun and interesting ways to celebrate that birthday party without spending much. You can enjoy as much as anyone else without being bogged down by the expense. I’m not going to lie here. You will need to put in some extra work but believe me; it’s totally worth it.