My daughter is turning five in May and I am looking for some ideas on how to make her birthday party with her friends simpler and more meaningful. I don't want the kids to bring any gifts and I don't want to do goodie/loot bags, so any alternatives to those would be great. I would also love to hear some ideas of games and creative activities to keep them busy and having fun.
Birthday Parties
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
Joined
·
527 Posts
What theme were you thinking of? What is your daughter into?
Joined
·
2,957 Posts
Crafts at a party are fun, because then the kids do get to take something home, but it's something they made themselves. Like necklaces, a plant/seed in a little pot that they paint themselves, a canvas bag that they decorate with fabric markers/paints, etc.
Joined
·
5,274 Posts
It's really hard to get guests to not bring gifts, even if you ask them not to they'll want to anyway a lot of the time. Maybe request books? As for activities, what does your daughter like? Gardening? Cooking? Building? Any particular dress-up theme? Go with a craft that goes along with her interests.
Joined
·
3,440 Posts
So in the past we just have get togethers (no theme) in the yard with food and no gifts (we did the bring something for the SPCA)
But DS has been to a few big parties (back story here) as his friends turn 5 this year and he doesn't like how people feel left out in big groups, presents are tossed on the table, no special time with the birthday friend.
So here is the idea we came up with that we're doing this year...
Birthday month (more like a couple of weeks).
The idea is that every time we have a playdate during those couple of weeks, we have a mini party. No gifts, no fuss, just have some cupcakes and a candle on the ready so the little ones can have some chocolate bliss together. Then on the actual day we do a big family thing. DS has requested a camping trip.
we did this recently with a friend who celebrates the same way and DS loved it! He did several handmade special items for the birthday girl and loved that he got to present them to her, one on one, and have time with her and eat chocolate with her. Low key, special, sane,
But DS has been to a few big parties (back story here) as his friends turn 5 this year and he doesn't like how people feel left out in big groups, presents are tossed on the table, no special time with the birthday friend.
So here is the idea we came up with that we're doing this year...
Birthday month (more like a couple of weeks).
The idea is that every time we have a playdate during those couple of weeks, we have a mini party. No gifts, no fuss, just have some cupcakes and a candle on the ready so the little ones can have some chocolate bliss together. Then on the actual day we do a big family thing. DS has requested a camping trip.
we did this recently with a friend who celebrates the same way and DS loved it! He did several handmade special items for the birthday girl and loved that he got to present them to her, one on one, and have time with her and eat chocolate with her. Low key, special, sane,
Joined
·
6,198 Posts
You could have them bake a pizza or small individual sized pizzas, depending on the amount of girls invited.
![]()
I like the idea of planting seeds in a small pot. You could also have cupcakes baked beforehand and they could decorate those before eating dessert.
One of my children went to a birthday party when he was 6 where the mom had purchased several white generic t-shirts and fabric paint/stickers and the kids stayed busy decorating shirts. It was a great time.
![]()
One of my children went to a birthday party when he was 6 where the mom had purchased several white generic t-shirts and fabric paint/stickers and the kids stayed busy decorating shirts. It was a great time.
Joined
·
2,591 Posts
Quote:
That is such a sweet idea! OP, here's a good link for inspiration and ideas: http://www.birthdayswithoutpressure.org/rituals.html
Originally Posted by boatbaby  So in the past we just have get togethers (no theme) in the yard with food and no gifts (we did the bring something for the SPCA) But DS has been to a few big parties (back story here) as his friends turn 5 this year and he doesn't like how people feel left out in big groups, presents are tossed on the table, no special time with the birthday friend. So here is the idea we came up with that we're doing this year... Birthday month (more like a couple of weeks). The idea is that every time we have a playdate during those couple of weeks, we have a mini party. No gifts, no fuss, just have some cupcakes and a candle on the ready so the little ones can have some chocolate bliss together. Then on the actual day we do a big family thing. DS has requested a camping trip. we did this recently with a friend who celebrates the same way and DS loved it! He did several handmade special items for the birthday girl and loved that he got to present them to her, one on one, and have time with her and eat chocolate with her. Low key, special, sane, |
I passed by a local painting place that was holding a girl's birthday party and it looked like a great idea.
http://www.bottlesnbrushes.com/Home/Kiddos.html
This place is pricier than most home parties, but I imagine you could setup something similar. The kids each had a streched canvas and were painting a picture of a butterfly. An artist was giving suggestions and advice. Then the guest got to take home their painting (I saw a hairdryer being used to dry the paint) and from what I saw they definitely looked hanging worthy.
If your DD likes cooking, you could do something similar with baking. Have a class in how to bake chocolate cake from scratch (or whatever) and send the girls home with a recipe card, cupcake, and maybe even an apron (which they could decorate while the cakes bake.
The experience of learning something new would make a party pretty special in my book.
http://www.bottlesnbrushes.com/Home/Kiddos.html
This place is pricier than most home parties, but I imagine you could setup something similar. The kids each had a streched canvas and were painting a picture of a butterfly. An artist was giving suggestions and advice. Then the guest got to take home their painting (I saw a hairdryer being used to dry the paint) and from what I saw they definitely looked hanging worthy.
If your DD likes cooking, you could do something similar with baking. Have a class in how to bake chocolate cake from scratch (or whatever) and send the girls home with a recipe card, cupcake, and maybe even an apron (which they could decorate while the cakes bake.
The experience of learning something new would make a party pretty special in my book.
Joined
·
11,754 Posts
how about having everyone bring seeds and plant a bday garden? (and peet cups to take home with flower seeds you planted would be fun!)
1 - 13 of 13 Posts
