party on!

We have birthdays in two seasons of the year, my birthday and my son's is in the summer and my husband's and my daughter's is in the winter. I'm holding true to "winter" because in St. Louis, March is still a ridiculousness of cold-just at freezing-temps a fair amount of the month! So I have two drastic styles of party planning when it comes to the kiddos and with them still little, it's pretty easy going.

We are still throwing family only parties for them, and this is just direct family, not all my husband's aunts and uncles and each of their groups of kids and grand kids, the house would burst at the seams if we did that! And it's great because all the cousins get along and fit in the playroom and there is just enough snacks and cake that we don't spend another high dollar grocery run on it. I'm offered a pot luck style gathering every time and that just doesn't work for me because then the kitchen is full of people and extra pots and the majority of the time when a pot luck is held at another family gathering, there is always one person who needs the oven or stove to cook their item instead of just bringing it already prepared! UGH! The only food requirements are gluten-free {which is easier than people think} and making sure nobody dips a chip and contaminates it for her, but usually she brings a few things for herself and I get her a pint of coconut milk or avocado based ice cream, which both are really tasty so don't knock it til you try it!

Summer parties are so much easier to host and I'm glad to have everyone over! Make outside a lovely shaded oasis, get the sprinklers and bubbles out, BBQ some meats, everyone stays outside for awhile and it works out great! We decorate the patio with lights to indicate that is where the party is, roll out the ice chest with drinks and the kids all run around until gift opening and they go home ... fantastic! Both parties, I have managed over the years, to find universal decorations and paper goods, Joe makes a great cake and we decorate that with homemade banners and other cuteness. So here are my tips and tricks for a great kids birthday party!

Keep it Simple! So simple, by starting with the character or theme the kid likes

and get basic colors of that character. Sonic the Hedgehog -- blue and red balloons, maybe go to Party City for a mylar balloon. Super Hero Girls -- purple, red, pink, yellow cake decoration cutouts that sat POW, ZAP, BOOM taped on toothpicks and stick in cake with her super hero dolls surrounding the cake. Very Hungry Caterpillar -- green and red plates and cups that I picked up at Dollar Tree or 5 Below.

Basic Kid Food! Pizza, hot dogs, and burgers are the best. You can find a lot of varieties of take and bake or just order from the place up the street. Burgers can be made ahead of time, buns are pretty inexpensive and so are condiments. Sandwhich fixings are a no brainer, place everything out, DIY so everyone gets what they like, it all tastes great and the kids will eat dinner among the chaos!

Veggie Trays are the Best! I always have a couple dips and a couple veggies cut up with a bag or two of chips and it always goes over well with guest. The kids eat it too! At times I've made a fruit platter but that usually goes into the freezer for smoothies after the party since nobody likes the texture of soggy fruit bowl for breakfast. 

Crockpot! We have done spinach dip in the crockpot a few times for our winter birthday parties and it is a hit! Anything you can toss in a crockpot and leave it to the side while the rest of the party gets fixed up is the best!  If you have someone with a bulk grocer card like Costco or Sam's Club, ask if you can go with them on the next trip to pick up any large bags of ingredients needed, it will really help you in the long run. Also, in the summer the crockpot doesn't give off heat like firing up the oven does!

Invites! I've made some pretty neat invitations on Publisher, already on my computer, with clipart or personal photos in the past, some have been an actual cut down to size card and others have been a flyer style, but I have to say the easiest and cheapest (FREE!) have been using Punchbowl. You can pay for upgraded invites, but I always find great free ones, and you can customize a bit with comments, potluck list, rsvp list, and reminders!

Don't Go Overboard! All the matching streamers, balloons, plates, invitations, labels for water bottles ... what!?! Why would I waste my time on labeling bottles that will be tossed in the recycling bin?! It's so much work! Yeah it have an impact on the whole "look" of the party maybe, but is there a magazine coming to photo this party for the cover or the feature article?? No! So don't bother with it. The amount of fun, the gifts, and the cool cake are the top three memory makers for any little kid, you know it is.

I always ask the kiddos what they want to do for their parties months ahead of time so if they change their mind (which has happened recently!) I'm not scrambling at the last minute! They kiddos always have ideas that I figured would manifest into a party for them, but it's recipes and other party foods that I want to take a peek at, see what is something different I can do this time. So then I head on over to my trusty idea board on PINTEREST to look up a few ideas, especially for cake decorating. Some are so elaborate ans crazy, I wish we could pull it off but there is usually a lower level back up to the professionals! I tell ya, we don't make super-delicious-its-so-fantastic cakes, but Joe really knows how to decorate a birthday cake, he's amazing at it!
In the end, it doesn't cost us as much as our wedding reception, and everyone has a great time, and that's what matters most! As they get older, I'm sure things will change, and venues will be needed, or they will develop expensive tastes, but I hope their memories of their younger birthday parties will stick with them forever!

TODAY I EAT CAKE

xo