Birthdays are wonderful occasions to come together and celebrate the gift of life. It is even more special for the kids because all that comes to their mind at the mention of a “birthday party” is cutting a cake, getting lots of gifts and being the center of attention of a huge crowd. As a parent, planning the birthday party for a kid is a lot more exciting, brainstorming and fun than planning it for an adult. Adults are happy with food, drinks and music, but kids with their short attention span require you to plan for perks that will keep them busy in enjoying amongst themselves. From kids’ related themes to unique games, from the people you invite to choosing a menu that contains food items that kids will love eating, planning a birthday party for a child may be rewarding, but it’s never easy.

But don’t let the challenges discourage you from having a great party for your beautiful kid who has so eagerly been waiting for this special day to knock on the door. To help you out, here we are, with some special tips that will help you get started with the process of planning and executing.

1. The Party Basics

Start with planning the right theme for your kid. Decide if it is going to be an outdoor party or an indoor one and then proceed.

If it’s a girl, go with a Disney princess or Barbie doll theme because that is what gets your princess most excited. If it’s for your boy then go with a more macho theme, say, Batman, Superman or any other superhero he admires. The many themes to choose from include fairies, cowboys, pirates, etc.

You could also plan a character party where everyone invited has to come dressed up as a character from a cartoon series.

To get your child more involved in the preparation you could make him or her sit down with you and jot down the fun and crazy ideas about how your child wants the birthday party to be.

Choosing a theme beforehand will help you make the decoration arrangements accordingly.

2. Venue

Choosing the venue has a direct impact on your work before and after the party is over.

A party at home is good if you have a few guests over. But in any case, since you will be having kids over, the place will get dirty, and the naughty, playful kids will leave a huge mess behind.

But one advantage of planning a party at home is that you will save a lot of money that you will otherwise have to spend in booking the expensive banquet halls.

3. Invitations

The invitations must, of course, go along with the theme. You can either get them made in order or create them on your own.

Invite more kids because they tend to enjoy more in each other’s company rather than being surrounded by adults everywhere.

If the parents can accompany their children along then, that is the best you could ask. Too many kids can create an unmanageable ruckus and with a few more helping hands, you could prevent that from happening.

If it is an outdoor party, let the guests know beforehand if they should bring something along with them, say a swimsuit for a pool party or a rain dance party.

Keep in mind that having a large crowd doesn’t always mean that the party is going to be all fun and merry

4. Timing

Even if the birthday is falling on a weekday, try to plan a party for the weekend because that is when everyone is free and can take time out for such occasions. You don’t want to have guests that are worried on the inside about school and office on the next day.

Since the party is mainly for the kids, anytime during the early or late afternoon would be a great time to begin with the celebrations.

5. Menu

There are a lot of food items that kids love so creating a menu for the birthday party with the majority guest list comprising of kids is not that challenging.

You could include food items such as pizzas, sandwiches, cookies, pastries, burgers, etc. You also have to be cautious about the allergies that the kids may have. Many children are allergic of the peanut butter so you might want to avoid peanut butter sandwiches.

6. Games

Birthday parties are incomplete without games, more so when it is for a kid. You could organize games that kids love such as treasure hunt, musical chairs and pin the tail on the donkey.