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Organising a birthday party for your little ones can end up all work and no play, which isn’t how it should be. Birthday parties are meant to be filled with fun and happiness, not stressful and choresome. We’ve attended and ran many parties. It’s time I share with you my 5 top birthday party tips.
Top Birthday Party Tip 1 – Preparation Is Key
Have a really good think about what you want for your party and what supplies or resources you need to make it happen. If you need props, supplies or accessories then make sure you leave plenty of time to be able to pick these items up or have them delivered. I’d recommend a list sectioned into categories so you can check it off as things arrive or as you pick them up and organise them –
- Venue and entertainment
- Food
- Party bags or gifts
The same goes for entertainment, have a think about what you will be offering. Will you be hosting the entertainment yourself or will you be hiring someone in? As an entertainer listed on many search sites for such things, it’s overwhelming how many last minute requests I receive that I am unable to cater for due to being booked up in advance. Please don’t leave it to the last minute to avoid disappointment.
Top Tip 2 – Don’t Over Plan
No one wants a party which isn’t much fun, so understandably you’ll have activities and games planned to keep the children occupied and to have fun of course. However you don’t want to plan too much so that the party is jam packed, over stimulating and becomes inflexible.
Children are unpredictable at the best of times and parties are no different. Having a rigid party schedule is likely to end up stressful for you and the children. If you have planned certain activities, just go with it and see how they go. Children can only hold their attention span for so long and then they’ll get bored and need to burn off some built up energy, so factoring in some free play is always a good thing.
When we hold birthday parties at Imagiplay we do exactly the above. We factor in a 15 minute welcome play and a free play after the activity and before food, this allows all the children to get settled. We’ve noticed that many arrive feeling very shy and this welcome free play alleviates those feelings as they become absorbed in our unique themed play area. We then allocate up to 45 minutes for our main activity, in reality it’s rare we will use the whole 45 minutes as children will struggle to maintain their attention on the activity for that long. That’s OK though, children are welcome to get down and play at any time. Sometimes they just need a five minute break and then they’ll get right back to it.
Top Tip 3 – Hire an Entertainer or Venue
Entertaining a room full of children is harder than it looks. If you don’t have the confidence to hold the room (we aren’t all born entertainers) then it may be wise to hire an entertainer or look at venues that offer party packages. This of course means you’ll have to put up some funds, however when paying for an entertainer or venue, you are paying for their skill set and their expertise in entertaining children (so you don’t have to).
It’s always wise to do your research on any entertainer or venue, have a look at their reviews and take a look at their social media following. You’ll get a feel and overview of who’s good and who isn’t and don’t be afraid to ask questions.
Our party packages are designed to make things super simple, you only need to arrive with the birthday cake and birthday child of course. We will do everything else for you, making your birthday party as stress free as possible.
Top Tip 4 – Allow Extra Time
If you are organising your own birthday party then allow double the time you think you’d need to set up and clear down. There will always be some sort of issue, whether it be you’ve forgotten something and need to pop home again or you can’t get the heating to work etc. Allowing yourself extra time gives you leeway for anything that may crop up. No one wants to end up a stressed, flustered mess right before guests arrive. Ideally you should of allowed enough time that you can sit and have a quick cuppa before people start arriving, you’ll then be able to greet everyone in a calm state and get to the party fun.
Finally Top Birthday Party Tip 5 – Scrap the Party Bags
Party bags are a thing of the past! Don’t stress over themed party bags, buying lots of little plastic toys which just end up getting thrown or broken. Keep it simple by going for children’s books or colouring books. The Works do fab bundle deals which keeps costs super low. Alternatively why not set up a pick n mix of sweets, give them a paper bag and let them have it at the sweets and make their own sweetie bag to take home. Nice and simple.
I hope my 5 top birthday party tips helps you to have a more stress free party!