Help! Birthday Party for a 4 year old....

TVA

Oh and if you do party bage - pop to the supermarket and you can buy tiny packs of crayons and notebooks for about 18p each or mr men type books , couple of chocolate type things and you are sorted. I never waste money on plastic toys as they do go in the bin. notebooks and books at least get used.

Treacle_2-2

Thanks so much for all the replies, made very interesting reading!! - think I'll be opting for the soft play this year. Maybe I'll be brave enough next year for the explosion at home!

sooty&sweep

Hi

Another vote for a play area.

However if you choose to do your own and your own catering then I would advise that you keep the food simple.

The children will not care if you've spent the entire day making huge numbers of sandwiches. My experience is they either take one bite and leave the rest or they pull the filling out and leave the bread and they'll only eat approx a quarter of what you think they'll eat and you'll end up with lots of leftovers. They'll eat enough to put something in their tummy and then off to play again.

In the past I've done hotdogs + packet of crisps + choc mini roll + carton of juice and it's always gone down well.

My daughters last birthday party was 2 - 4pm so too late for lunch but too early for tea. So I did sausage rolls and bowls of chopped cucumber, carrot sticks, raisins and grapes, crisps & biscuits etc.

In terms of party bags The Book People do big packs of childrens books which are good for party bags with a few sweets etc.

Hope it goes well what ever you choose to do.

Jen

Felicity

I don't like the idea of do it at home (unless you know all very well behaved children) or soft play areas, as another poster said, they all go off in their own ways and it is not so much of a party. Do you have a local farm park or similar? We did a farm park for my little boys 3rd with a farm guide and all had a fab time.

mum2twinsx2

I dread birthday parties even going to ones at home as it`s always so chaotic.
My dd`s birthday party is in softplay centre so they can run round like mad things and someone else gets to clean up. We only have to sort invites, party bags and cake. Stress free.

mum2twinsx2

I dread birthday parties even going to ones at home as it`s always so chaotic.
My dd`s birthday party is in softplay centre so they can run round like mad things and someone else gets to clean up. We only have to sort invites, party bags and cake. Stress free.

Katgoddess

We've just had a party for our 3 year old, where our guests were friends and their kids, so slightly different to your scenario. We hired the biggest bouncy castle that would fit in our garden (a bounce and slide), plus our usual play house, toddler slide, and ball pool, and that was the whole entertainment for the afternoon. They absolutely loved it.

MIL made sausage rolls, rice krispie cakes, and cheese straws. I made 2x (Mary Berry's Can't Go Wrong) chocolate birthday cakes and mini fairy cakes (from cake mix ). Plus ham, cheese, and bread for parents to make their own sandwiches, and the usual sausages, crisps, party rings and chocolate fingers. Drinks was squash for the kiddies, and coke and lemonade for the adults. A few beers were handed out as well. My plan B for rain was the ball pool inside and MORE WINE!

The party bag was box of raisins, lollipop, v small cadburys choc bar, aeroplane (can't think of their name but they are flatpack and you build it yourself - from Hawkins Bazzar or Ebay) bouncy ball, and party noise maker thing.

Decorations was bunting and leftover flags from the royal wedding. Expensive, but I plan on reusing them for a few years.

We had a fab afternoon (would have been awful if it rained!) and plan on doing something similar next year - but will need to rethink a few things, as he'll be in school.

Treacle_2-2

Apologies firstly, couldn't find my previous thread!

After much deliberation on what & where would be best to do for my little girl's 4th birthday party (and my first at organising one!!) I have decided home is definitely out this year!! The other option was the local soft play but I'm aware it isn't so much like a 'party' as the little ones can all go their own way! Now, someone did mention about local open farms etc. We have a local exotic animal refuge which is actually only open to the public for 6 days a year. I have just phoned them and they would be happy for an unlimited party (within reason) of little ones to go there for £50 for a walk around the place for an hour. That is our budget and I am just wondering how it would go down with parents - I really like the idea of the money being spent for a worthwhile cause, I know it is not a party as such but hopefully it would be something different for both children and parents. I also like the idea of it not being very long - it could be arranged for mid morning or afternoon without mealtimes being involved!! Does that sound mean of me? we are just on such a tight budget as we currently have no income :-(

CH27

Treacle wrote: »

Apologies firstly, couldn't find my previous thread!

After much deliberation on what & where would be best to do for my little girl's 4th birthday party (and my first at organising one!!) I have decided home is definitely out this year!! The other option was the local soft play but I'm aware it isn't so much like a 'party' as the little ones can all go their own way! Now, someone did mention about local open farms etc. We have a local exotic animal refuge which is actually only open to the public for 6 days a year. I have just phoned them and they would be happy for an unlimited party (within reason) of little ones to go there for £50 for a walk around the place for an hour. That is our budget and I am just wondering how it would go down with parents - I really like the idea of the money being spent for a worthwhile cause, I know it is not a party as such but hopefully it would be something different for both children and parents. I also like the idea of it not being very long - it could be arranged for mid morning or afternoon without mealtimes being involved!! Does that sound mean of me? we are just on such a tight budget as we currently have no income :-(

Then why have a party?
edited. I hope this doesn't sound harsh.

BitterAndTwisted

I agree with CH27: if funds are limited you have absolutely no obligation to provide a party. At four years old a special outing or treat with the family should be sufficient. Parties are a horribly expensive merry-go-round and I don't think you should feel obligated to get on it if you don't want to or can't. You could be letting yourself into encouraging all sort of unrealistic expectations in the future, in any case. Whatever happened to a small gift and a trip for an ice-cream?