• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Women Deserve Better

Women Deserve Better: For us, that means better information, better support, and better choices. Life brings challenges. We bring empowerment, because we’ll never underestimate women.

  • Work
    • Find a Job
    • Build a Career
    • Take Maternity Leave
    • Thrive As a Working Parent
    • Know Your Rights at Work
  • Learn
    • Earn Your Degree As a Parent
    • Know Your Rights on Campus
    • Finance Your Education
    • Medical Care for Student Moms
    • Housing for Student Parents
    • Child Care While You’re In Class
  • Live
    • Child Care
    • Feeding Your Family
    • Elder Care
    • Housing
    • Clothes
    • Medical Care
    • Getting Around
    • Money Matters
    • Gardening
    • Special Needs
    • Fun
    • Self-Help
  • Love
    • Adoption
    • Bonding
    • Fathers
    • Your Parents
    • Support Networks
  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Contributors
  • Shop
    • Shop
    • View Cart/Checkout
  • Support Us
  • Donate
  • Home

5 Birthday Bash Ideas That Won’t Break the Bank

August 27, 2019 by Bethanie Ryan

girl celebrating her birthday

As a little girl growing up in California, I have fond memories of my 10th birthday, when my parents spread out snow (Halloween spider webs) and draped little pieces of “icicle” (I think they were “beads by the roll”) for friends to collect as part of a winter themed party. With just a few simple touches, our home was transformed into a winter wonderland in my eyes. We hope these tips help you to make your daughter or son’s birthday one s/he will never forget—all without going over budget. 

  1. Invitations: Evites. 

Invitations can be substituted with evites. Many websites offer free invitation designing and sending like evite.com, smilebox.com, and punchbowl.com. The invitations look great and often include a built-in RSVP function so you can keep track of who is coming. However, if you choose to send thank-you notes after the party, it’s a good idea to use real paper notes.

  1. Theme: Get creative. 

When choosing a theme, don’t be afraid to keep it simple (winter, water, etc.) or to be creative (slime, or backwards-day). If your kid loves Moana, opt for a generic but still fabulous luau or island theme to avoid buying the expensive napkins and plates printed with the character. Instead, try to choose solid colors that go with the theme.

  1. Decorations: DIY and reusable.

Keeping a roll (or two) of crepe paper streamers and a generic but festive “Happy Birthday” banner in the pantry makes it easy to given even a low-key family birthday dinner festive flair. Streamers make great backdrops or table skirts, and they can also be used for activities like a mummy wrap or a streamer fashion show. Solid color balloons can become fireworks when filled with confetti and then popped, or be transformed into puffer fishes, watermelons, or ghosts with some stickers or marker/paint.

  1. Entertainment that doubles as a party favor. 

In one blow, you can knock out both the question of entertainment and fulfill the general population’s expectation of birthday party favors. Maybe it’s putting out sticks and glitter for wand-crafting, or sending kids looking for “gold” (painted rocks) around the yard for a pirate party. Homemade photo booths are a fun activity that you can throw together with a phone/camera and old Halloween costumes. Photos last a whole lot longer than the average party favor, and kids and parents alike will treasure them.

  1. Skip the meal; stick to cake and ice cream.

If you plan your party for a time that no one will be expecting a meal (mid-afternoon), then you save all the money you would otherwise spend on feeding the crowd of hungry children. Instead, put out standard salty party snacks like chips and maybe some themed snacks (e.g. gummy sharks for a pirate/mermaid party). It’s a good idea to avoid peanuts for the sake of young children with allergies. The birthday cake doesn’t have to cost more than a box or two of cake mix if you make your own. Food can become part of the entertainment if you have the kids make the ice cream at the party (check out this ice cream maker disguised as a ball!) or if you give the kids cupcakes to decorate themselves.

At the end of it all, the birthday party is a celebration of your child. Regardless of how the party goes, if s/he feels celebrated and loved, the birthday is a success. We hope these tips help make the big day a little less stressful and a little more focused on achieving that goal. 🙂

By Annemarie Arnold

Filed Under: Fun, Live Tagged With: birthday, budgeting, celebration, fun on a budget, party

Primary Sidebar

Suggested Articles

Celebrating on a Budget

6 Budget-Friendly Ideas for Family Fun

10 Affordable Ways to Entertain Your Kids

Please follow & like us :)

fb-share-icon

Footer

Women Deserve Better

22 hours ago

Women Deserve Better
At least they're curious?😂 ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

Women Deserve Better

2 days ago

Women Deserve Better
Who is cutting the onion? 🥲I’m sharing this on the grid, because we all need a laugh.So this is not a poem.It’s about poo.And not even my child's poo.This is a story about the glamorous life of me right now.I'll keep it short, much shorter than my trip to the toilet.Both the kids were having screen time because quite frankly I had had enough and was at my limit, the move has been a lot and we were all a bit overwhelmed.Heidi had decided she wouldn't do her nap in the bassinet & so I strapped her in the carrier, seems to be the norm these days.Only, her nap lasted much longer than I had anticipated. An hour went by & the urge to pee was too great, yet so was the urge to not wake her.After careful consideration I thought I would attempt going to the toilet with her strapped in, surely I could manoeuvre all I needed to, and with a slight sway while weeing she may even stay asleep.Mother's can do anything right....But no, my body had other plans.Code brown alert.Not too far along post birth it was safe to say there would be no holding back. My mind was saying no... everything all postpartum down there was saying hell YES.So here I was, sitting on the toilet at my nanas house, kids out in the lounge while I was stuck on the toilet with my baby strapped to me taking a twosie.Other than the fact this was not my plan at all (and pretty unsanitary), she started to wake, of course she did.Now, unloading a baby from a carrier at the same time you're unloading timber is quite the awkward art. But here we were, my gorgeous little baby in my arms, carrier and pants at my feet with her apologetic mum just trying to finish what she unintentionally started.Luckily it was all smiles from her.I cooed & talked to her like it was totally normal for her to wake up in this little echoey room with her mum feeding the fish, and then it happened...her first official laugh.What a moment to behold.This is the way I live. This is what I do.Baby milestone book: place and date of first laugh 🚽✔️When Drew got home from work I needed a moment, just one moment alone to regain some dignity.I went to hand her over & he said,"yep just give me a moment to pee first" 🫠Art: @this_mama_doodles ... See MoreSee Less

Photo

View on Facebook
· Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email

womendeservebetter

Getting ready in the morning. #mommeme #mommemes Getting ready in the morning.

#mommeme #mommemes #parenting #parentingishard #parentingmeme #parentingmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes
Nothing quite as frustrating as your kid refusing Nothing quite as frustrating as your kid refusing to clean up. 

#mommeme #mommemes #parentingmeme #parentingmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes
True story. Me: Time for bed! Toddler: I'm going True story.

Me: Time for bed!

Toddler: I'm going to make this way harder than it needs to be.

#mommeme #mommemes #parentingmeme #parentmemes #dadmeme #dadmemes #bedtime #bedtimeishard #bedtimewithtoddlers #bedtimewithtoddler
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Thanks for signing up!

GET OUR LATEST NEWS

ABOUT

  • Our Mission
  • Contributors

SUPPORT US

  • Donate
  • Become a Partner
  • Share Your Story or Your Expertise
  • Promote Women Deserve Better

Women Deserve Better: For us, that means better information, better support, and better choices. Life brings challenges. We bring empowerment, because we’ll never underestimate women.

Copyright © 2023 — Feminists for Life of America • All rights reserved.