Are you planning to celebrate your child’s birthday on a budget? If yes, then you are in luck. You absolutely do not have to empty your bank account to throw your child a decent birthday party. With some creativity and do-it-yourself mindset, you can slash costs, have a memorable kids’ birthday party, all without compromising the fun and of course all on a budget. That said, you’re welcome to check out these ideas on how to successfully celebrate your child’s birthday on a budget.
The Earlier, The Better
If you select your date (maybe a more party-friendly day), theme, and venue early enough, you’ll have more time to wait for and take advantage of promotions and sales, adjust a lot, and have enough time to consider and decide what’s really important on that list. Besides, asides the gift(s) you’ll buy for your child, you need to consider the number of people to invite, whether you’ll be serving Jollof and fried rice or small chops and drinks; where the party will be located and how much the venue will cost, outfits, logistics, all that. Planning in advance allows you to actualise a well-thought-out, you can say the best budget for your child’s birthday on a budget
A Working Budget
If you say you don’t want to empty your bank account on your kid’s birthday party and mean it, a key place to start is getting a functional budget and make a commitment to stick to it.
First, you want to carefully consider how much you want to spend in total- attach a price tag on everything you need to purchase, it may be a really close estimate of everything you need to purchase, and by all means, no matter what comes up, stick to it.
Set a Strategic Party Time That Isn’t Around Mealtimes
This is Nigeria, and those who know, know that food is the next priority after the birthday celebrant.
When planning a kid’s birthday party on a budget, food and cake can take up a large chunk of the funds you have to spend.
First, set a limit on the party’s duration. This way you won’t have to feed kids all day. Scheduling the party between regular mealtimes could also help you throw your kid’s birthday party on a budget. If your party is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., for instance, the guests may be satisfied with being served a snack and drink, versus a heavy lunch or dinner. Also, instead of buying, you can try to bake/cook up some by yourself. But if you’re like me, and cooking isn’t really your thing, consider buying food in bulk from a warehouse store.
Take over the Decorations
This is a fun, money-saving activity to do ahead of time with the birthday child and in fact, the rest members. Kids love to paint and play with shapes and colours. In my opinion, it is an excellent way to set the tone for the birthday celebrations and charge up the atmosphere with laughter and airiness. Yes, it can be as beautiful or colorful as you wish it to be without you overstretching your bank account balance.
Don’t try to do it all
What’s the point of a relationship if not for times when they are needed? Let your brother-in-law man the pool or be in charge of hanging all designs and balloons up. The lesson here is leveraging on your network of friends and family to curb costs. “Ask to borrow your friend’s bounce house, some of their kid’s toys, or even make it a potluck and ask them to each come along with something,” Holden says.
Host a Home Party
If it’s a top priority to avoid busting your budget, rebuke the temptation to book an amusement center that may run you a N100 or more thousands. Stay on budget, save big by hosting the party at your residence and shopping online. With a few decorations and adjustments here and there, you can turn your living room, garage or even your backyard into a great party space. You can do without moving it to any of those locations with fancy names. Remember, planning a soft-budget birthday party for your kid should be about maximizing fun while minimizing the stress of every kind.
Go for a Budget-Friendly Theme
Those plans to stay on a budget and have a low-key birthday celebration can get a little more complicated if your child wants a specific theme that requires buying expensive custom decorations and outfits. If for instance, the theme is centered around a cartoon character, that is you buying branded decorations, and you’ll pay to spend more on that. Instead, you can use more generic themes, for example, a jungle theme in place of a ‘Tarzan’ theme.
Read also how to plan your child’s first birthday with ease
Make a Featured Activity the Party Favor
As much as you don’t want to send your guests home without a goody bag, this should last reason to start to fret. You have committed no crime by not wanting a red account balance in the name of a birthday party. The way around this particular one is to make the activity become the party favor. If you choose an activity like candle making, Ankara wrapping, etc., then this becomes the take-home favor. No need to buy additional goody bags. Are you planning to celebrate your child’s birthday on a budget? If yes, then you are in luck as this is another great way to celebrate your child’s birthday on a budget
Combine Birthday Celebrations for Multiple Kids
If you also plan to celebrate your child’s birthday on a budget, you can simply choose to throw a joint party with his sibling or playmate and split the cost. No doubt, this won’t work for everyone, but if your child’s best friend’s birthday is around the same time, it can be a smart way to save. You can also team up with some friends whose kids’ birthdays are around the same day and buy, then shop in bulk and then split the supplies among each other to trim overall costs.
Opt for Free Entertainment
You don’t have to hire a clown or a celebrity entertainer to host a memorable party. There are a thousand other ways to improvise. You could organise some games and have your kid and guests play musical chairs, pin the tail on the donkey, charades, freeze tag, the telephone game, a dance or sing-off challenge. You could also organize a game of hide-and-seek outside or create an obstacle course for the kids to run through. It’s easy for adults to forget how many children’s games there are that are not only free but a lot of fun.
Keep the Number of Guests Low
If you want to have a budget-friendly birthday celebration, inviting everyone you know doesn’t sound like a very good plan. As a parent, you want to make your child’s birthdays as memorable as possible. But sometimes, throwing a lavish party just doesn’t fit into your financial picture.
Take consolation in the reality that when you have a smaller group to host, you can afford to spend more per person and have an awesome experience, rather than having a ton of guests and trying to accommodate that group with your smaller budget.
Keep it simple and lively, there are so many other birthdays on their way.
