[cristina47454]

DD2 is turning 5. She shares a birthday with my dad, so her birthday kind of always gets downplayed a bit (as in, it's more about family than friends). This year we are throwing her a party with her little friends. Actually, a mini party in CT before her birthday with two sisters (more like a play date with cake, organized craft and goody bags) and a "real" party with about 5 preschool friends the weekend after her actual birthday in MA.

I'm realizing what an expensive endeavor bday parties are!! Holy Smokes! Went to the craft stores armed with my 50% off coupons but most of the stuff I bought was small ticket (just a bunch of it), so only saved about $1.50

What do you all budget?? I know the trick of planning the party during non-meal hours. I'm making the cakes (although one of the cakes is a dirt cake and it turns out runs about $8 to make) So far the goody bags are about $2.50 ea, the crafts are about $2 ea, paper goods are $1.50 each...I'm not doing a pinata because I'm CHEAP. I want to get balloons, but I'm doing the tally and I think I've spent close to $100! Hopefully I overbought and can trim back/ return some stuff.

Sheesh! Maybe I need to make birthday parties a part of my sinking fund! I have three kids and a kid-like dh!

 

[kay4]

about $50 and I have almost always come in cheaper

 

[lisalulu]

DS1 just had a party with about 13 of his preschool classmates. I think we spent around $150 but there were a couple places I could have been more frugal. We had it at home but we did buy some wall coverings so it would look like the kids were on a pirate ship (dh made a ship out of fridge boxes). And I made the loot bags out of pirate fabric. We had 3 little activities that we had to buy things for as well. Everything else I did as cheap as I could but it still just adds up!

 

[Amylcd]

$100-150 but I do not make the cake and that usually runs $35

 

[lil_earthmomma]

I budget $100, but I love to feed people, and we live far from family and friends, so my ds's bdays are more like family reunions. For $100 I have crafts, goodie bags for the kiddos, balloons, plenty of food buffet style usually, drinks, and cake and a hall rental for about 35-40 people. (Can't fit that many in anyone's house!

) We don't go over the top for themes or anything, but focus more on the food!

: And good family fun. This year we had my blow up birthing pool full of bags of those plastic balls (I found at a garage sale!) and the ball pit was the hit of the party! lol

I don't think $100 sounds like too much for multiple parties, and we put money in a sinking fund for our bdays, christmas etc.

 

[lilyka]

we usually plan about $100 depending on the party. including cake.

cheap solution for balloons - blow them up and hang them from the ceiling and cover the floor with them. kids can take home a lot of them and you can buy about 100 for $5. have fun blowing them all up.

 

[LilyGrace]

We budget $100, including our gift. Small things that help -

-don't go all out. This year was a Pirates theme. We got PotC plates and cake, then cheaper coordinating colors for napkins, silverware, and tablecloth from the dollar store. Rather than a big table decoration, we got large confetti from the "island" section of the party store.

-make a little go a long way. Each boy got a premade generic Pirate Loot Bag that we found on clearance at one store. They were very simple, just a pirate hat, eye patch and some 'booty', but it was cheaper than I could put together myself and they could use them at the party. You can also let the craft be the take-home goody, or find a smaller tie-in.

I think we spent a total of around $30 on each this time - $30 for the cake (original plan was to make it ourselves but we ran out of time), $30 for decorations/goodies, and $30-$40 for the game and book we got him.

 

[rebeccalynn]

Wow! I guess that I am a cheap mama

I spend no where near that on my girls birthdays. We have one big party at 1y b/c it is a special traditional in dh's culture but other than that, I have spent less than $20 on each kid's bday party and we allow $50 for their gift. I bake and decorate the cake, we get "pretty" or solid colored plates from wal mart, some chips, and ice cream. We do not expect gifts and do not give treat bags. I have something fun for the kids to do but mostly it is games that we make up and already have the props for at home.

I always had simple bdays growing up also and never really thought to do all of that for a party.

 

[mightymoo]

This year we did a friend party at plaster fun time, I was really happy with the price on that. We had 11 friends at $11 each so the facility cost about $126. I made the cake from scratch (so what like $3? 99c for the cake mix, $2 for the powdered sugar & butter maybe) and we had ice cream cups and juice boxes for another maybe $5-6. Oh, I forgot the goodie bags, which were about $2.25 each, so $25. So in total about $160.

I don't really see myself spending less on a party in our house, as I'd want to get a craft or something to make it special and I'd feel it necessary to have appetizers, pizza, beer & wine, etc. as well since in our area the parents generally all stay. Then there would be the significant stress and hassle of cleaning the house before and after. So it seems like a bargain in my mind.

