Birthday party naïveté

[chaseisntonthecase]

Help! My DS been asking for a birthday party for his 5th birthday. His birthday is in about a month or so. I've never thrown a party before and have no idea where to start. I went to plenty as a child but never had one of my own so I'm a bit clueless.

I was thinking I might be able to fit a small bouncy castle in the garden and do a couple of party games, buffet and cake for just a small number of children. He is still at nursery and we couldn't fit all his class in our house so I thought maybe the half dozen he is closest to. I don't want the stress of hiring somewhere etc and there isn't a lot of soft play/party venue options where we live.

Is this impossible and am I being really naive about what's involved? Would parents normally stay at this age? His birthday would fall during the Easter holidays too, so is it even likely to be worth it if people are off?

It's not impossible and if you put some thought and planning into it it will be absolutely fine.

I had an at home party when dd was five and some stayed and some didn't. If you say 'I've got your number so don't feel you have to stay' then some parents will leave.

Five or six friends is enough. Put a date for RSVP on the invitations.

Write a list of traditional games and keep things moving.

Get the cake on the table as soon as possible. Don't wait till them have finished eating as some will leave before the main event otherwise. Get the candles lit and Happy Birthday sung.

It sounds OK, but what will you do if it rains?

My tips would be

Party at home

• 2 hour limit and hold it middle of the day so 11am- 1pm
• 1 Hr of them running about like the Duracell bunny
• 30 mins for party food, singing happy birthday and blowing out candles
• final 30 mins to cut up the cake and bag it while they do more zipping around and parents start to arrive to pick up.
• you don't need entertainment or party games, they really are content to just entertain themselves bouncing or playing. We always put some music on for any of them that wanted to dance but none ever stayed doing one thing for more than a couple of minutes.
• food, keep it simple and stick to a vegetarian menu. Always ask if anyone has any allergies on the invite. Assuming they don't this is what I generally do for food:

- sandwiches: jam or cheese - veg: cherry tomatoes, cucumber rounds - fruit: platter of berries - crisps: just a big multipack of own brand ones they can choose their flavour - plate of biscuits: Cadbury fingers, party rings, jammy dodgers, mini rolls - cupcakes

• if you want to get fancier with food and are ok with multi tasking and cooking while the kids are around

- several cheese and tomato pizzas - curly fries - cherry tomatoes and cucumber - ice cream sundae bar for pudding. Tub of neopolitan icecream then let them choose their flavour and out their own toppings on.

You do need to have a back up plan for bad weather, it could be gazebos/tents in the garden if you have them, or it could be an indoor disco and living room picnic for the food.

It is worth looking at local village halls/community centres as usually only £20-£30 an hour to hire.

We have also hired a room at the council leisure centre and they provided a bouncy castle, soft play equipment, giant games like connect4, tables and chairs. We just bought the food, banners and balloons. It was £115 for a 2 Hr party and we could have up to 30 kids so really reasonable.

Hiring somewhere is nowhere near as stressful as having a party in your house!

I would also suggest that hiring somewhere or going to a soft play is much less stressful but if you are happy to host at home then keep it small. I would get the invitations out asap and set a date by which to RSVP. Then at least you know how many you are catering for. At 5 many parents will stay but you can be clear that they're welcome to drop off if preferred.

We've just had a 5th birthday at home.
We hired an "Elsa" who entertained for two hours, had a variety of food (simple but well presented) and the cake. We kept it at 5 plus toddler DS as those are DD's best friends.
It rained (has been for weeks here) and we just let them loose with balloons, music and Elsa. They had an absolute ball.
Previously we've done park birthdays and hired-hall birthdays and this was honestly the least stressful one yet. The house was cleaned and tidied and we put up some decorations. It was such a relief not having to pack and cart everything to a different location, worry about the weather, and carry out a high level clean before we could leave with overtired dc.

Thanks everyone, what a lot to think of! I do think taking things to other venues etc would be too much stress. We have a almost one year old too and it would be nice to have the home comforts available for when he no doubt gets tired and cranky.

I'll have to have a think about what to do if it rains. Easter period is usually quite nice weather wise but we are in Scotland so you can't never be sure.

Food is the part that gives me the most anxiety tbh. I want something quick and simple that would please everyone

I personally prefer parties outside typical eating hours. The best we had was 2.30 - 4.30 with just cake and snacks instead of proper food which often doesn't get eaten.

Bouncy castle works, general party games are good at that age too.

If you're having it at home you need to be prepared for everyone to come inside if it rains. Also bouncy castles can only be used in dry weather with no wind.

I'd really recommend hiring a church or village hall for a couple of hours. They don't usually cost very much and the added value of not being stressed about your home or weather is generally worth every penny.

You could have a bouncy castle in the hall or just a load of balloons out to play with plus a few games. Concentration levels for 5 year olds are generally low, whereas energy levels are high. Usually they just like having space to run around in and some unhealthy party food.

At 5 parents often stay. A hall with tea and coffee facilities sorts out the parents too.

You can order in happy meals if you want simple (collect order on day, send DH to drive thru) or just do a buffet like spread like HalfShrunk says.

Check dietary requirements but TBH IME they will be too excited to eat too much so I wouldn't go overboard with food anyway. Sandwich, crisps, kid-friendly salad veg, crisps. Maybe some cheese cubes/sausage/sausage rolls, but you don't need all of them. Cake and ice cream. Two flavours of squash, water. Tea and coffee for accompanying adults.

I booked local soft play not the cheapest but private hire for up to 100 people so space for siblings. And £90 for hot food for 30, would be £45 if cold buffet
Plus we supply cake and sweet cones for party bags.

Turn up play eat walk away. No mess. No stress.