Small Birthday Parties made Special

My first born, Heinel is a very shy type of kid. He is not very comfortable in large crowds and being the center of everyone’s attention. In fact, since he was born we have not thrown him a big and grand party. For his 1st and 2nd birthday, we just made reservations to a restaurant and had lunch with family and some of his godparents. On his 3rd birthday, he opted to spend our day at Ocean Park.

However, when Heinel started going to (pre) school, it is inevitable that he celebrates his birthday in school because it falls on a school day. His pre-school allows mini parties during snack time with his classmates and I think he is more comfortable with that because it is just his classmates, teachers, and us. Of course as a Mom, even though it is a small party, I still want it well planned and memorable especially for him. Here is how I plan Heinel’s mini parties in school:
1. I start with the a theme.

A theme makes it easier for me to narrow down my choices on cakes, giveaways and food. Every year, the theme is always his choice. On his 4th birthday, it was a Spongebob Party while on his 5th birthday, it was a car racing theme and for his 6th birthday party, he chose a Ninja Turtles Party.

2. Invitations must set the tone.

Invitations are a first glimpse of what to expect at a party so I make sure that the theme says just that. For two years in a row, we just made it by ourselves since there is not much options available on his chosen themes.

3. Food must be in tune with the theme.

Since it is a Spongebob Party, and in the cartoon series, Spongebob works in a fast food joint, we ordered spaghetti and  fried chicken from the kids’ favorite fastfood joint, Jollibee. On his Ninja Turtle party, we served Shakey’s pizza with mojo potatoes. It was such a big hit.

4. Cakes are always the star, next to the celebrant!

Heinel always wants a big cake so we make sure that we give him that. Of course it must go with the theme as well. It is great that big cake shops has character themed cakes as well. We bought the big Spongebob cake from Goldilocks while the cool Hot wheels and Ninja Turtle cakes are from Red Ribbon.

5. Loot bags are a must!

Kids always look forward to loot bags. I make sure that I put nutritious snacks in there and some fun goodies (like toys and hair clips for the girls) that they will use for a time and not just for that day. I usually get good words from parents of Heinel’s classmates for efforts in putting together the loot bags.

In the end, we got what we wanted each year, a fun celebration for us, his classmates and most of all of Heinel.