5 Tips for a Stress-Free and Low-Cost 1st B-Day Party!
Besides hitting a record for the number of hyphens in a blog title, my baby girl turned 1! We had a risky but successful birthday party and did NOT break the bank, so I thought I would share my tips and tricks to help you do the same. The party was risky in the sense that it was outdoors and the weather called for scattered severe thunderstorms… all day. We got to the park to set up the decorations, the rain was coming down, and I immediately let go of my expectations of having a good hair day.
We had a pavilion reserved, thank goodness, but the pavilion had these fancy openings at the top which looked nice but were not practical for keeping people dry... This overlooked detail had me starting to get nervous, but I stayed calm, assigned jobs to all the helpers there, and before I knew it, the rain stopped and I could relax and start greeting guests. The rain held off and the party was a huge success, but I have 5 tips to share with you that fit in a small budget and will work rain or shine
Number 1: Do all you can to abstain from hosting the party at your house. This is because
there are three stages of stress you can avoid if you don’t host. Before the party, you have the stress of getting the house cleaned and ready for guests, which, if you have a little one or multiple ones, you know that this could be a multi-day process if your standards are high. Stress stage number two is during the party. Most houses are pretty sectional which means there usually isn’t a space to fit everyone at the same time. This leads to people forming groups like in high school. It’s fine for this to happen, but it could lead it to be awkward for those guests who can’t immediately identify their clique. Then the third stage of hosting chaos, the cleanup. When you just want to stop, relax, and call it a day, you are surrounded by the aftermath of half-eaten plates, cans and cups galore, and half-hung decorations of whatever theme you decided to go with. I understand some parents don’t have a choice or they have an amazing space to host and it’s no problem, but for the general public… if you can avoid your house, do it!
Here is what you can do instead of your house that doesn’t break the bank: ask another friend or family member to host, rent a pavilion at a nearby park, or rent a nearby hall if it’s in winter or you’re not a fan of park parties (these can be inexpensive if you do your research).
This leads me to tip number 2: ask for help. We are all supermoms (or super dads), but it’s ok to delegate tasks that allow you to focus on less during this important day so you can enjoy it. If no one offers to help, then don’t be afraid to ASK for it. You’d be surprised at how many friends and family are willing to help contribute when given an invitation. As tasks popped into my head for the party, I made a note in my phone listing everything that was needed. I then assigned my husband, parents, and in-laws things that I knew were easy for them to do and that I didn’t feel like I needed to control. For those who love to micromanage everything, trust me when I say, just let go a bit. You don’t need to pick up all the food, you don’t need to prep and set up all the decorations, you don’t need to worry about the music or games because you’ve given that to someone else. At the end of the day, people are there to see your baby, say hi to some familiar faces, and eat some food. Their expectations are WAY lower than yours, so roll with it.
In speaking of lowering expectations, let’s talk about smash cakes. Tip number 3: smash cakes are overrated, create your own! I requested a quote on the most adorable, birch forest-themed smash cake and was blown away that they wanted $45 to make it. Someone also inquired in a Facebook group about smash cakes and I saw moms were paying close to $65 for a little smash cake! If you’re reading this and spent $80, please don’t take this as insulting or feel bad, I’m sure your cake was phenomenal and everything was perfect… but for those moms who haven’t yet made the smashable investment, here are some things to keep in mind.
Your baby won’t eat much of it… at all. My little one picked off the fruit and that was pretty much it. So try to think twice before spending a bunch of money and time on something they will just smash and play with. It is very tempting to go down the social media rabbit hole seeing other moms who bought something equivalent to the top tier of a wedding cake, but if you’re looking to cut down on the cost (and stress), this is an area where it’s very easy to do so.
You can find very inexpensive small cakes to smash at the grocery store, but I was particularly concerned about the sugar content of buying a store-made cake. I decided to try and make my own “healthy” cake (note: I’m not a baker… so if I could do this, anyone can). We bought a cheap, cute, small $5 cake from the grocery store just in case, but we ended up not needing it. My healthy CYO Smash cake turned out great (recipe found here), but I ended up using regular frosting for the ability to stick fruit on it which pretty much negated the low sugar efforts... but if you tried, I’m sure you could make a “healthy” low sugar topping that could be to your liking.
In the end, try to make your own smash cake or have a friend or family member make it as a contribution to the party, there is no need to spend a bunch of money on a smash cake, it’s WAY overrated. Also, don’t spend a bunch of money on a cake for everyone else too. I purchased a $20 sheet cake from Costco and guests couldn’t be happier! Except for those who wanted chocolate cake (Costco had only one choice, so I chose vanilla of course). If you get a cake from your local grocery store, I suggest doing half vanilla, half chocolate to appease all picky eaters.
Ok, that’s enough about cake! Let’s move on to tip number 4: Assign an amateur photographer. This is one thing I regret because I barely took any pictures myself. I had to go around asking friends and family after the fact to send me their pics. Sometimes you just want to live in the moment, and this was one of those times for me. However, if I wanted pictures, I should have asked certain people BEFORE the party. I emphasise “before” because at that moment, I wanted to ask someone but It is hard to break up conversations and ask them to stop what they’re doing and take pictures. For the less awkward and more effective approach, be proactive. You can even ask multiple people so that you have the whole event covered from start to finish. Most people have phones where the pictures are of excellent quality, but you can make it even easier by having a designated camera people use throughout the event so you have all the pictures on one device. In the end, you don’t need to pay for a photographer, but it is best to think ahead about this and know that it is a free way to capture some great moments!
My last tip for you is the best one... DO NOT open your presents at the party! If you plan to have a large gathering of more than 15 people, don’t even worry about opening the gifts during the event. I thanked the friends and family that gave us a gift, displayed them nicely in the corner of the pavilion, and people just left when they felt like they wanted to go. It was simple and perfect.
We took everything home and every day or every other day, we opened a new gift. In addition to thank-you cards, I took a short video and some pictures of her opening and playing with it, and then I sent the gift-giver the footage. They loved that special time the baby had with their gift and, in my opinion, it’s way better for your child. My daughter was tired and overwhelmed at the end of the party and I knew even trying to open gifts would have been a disaster. We let her fall asleep in her stroller while the adults continued to socialize and clean up.
I hope this reflection of my daughter’s first birthday party was helpful for you. I wouldn’t consider myself a very cheap person, but I want to spend my money on things that matter or last, and some of these things that social media blows out of proportion are just not necessary for a good time. Feel free to comment below on your favorite tip from this post or tag me on Instagram @wandermomdiaries if you have any other tips and tricks to share, and good luck!
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