Seven 1st birthday party planning hacks that also apply to 2nd, 3rd, 4th birthdays & beyond
Congratulations on planning your baby's 1st birthday party.
It is exciting milestone, but can be challenging to plan.
Below are the 7 deadly sins of 1st birthday party planning to avoid, based on decades of experience working at first birthday parties. And seven life hacks for an easy, inexpensive 1st birthday party.
Deadly sin number 1. Torture your guests with an insufferable environment.
Does it sound nice to be outside on baby's 1st birthday? Think again. Rain, extreme heat, wind, mosquitoes, look Mommy I picked up some poo, do you think it's from a dog... trust me, I’ve been to hundreds of first birthday parties. Indoors is better.
In the Philadelphia suburbs where I work, the chance of it being oppressively humid on any given day in July? 58 percent! The chance of rain? 36 percent! Fact is, most days in July and August in Philadelphia are NOT nice to be outside. Plan your 1st birthday party for inside. In the unlikely event that it is blissful out, the great outdoors will be there as a backup.
Deadly sin number 2: Complicate your 1st birthday party & be frazzled.
If you can happily be the baker, caterer, decorator, greeter, baby minder, and entertainer for the 1st birthday party, go for it, you heroic parent, you! Or, just relax, delegate and simplify. Low budget? Kids love pizza; order it out. Ask your sister to hand out juice boxes. Have a friend clear up plates. Grandparents are often delighted to be the main baby minder for the day. Oh, and you don't need 5 activities. Not including cake or food, 2 activities is plenty. Not comfortable entertaining 20 kids? Hire a birthday party entertainer, like me (That's shameless plug number 1).
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Sin number 3: Forget to check the date with the person who is busiest.
The most common disappointment I see among 1st birthday party parents: they check a date with relatives and friends, pick the perfect date, and send invitations to baby's 1st birthday party. Only then do they think to hire birthday party entertainment. Of all the folks at the party, the entertainer is the one with the most scheduling conflicts. It is common for between 5 and 15 different families to call me requesting the same time slot. Pick your entertainer first, call them so you can choose a time they still have open, and then you can get any entertainer you want for baby's first birthday party.
Sin number 4. Have no plan for unexpected guests.
First birthday party parents rarely know how many children are coming. What if there are too many? Buy enough food for the invited guests times 1.3, and freeze any leftovers. For face painting or balloon twisting, we cannot expand the time if your face painter or guests have other parties to get to. Hire someone skilled enough to work fast. For instance, I did the following face painting in about 2 minutes.
With too many unexpected guests, working fast and adjusting complexity only works until a bunch of kids shows up at the last minute. But no worries. I have a special system for handling this with no rushing and no disappointment.
Sin number 5. Neglect to plan activities.
Pretty much all of the first birthday parties that I work have cake and a happy birthday song. A 1 year old might not blow out a candle, but he will happily crush a cupcake instead. Adorable! The older children will need activities to keep them busy. At the very least have a ton of toys available. A giant cardboard box (staples removed) is a hit. You don't need 4 or 5 activities. Cake plus 2 activities is the norm, and one of the activities is often free play.
Face painting: A baby can have a face painting at her 1st birthday party with techniques that only take a couple of seconds, like these stars I did for this 1st birthday girl.
Photos are big at 1st birthday parties, because 1 year olds are so darn cute. For this reason, and for kids sporting costumes or face paintings, a photo booth is a popular option.
A photo booth backdrop can be economical. Just put up a spangly backdrop, maybe offer a cardboard frame to hold, and let parents take cell phone pictures of their kids with face paintings, costumes or balloon animals. Precious.
On their 1st birthday, the birthday girl or boy is too young to safely have a balloon animal, but Mom or Dad can hold the balloon, and older children will love them. And even adults like my fancy balloon sculptures. (Another shameless plug).
Same goes for a show. The child having a 1st birthday cannot be expected to watch, but older friends and cousins will enjoy a show at age 3.
Sin number 6. Terrify toddlers with a 5 foot tall Elmo.
If there are lots of young children your 1st birthday party, please don't hire a person in a character suit. How often does the giant Elmo make someone cry? In my experience, usually, frankly. The same goes for clowns who get carried away with makeup, and look inhuman. Rule number one at a 1st birthday party: don’t terrify the guests. For a 1st birthday party, I recommend having an entertainer without clown makeup (like me). Yep, shameless plug again.
Sin number 7. Have a magic show for children under 3.
Well maybe it isn't a sin exactly. But it's a waste of money to have a magic show if all the children are under age 3. One year olds will not watch, 2 year olds are busy roaming. You would be better off having a bubble machine, a parachute game, or even a giant cardboard box.
I hope that this 1st birthday party advice is helpful. If so, I hope you will share this page. It helps my business.
Wishing you the best 1st birthday party ever,
Lilac
Lilac Birthday Entertainment
Call 267-204-3333 to check my schedule for your 1st birthday party.
