Category — Birthdays on a Budget

Guest Post written by Heather Reynolds from Birthday In A Box

Planning enough games and activities is extremely important when organizing a successful children’s party. Although snacks, cake, and decorations are also important, children can only eat and admire décor for so long, but they can play for hours!

There are two important things to keep in mind with party activities. First, plan to have a couple extra games or crafts on hand as back-ups. These ideas will rescue you if the children finish an activity more quickly than you expected. Second, even though you’ve planned a certain timeframe for each activity and have a game plan, be flexible! If the kids are enjoying a certain game and want to play it over and over, let them. The kids will be the best judges of whether or not a game or craft is working.

With these tips in mind, here are some games and crafts from Birthday in a Box to try at your next party. We’ve included some classic ideas as well as some more creative ideas for a wide range of choices.

Bird Feeder Craft - Great for Garden or Spring Parties!

Each child pulls a piece of yarn through a toilet paper tube and ties it in a knot. Have the children spread honey or peanut butter all around the outside of the cardboard tube using a plastic knife, then roll the tube in a paper plate filled with bird seed. Their completed birdfeeder can be taken home and hung in a tree!

Hula Hoop “Head” Off - Great for Beach or Luau Parties!

Divide the guests into teams of four, and have each team stand in a line, holding hands. Place a hula hoop in front of each line. When you say, “Go!” the first child in each line bends over and picks up the hula hoop without letting go of his or her teammate’s hand. Each child should then pass the hula hoop over his or her head and shoulders, step through, and pass it on to the arm of the next player in line while staying connected. If the children become disconnected, they must start over. The hula hoop needs to be passed down the entire line in order for a team to win.

Telephone - Great for Girls Only or Sleepover Parties!

Have everyone sit in a circle on the floor. Have the birthday child start the game by thinking up a goofy line, such as “Purple cows sit in the pasture eating grass and making grape-flavored milk.” He or she should then whisper this line in the ear of the person sitting to his or her left, and so on around the circle until everyone has heard the phrase. The last player to hear the phrase should tell everyone what they think they heard, and then the birthday child should tell everyone the original phrase. The whole group will get a good laugh from the silly translation.

Marshmallow Robots - Great for Robot Parties!

Set out bowls of large marshmallows, small marshmallows, mini M&Ms, frosting, and pretzel sticks. Let each guest make a marshmallow robot using the pretzel sticks to hold them together. This is a craft they can eat!

Gathering Eggs Relay - Great for Farm or Dinosaur Parties!

Divide the children into two teams. Have them form two columns behind the starting line, with the members of each team lined up one behind the other. Give the first player on each team a spoon and an egg. Once the game starts, they can only hold the spoons by their handles.

At the start of the game, the two children at the front of each line walk or run to the goal line, turn around, and walk or run back to their teams - all while carrying the egg on their spoon. They then hand their spoons off to the next players in line.

If a child drops an egg, he or she must stop and pick it up. If the egg breaks when it falls, the child must wait to be handed a new egg. The first team to successfully complete the relay is the winner.

Freeze Dance - Great for Rock Star, Dance or Teen Parties!

Turn on the radio or play a favorite CD and have all the children start dancing. After a few moments, turn off the music and say “Freeze!” Anyone still moving is out until the next game begins. The game continues until only one dancer remains.

For more great ideas, visit the Party Planning Page at Birthday in a Box.

Last month was my son’s 10th birthday and at first he wanted a party at Laser Tag (yikes!), but somewhere along the way, he decided a sleep over with his friends would be better and oh yeah, mom, can you take us to the movies too?

First, how many boys do I think I can handle at one time? Six should be ok…definitely enlisting help from dad though.

I usually buy the party invitations, but this year, we made our own using MS Publisher and an image my son found online.

We saved money with the invitations, but how do you save money going to the movies, other than bringing in your own snacks?

AMC Theatres has the perfect answer! If you go before noon on Friday, Saturday or Sunday it’s only $5 person regardless of age.

Considering there would be three adults and six kids, we would have ended up paying $61.50 for a matinee showing or $73.50 for an evening showing…instead we paid $45! Don’t you just love a great deal?

Even better, the boys were full from just eating breakfast when we headed to the 9:30 am showing. I provided some small goodie bags (juice pack, fruit gummy snacks and a small candy bar) and they were happy little campers.

My son and his friends had a great time, loved the movie and it cost us less than $100 for the whole party!

And yes, he even received some free birthday treats that we took advantage of like a free kid’s meal at the Island’s and Sonic, plus a free creation at Cold Stone Creamery.

Do you have a frugal birthday story? If so, let’s hear them!