We did also have a family party at home with the grandparents and my brother - so there was some cost there, but I made the cake for that as well and its no different cost wise than if I had just asked them to all come for dinner anyway, which we do a lot.

 

[Free Thinker]

DDs just had her first 'kid' party (turned 6) and here's what I spent:

Cake, ect.
$3.50 ring toppers (enough for her whole class, plus the party on ebay!)
$1.60 cake mixes
$1.00 (oil, ect. for cake mix)
$3.00 icing stuff and sprinkles (homemade icing)
Total: $7.10 for cake I had 48 iced cupcakes on a cupcake tier that I already have

Games
$4.00 scavenger hunt activity (squirt guns for each kid to catch the Birthday Bandit)
Scooby Doo where are you game ~ Free (kids sit in a circle and then one in hte middle. Like hot potato I passed a sppon around while I spun the kid in the middle. WHen teh music stopped the one in the middle said "Scooby Doo, Where are you" and the one w/ the spoon answer "Rooover Here!" and they had to guess who it was.
Musical Chairs~ Free
Note, I did not have prizes for these games, they were part of our scavenger hunt.
Total $4.00

Decorations
$11.00 Table Clothes (got fabric material b/c I didn't like the scooby doo plates/cups)
$3.00 plates/napkins/cups
$8.00 Scooby doo masks for everyone (these were so cute!)
Total $22.00

Grand Total: $34.00!

It was a great party and DD had a ball! Her gift was a remote control Hummer on the clearance rack at WM for $20 (normally $60-ish)

I made the invitations myself on my computer and used stickers we got from the bank to decorate them. It was a Scooby Doo party, and we had a Birthdya Bandit (my brother) steal the birthday party and leave the clues around the house for them to find the party again. Party was after school until 5:30

 

[cristina47454]

OK, so I feel better after reading the replies. It's just been hard because we have been pinching every penny, and then something like this comes up and i feel like I'm breaking the bank. I feel guilty about it, but guiltier if I DIDN"T do it, because the big sister always has had big deal parties and dd2 is just now at the age where she is cognizant of the fact. I do tend to go overboard with the theming/party favors and really felt like I was shopping bargains...which is why I almost fell over when I did the tally!

 

[mommaof5]

50.00 but it never costs me that much.

 

[chel]

I can usually find $1 balloons at the dollar store.

Overall, I'm pretty frugal on birthday supplies, but then spend more on food (serve a full meal) as I envite parents and siblings of dd's friends as well as some additional adults.

 

[USAmma]

My kids have each had exactly one formal bday party and they are 8 and 5 years old. They also had a summer unbday party at our home one year. Their formal parties were about $150 each. One was at a craft store and the other at the skating rink. For the skating party we did not get the official package. I just paid admission for our 5 guests and bought pizza and drinks. It was a lot of fun!

 

[Smithie]

I try to come in around $300 for a joint party (ds and dd were born within 10 days of each other). We like to do "event" parties, though - this year it's pony rides and petting zoo at the local equestrian center.

 

[Drummer's Wife]

too much!

My kids all have birthdays within 32 days of each other...

 

[mtm]

I spent 200 on each of my older kids this year, one had a party at a local art place so rental of space, food and drink and presents from us came in just under 200. I'll gladly pay it though to have someone else do all the work for the party and entertain 10 7 year old boys. I also spent 200 on the 4 year old, we went to a water park hotel so hotel, food, gas and presents was around 200. Baby I had food and cake here at home with a few friends, maybe 50? Some years we do simple, others we do big.

 

[beansmama]

I don't have a fixed budget, really, but i try to keep it cheap.

I buy decorations and favors from dollar tree. About $20 buys you a horribly colorful, tacky, balloon filled birthday party that any kid is bound to love (hahaha).

I spent $110 on presents this year. And that wasn't much - DD turned 5 as well and i bought her a bike, 2 board games, bike accessories, and one my little pony toy.

Thing is, I'm divorced - and her grandparents and dad go kinda nuts

so I don't *have* to do much...

Even so, i'd like to skim down even more...but I always seem to get voted out.

 

[Norasmomma]

Next time go to the dollar store and buy the paper goods and such. Sooooo much cheaper. Also stuff for goodie bags is cheap, cheap.

I think for DD's b-day last year we did spend about $50. We split the cost with my dad because we went to a restaurant because we had no where else to do it(our bathroom was under construction). This year it will be the same, but I am planning a potluck/BBQ and DD's b-day is right after Labor Day, so I will be buying all of the supplies a week or 2 before for cheap.

I always get party supplies at the dollar store, paper goods, balloons, all that for 20-30 bucks.

 

[Sharlla]

For the little one we just do cake/soda at the park. The older one we catch a lunch buffet at Incredible Pizza, it's $6 per person and then we just buy some game cards.