You’ve taken the brave step of agreeing to host a child’s party. Maybe it’s your child or grandchild. Maybe it’s a friend’s kid and they just guilt-tripped you into it because you have a big yard. In any case, once you’ve gotten over the regret and the panic, it’s time to get down to business and ensure that you’re ready to throw a great party!
You want everyone to have a good time, including the parents. You also want to keep them confined to the yard, where they won’t stain your new sofa or pull your cat’s tail (and that’s just the adults). So, you check the weather and start your preparations, considering all the following accessories and ideas for hosting a great child’s party:
Go With a Theme
Before you think about what colored balloons to buy and how to decorate the cake, you need to create a theme.
Are you opting for something easy, simple, and general? A splash of color here, some music there—who needs a theme?
Or are you going with a theme that the birthday boy or girl really likes?
A theme can make the party come to life. It gives you a foundation on which to build and it will also make the kids excited. You can request that they dress in relevant costumes and even invite some entertainers along to make the day complete.
In any case, the theme should be established early, as it will make everything that follows much easier.
Bounce Houses, Slides, and Ball Pits
You make a certain kind of commitment when you buy or rent a bounce house, and it’s a commitment that most parents regret very quickly.
On the surface, it seems like a great idea. Sure, it’s costly and it takes up a lot of space, but everyone loves bounce houses, right?
The day usually begins with a few kids having perfectly harmless fun. There is laughing, joking, screaming, and the bounce house is packed to the brim. You’re a little worried that there are too many of them inside, but it seems to be going okay.
Then, out of nowhere, one of the kids vomits everywhere, covering the others in a slimy mess of undigested birthday cake. When the mess is cleaned up and the traumatized kids are reassured, an adult invariably drinks too much, decides to join the kids, and then injures themselves or breaks the bounce house.
By the end of the night, you’re apologizing profusely to the other parents and panicking about your security deposit.
Of course, that’s just a worst-case scenario, but as per Murphy’s Law: if something can go wrong, it will.
Other options to consider include inflatable slides and inflatable ball pits. They are a little less problematic and they can be purchased/rented on their own or alongside the bounce house.
If you opt for any of these, make sure you set some ground rules, understand weight/user limits, and don’t let any kids bounce around soon after eating.
Encourage their Creativity
Turn your party into an exploration of creativity—drawing, crafting, cooking. This is where the theme comes into play a little. If it’s all about magic, you can hire a magician and have the kids perform their own tricks as well. If it’s about pirates, they can put on a little play, draw peg-legged pirates, and learn about epic swashbuckling adventures.
You’re not just giving them copious amounts of sugar and letting them loose. You’re giving them something to think about, something to create. Of course, their interest will depend on their age.
You can keep some younger children interested with crafting, arts, and stories, but you might struggle to interest pre-teens and you’ll get nothing but sneers and eye-rolls from teenagers.
Organize a Backyard Movie Night
Hang a white sheet, grab a projector, throw some pillows and blankets on the ground, and prepare for your very own movie night.
If you have a theme, you can watch movies based on that theme.
What’s better than watching a few Pirates of the Caribbean or Peter Pan flicks while all the kids are dressed as pirates and adventurers?
If you’re trying to appease teenagers, make the theme a horror or action one and let them cosplay as their favorite protagonists while watching classic action/horror films.
A good projector could cost you around $200 to $300. There are much more expensive options on the market, but this should be enough for an HD projector. Once you have the unit, you just need to link it to your Netflix or Amazon account and then stream away!
If you’re not keen on the idea of draping a white sheet between trees or pinning it to your house, you can buy 20ft inflatable TV screens from Amazon. They are not cheap (around $250) but they will give you a massive screen onto which you can project films.
It will be like having your very own cinema in your backyard!
Low-Cost Furniture (for the Kids)
You don’t want to spend good money on furniture that will only be used by kids.
That sounds much crueler than intended, but you know where we’re coming from.
Aesthetics aren’t that important, and it’s all about durability and ease of cleaning. It’s still important to get something that is well made, but if you opt for expensive woods and upholsteries, you’ll regret it by the end of the day when those throws are covered in jelly and the furniture is peppered with bubblegum and what you hope is chocolate.
Plastic furniture is a good option here, as is the poly lumber that we sell at Seven Summers. These materials are wipe-clean and weather-resistant. Just remember to grab an umbrella if you’re throwing a party in the summer, otherwise, you’ll have a lot of little sunburnt faces and arms to deal with.
For more information, take a look at our guide to buying outdoor furniture for kids.
High Quality Furniture (for the Adults)
You’re going to need somewhere for the parents to sit. In fact, you’ll probably need more furniture for the adults. Not only will there probably be more adults than kids, but they’re often a little less willing to sit on the grass or spend their time standing, walking, and running.
If you’re catering for a lot of people, opt for benches instead of chairs. They are large enough to seat three or four people and are small enough to work on most patios and in most lawns. If you just have a handful of people and a small space, a few chairs should suffice.
You can buy throws, pillows, and cushions, as well. Outdoor furniture is made to withstand the elements and if you shop smartly, you’ll be able to keep those furnishings outside through wind, snow, rain, and sun.
When money is tight, grab some chairs from inside the house, pick up a stool or two, and use storage boxes and coolers as makeshift seats.
Outdoor Games
A few lawn games and other outdoor games will keep the kids busy, and the adults satisfied throughout the day.
Lawn games are often just giant versions of the games that we all know and love, including Jenga, Twister, and Darts. You can also play Horseshoe, Cornhole, and other classics. For something a little different, and much more budget-friendly, grab a few sponge balls and play a game of Dodgeball instead.
Alternatively, just ask the kids what they want to play and then go along with it, inviting the parents to participate as well.
Plastic Dinnerware and Drinkware
Not only is plastic dinnerware much more durable than stoneware and ceramics, but it’s considerably more cost-effective. If you’re throwing a party for dozens of people, you don’t want to drop hundreds of dollars of plates, bowls, and glasses that are only going to be used that one time, before being stored away in the basement where they’ll gather dust until the next big birthday.
At the same time, disposable paper plates can seem a little cheap. They’re also a nuisance, and by the end of the party, those plates will be scattered all over your lawn having been dropped, thrown, or blown off of tables.
Acrylic dinnerware and glassware will set you back around $50 for a complete set, one that is large enough to ensure that everyone is catered for. At the end of the night, you can wash them and store them. Sure, they’re still going to end up gathering dust, but at least they haven’t left you several hundred bucks out of pocket.
Candies and Cakes
Every party needs a cake or a stack of cupcakes. You should also keep plenty of sweet treats to hand, from popular candies to homemade sweets, and more. If you’re hosting a movie night, a few big bags of popcorn will suffice. If you have lots of little kids in attendance, just fill some bowls with a variety of mini treats.
And remember, if you’re renting or buying a bounce house, don’t let your guests fill up on candy and soda before they remove their shoes and start bouncing.