2nd birthday party

[mamabelle]

We have planned our son's 2nd birthday party for this coming Saturday and need some ideas or help!  We are having a large but casual (no theme, giftbags, etc) party at a park with picnic tables and a playground.  I hate packaging and garbage so am trying my best to avoid it in throwing this party.  What to do about food and drinks?

I am serving cupcakes so we don't have deal with plates and forks, but will provide napkins.  Last year we made big pitchers of lemonade and asked people to bring their own cups.  We brought a few, but several people didn't bring cups and couldn't drink anything!  There could be 30 people so I don't want to bring all of my cups from home and lug them back to wash.  One idea I have is to buy a set of durable plastic cups that will just be our party cups each year, but I'm hesitant to buy 30 as I think the parties will get smaller as he gets a bit bigger and we focus on his friends (right now it's like the one time a year we see much of our extended families).  What do others do about this?

Ideas for finger foods that won't require plates?  The party is before dinner, so we don't need much.  Veggies and dip, watermelon, and crackers and cheese is about all I've got right now, just wanted to see if anyone had any great ideas to share that the kids would get excited about.  I thought a big bowl of the cheddar bunnies or something, but is it too icky/germy for the kids to just  be reaching into a common bowl to snack instead of having individual dishes?

Also, is it weird to serve diluted apple juice or something as the drink?  My son likes the stevia-sweetened iced teas that celestial seasonings makes, but is fruity iced- tea a weird choice for a kid's birthday party?  

Thanks for any input you have, especially if you've BTDT!

[crunchy_mommy]

Grrr I just wrote a long response & lost it!!

FInger foods -- small sandwiches (you could even cut into shapes with cookie cutters), fruit kabobs, antipasto tray, tortilla wraps with veggies & hummus & cut into spirals...

I would not do diluted juice, I'd just put out a pitcher of full-strength juice & a pitcher of water & let parents dilute it themselves (some will, some won't). I think iced tea is great as an option, as long as there is water and juice also available, but I would not do JUST iced tea, some kids won't like that and some people react badly to stevia (I'm allergic!)

I'd probably get some small plates, it's easier for toddlers to eat from their own plates, and it helps parents see how much their kid is eating and to control what goes on the plate (esp. for kids with dietary restrictions or allergies). Plus it minimizes the number of half-eaten crackers that make their way back into the communal bowl! And I'd definitely get cups because obviously you want your guests to be able to drink (I wouldn't do BYO cup, that would be a huge hassle for some families!) Either just do disposable or get reusable ones... or you could get heavy-duty disposable ones that you can reuse for several years until they wear down -- it would be cheaper and more compact to store than reusable ones...

[mamabelle]

Thanks so much for your reply.  The party was right before dinner so I ended up keeping my original food ideas, but took your advice on small plates- very helpful for toddlers!  I decided to create a box for party supplies and bought some plates and bowls from Preserve that should last several years and are 100% recycled and recyclable!  I also bought some cups from Munchkin brand for the kids that are also very reusable.  And I took your advice and did not dilute the juice, but put apple juice and water side by side.  

I think by next year I'll have it down a bit better, thanks for the tips!

[crunchy_mommy]

No problem, glad the party was a success!