FTM and birthday party - help!

[Bangpennylane]

My daughter will be turning 4 in a few months time and I've booked a party for her - I've only ever done family tea parties at home (no kids, just grandparents etc) and I'm so anxious. She's specifically asked for a party and is already so excited. We don't have any kids in the family (no siblings, cousins, etc) and the friends I do have with kids are mainly either babies or a lot older and unlikely to be interested in a 4 year olds party. Therefore I'll be inviting 70% nursery friends - I don't know a soul at nursery as due to work I rarely do drop offs and pick ups. I am so scared nobody will turn up! I've asked her keyworker for 10-12 names of kids she plays with regularly and plan to send out invites 4 weeks before. Does this sound right?

Absolutely petrified she'll turn up to her party and barely anyone will come. Please give me your tips and reassurance! She has been invited to a party next month so I'm praying I can get chatting to some parents there in readiness!

How many children are you hoping for? Generally, people will come to a party if invited, but it depends on the date/time (if over a school holiday when people will be away or at like 4pm on a Tuesday when lots of parents may be working). Assuming you haven’t chosen a tricky date/time, I’d assume you’ll get 80%. If you need to make up certain numbers, it’s something to consider. For example, if only 8 from nursery RSVP, will that be okay?

Another thing to consider, especially with this age group, is what to do about siblings? It’s likely that many of them will have a sibling who might not be able to be left with anyone else. Is it possible to accommodate siblings? You don’t have to pay for them or feed them, but are they allowed in the venue? Can the parent pay for them to join in (like soft play entry)? That may impact your numbers in both directions depending on what you are able to do.

To make life easy, I always do cake in party bags. But you can serve it there if no other sweet treats. Lots of venues will provide biscuits or ice cream or similar and then cake on top is too much. Definitely do party bags. Kids love them and the signal it’s time to leave.

Try to get other parents numbers at the party in a few weeks if you are inviting their children. It will mean you can follow up if necessary, if they don’t respond in time, which you may need to do because invites get lost at bottoms of bags.

Thank you so much for your reply.

I am really hopeful the party in a few weeks will be my gateway to getting to know the parents! One of my worries is not being able to chase up RSVPs if I don't have numbers 😥

The max we can have as part of our package is 22 I believe - if I had 12 kids there I would be happy! Including a few of my own friends kids. It's on a weekend in November so not in any holidays so hopefully that's easier for people. Not sure about siblings, very good point. I only have one child so hadn't factored this in! I will need to ask the venue.

Genuinely don't know what I'll do if I send out invites and don't hear much back...but I guess everyone has to go through this worry with the first party they do right?!