Sometimes  the thought of planning a child’s birthday party seems more like  planning their wedding or some other huge life event.  The budget for a  standard birthday party seems to have increased exponentially since we  were kids.  Bigger, better, faster, more, more, more.  What about a  return to simplicity? Let’s get back to basics! 
Isn’t it just fun to  have your friends over and play?  I think that if you make your child  feel special and offer up a few fun things to do, you’ll find you’ll  have a spectacular birthday celebrations and you don’t need all the  bells and whistles.  Here are five budget saver ideas to help keep your  next birthday party within budget. 
Party Invitations  - One of the best ways  to save money is to either DIY invitations  or send them online.  Printing your own  invitations is a great way to save on invitations.  You can create your  own designs to coordinate with your party theme.  Since you only have to  pay for the cost of the digital download of your design, it’s a very  economic option.  You can also elect to send invitations online, which  is generally free to do. 
Time of day  – When deciding when to host your child’s birthday party the best way  to keep it low cost is to plan it in between mealtimes.  That way you  only have to provide a light snack and whatever birthday cake treat you  choose. 
Simple food  – By planning the party in between mealtime you can keep your food  budget to a minimum.  Planning one savory dish, one snack dish, and a  dessert item to serve as the main attraction is plenty.  One mistake  many people feel is they have to feed the adults (for young children’s  parties).   You really don’t.  Offer something to nibble on and some  birthday cake.  Offer lots of water – dress it up with citrus slices or  cucumber slices to make it extra refreshing. 
Location  – Choose a location that is free, your home!  If your home isn’t big  enough, ask a grandparent, aunts or uncles.  It’s likely someone would  be more than willing to host their beloved grandchild, niece or nephew’s  birthday party (especially if you offer to help tidy up before and  after).   If you are lucky enough live somewhere that has accommodating  weather or the season provides warm enough weather, have the party at  your child’s favorite playground, park or lake. 
Limit the Guest List –  Do you really need to invite the whole class?  In my opinion, you  really don’t need to.  The less people you have the less expensive the  party will be.  Some people go with the rule that if their child is  turning six, then they get to invite six friends.   Choose the people  your child enjoys being around and will enjoy celebrating with.  It’s  not about impressing neighbors, classmates and friends.  It’s about  celebrating your child the adventures they’ve had and the ones they will  have in the coming year.  
You  can easily incorporate all or some of these elements to help you create  a birthday party budget that is realistic and still allows you to throw  a great party.   Happy Celebrating!  
Leslie  Blumenstein is a contributing writer for PurpleTrail.com, an innovative  invitations and party planning site.  She has helped put together many  party planning tips for a variety of occasions as one of PurpleTrail’s  party experts.  You can find more of her party ideas and suggestions at www.PurpleTrail.com/partytrail
 

 



 
 

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