5 Ways To Throw An Inexpensive Birthday Party When You’re A Busy Mom
My husband and I are gearing up for our youngest daughter’s 2nd birthday. It dawned on me how very quickly she is growing! She loves to dance, talk, sing, loves CocoMelon, loves to laugh HARD, and she loves her sisters, her brother, and of course her Mommy and Daddy. And she will be starting daycare soon!
Since her birthday is coming up very soon, and my husband I like to keep it simple (we have to, with 5 kids!) here are 5 ways to throw an inexpensive birthday party, especially when you’re a busy mom!
1- Stock Up On Gifts Throughout The Year
So this is one thing that I absolutely love about my Husband. He is definitely the planner, and I am more of the go with the flow type. I have been slightly better because of him, but, wow. I’m definitely a procrastinator and he is a thinker and a planner, and he utilizes all of his resources all of the time for everything he does.
One of the things I am so grateful for is how we handle our kids’ birthdays because of this. Throughout the year, we both (but mainly him), grab all kinds of things he finds on sale. He finds them at stores, online, and thrift stores. We stock up, and when it comes time for their birthday, we already have it!
Stocking up whenever you see something is such a game-changer! Also, search the internet months in advance for the best-priced things! This can be Amazon, Walmart, E-bay…wherever. Don’t just look at the first thing you see, either! See if you can get it for a better price somewhere else. Wait, maybe all mothers do this already…(or not?)
2- Invite Only The People You Know Will Come To The Party
So this is a little hard. I know, when I was a first-time mom I wanted to invite EVERYONE to the birthday party. But then, I just ended up disappointed that next to no one showed up except for a few people.
I found that inviting close family and friends works the best. You get the most accurate headcount so you know exactly who to expect. Also, if they can’t make it, they will normally let you know versus just not showing up which is just courteous!
3- Opt For The Easy Foods
Try and think of inexpensive, easy-to-please foods like hot dogs, pizza, and tacos. I know there is more, but that gives you an idea! For us, whenever we celebrate a birthday for the kids we normally get pizza. They love it, we love it, and it’s less inexpensive than having 5 other types of food, and it just works!
I highly suggest sticking with something easy, if you can. Sticking with easy-to-please foods is also a time-saver, you don’t have to cook! (Unless your child requests homemade pizza, like mine did last year! But we saved that for just us!)
Here are some inexpensive birthday party food ideas:
- Pizza
- Tacos
- Chicken Wings
- Hot Dogs
- Hamburgers
4- Utilize The Things You Already Have At Home
Okay, if you are anything like me you have a box somewhere full of games that are NEVER played. Get them out!! Don’t waste money on party ideas you find online when you have perfectly good games sitting in that box! And guess what? When the party is over, the kids will want to play again! And again! Until they forget about it, that is! If you don’t have any games, check your local thrift stores!
Don’t just stop at the games! Do you have decorations? Maybe a picture that will pop that you forgot to hang up? A decoration you can put on the table? Find those things that you already have and make them work!
There are so many things that you probably forgot about, so about a month before maybe take a good look around to just remind yourself that you already have it at home so now you don’t have to go out and buy it! Or maybe you thought you had something but it turns out you don’t. Works like a charm both ways!
5- Don’t Go Crazy On Decorations
Personally, I used to want to buy all of the decorations. But I knew that as soon as that party was over, they’d be in the trash. Sure, I could save them, but would I really use them again? Of course, we try to save everything we can but still, I just wouldn’t want to re-use birthday decorations if I didn’t HAVE to.
But that’s just me being weird, and probably selfish…because is totally doable to save your decorations (and we did when we used to buy them). But what else happens? The table cloths get torn, balloons get popped (I just go with A FEW balloons instead of a lot!), and other decorations get ruined. What I like to do is just get a few simple decorations and call it a day! They have really inexpensive themed party decor on Amazon, depending on what your theme is.
Let’s recap on how to throw an inexpensive birthday party:
- Stock Up On Gifts Throughout The Year
- Invite Only People You Know Will Come To The Party
- Opt For The Easy Foods
- Utilize The Things You Already Have At Home
- Don’t Go Crazy On Decorations
And what I like to remember when it comes to planning birthdays, is it’s not about what we buy for them or how “cool” their party turns out to be, but it’s about what they will remember which is the time spent and memories made. Even when they do remember the decorations, food, etc, the memories will always win!
Remember that all of us mothers throw birthday parties differently! For instance, all of our close friends and family know that when you get invited to one of our kid’s birthdays, there is about a 90% chance that there will be pizza.
Bottom line, it really doesn’t matter if you throw a cheap, inexpensive birthday or not. What matters is that your child feels loved and appreciated on their special day, and that can look so many ways.
Remember to breathe, take a breath. You are a wonderful busy mom who is totally capable of pulling this off! God has your back!
What ways do you throw an inexpensive birthday party? Tell me in the comments!
