This is Part 5 in the Planning Children’s Birthday Series. Part 1 was a 10 Point Birthday Party Plan Check List. Part 2 focused on family strategy for birthday parties, party themes and birthday party invitations. Part 3 was centred around Guest and Food Lists. Part 4 detailed Party Activities and Accessories.
Today I am going to run through how I plan my party preparation, so that on the day it runs smoothly and I have time to enjoy the party as well!
PARTY WEEK SCHEDULE
You can find a detailed example of one of my schedule’s in the attached excel file “Planning With Kids Party Plan”. This schedule lists all the key activities that need to be completed prior to the party and when they will need to be done.
Planning With Kids Birthday Party Plan
About a week before the party, I will sit down and list the key activities and spread the work over the remaining days, so that all the work isn’t left to the day before the party. This then gives me a “To Do List” for the rest of that week. I also find that just by having the list, I feel more in control and less stressed as I know what I need to do and when.
PARTY DAY TIMETABLE
This timetable is really for just for me. I love for the children’s birthday parties to be relatively free flowing for the children, especially the little ones who are not at an age for structured games.
By breaking down the party preparation into discreet tasks, I have a clear idea of what work needs to be done and when. I find this particularly useful if I am having hot food, so that it is all ready at the same time.
Another advantage of having a timetable is that if you are lucky enough to have some adult helpers around, they can use this list of tasks as a reference as to what they can do. So while I am out playing with the kids, one of my lovely sisters can put the pizzas on at the right time so the are ready for lunch and keep an eye on them!
You can find an example of a party day timetable in the attached file below. This was for Possum’s 2nd Birthday Party which had a Luau (Water) theme.
What do you do, to take the stress out of preparing for a child’s birthday party?