If your kids are born in spring or summer, you can celebrate their birthdays outdoors. For birthdays in fall and winter, however, you generally have to celebrate indoors. Hopefully soon COVID19 will not be as big of a concern and indoor parties will become possible again. With that in mind, here are some tips on how to run an indoor kids’ party on a budget.
Choose your venue with care
There are two obvious places to host kids’ parties. One is in somebody’s home and the other is in a venue that actively caters to kids’ parties. The first option is usually the most budget-friendly. It can, however, be hard to manage if you don’t have access to a garden, especially if your home is on the smaller side.
The second option can be massively convenient but it can also be very expensive. It can therefore be worth researching non-standard venues. Look for places with larger rooms you can hire. These can give kids plenty of space to move while still coming in at a reasonable price.
If you can’t find these or really can’t afford them, then a home-based party can still be great fun for kids without being hugely stressful for parents. The key is to have a plan of action plus contingency plans. This needs to cover everything from set-up to clear-up.
Make your own cake
Kids’ birthday cakes are a bit like wedding cakes and birthday cakes. Manufacturers know that they can charge a premium for these because people want the wow factor. Actually, it’s quite easy to create a “wow” cake yourself at home.
Probably the most obvious option would be a letter cake based on the child’s name. You can adjust the number of letters according to the number of guests. For example, for a small party, you might just have the child’s first initial. For a larger one, you could have all their initials or even their full name.
Another option would be to buy a basic cake ready-made and decorate it yourself. Really all you need to do is add some frosting and top it with chocolate and/or candy. Alternatively, you could pass on the traditional birthday cake. Instead, get a cake stand and pile it with individual, decorated cakes.
Focus on games and activities
Forget about spending a lot of money on decorations. In fact, you may not even need to buy decorations at all. Just get some paper and make paper chains, banners, and pictures. None of these need to be perfect. All the kids will really notice is the overall shape, color, and texture.
Likewise, forget about hiring children’s entertainers. These can be great if you have the budget. If you don’t, however, you can still put together a fun and memorable party. The secret to success is to focus on games and activities rather than entertainment.
In general, you want to start with lots of short, active games, especially with music. Keep each game to about 5-10 minutes. Then have the children eat, then do something fairly quiet while they digest. Then start on games that are less about action and more about strategy for example pin the tail on the donkey.