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10 Tips: Birthday parties that won’t break the bank

1. Decide up front how much you can afford. Setting a budget – and sharing the details of that budget with your child – can help you avoid spending too much and also help your child have realistic expectations for the big day.

2. Don’t invite too many people. Bearing in mind that kids – especially young children – can connect with only so many people at a time, you can decide with a clear conscience to keep the guest list small. If your child is turning 6, you can have him or her invite six friends; at 7, he or she could invite seven friends.

3. Brainstorm with your kid. Find out what your child really wants the party to include, and let him or her do much of the organizing and coordinating. You might be thrilled to see how simple your child would like the party to be. He or she may even take great pride in coming in under budget – and then using the leftover money for something else.

4. Keep the food simple. Do you really need to provide full meals for everyone, or would cake, punch and maybe some chips and dip suffice? What’s more, you and your child could have fun making the cake together and decorating it.

5. Keep decorations simple too. You may be the only person in the room who truly cares about those massive balloon arrangements you ordered and/or struggled to build. If kids are having fun, the decorations around them are likely to be one of the last things on their minds. A simple “Happy Birthday” sign and some streamers may do the trick.

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