Before my oldest daughter turned one, I vowed to never throw one of those crazy, big birthday parties – you know the ones I’m talking about.

I have now broken that vow – every – single – year. Birthdays have become the one time each year to celebrate our littles individually. We’ve done everything from a pony party to cupcakes in the neighborhood.

Here are some ideas – at all price points – to celebrate BIG!

 

Kid Olympics: This could include fun yard games or even safe indoor games that are easy for children to “compete” in. You can hand out medals to everyone, have a themed cake/cookies, and let all the kids shake hands and high five each other after the games are complete!

Monster Party: You could have the kids come dressed as silly monsters or even do an art project where the kids can create their own monsters! (http://www.playideas.com/25-crazy-monster-crafts-kids/) All of the decorations and food/drink can be fun colors and styled after your child’s favorite monster.

Volunteer Party: There are many local charities that would be happy to host a small party and have the children participate in an activity that gives back to the community.

Science Fun: Science projects that are safe and easy are a great way for kids to explore their ingenuity and open up their minds to the fun of Science! Make slime, explode a volcano, or even paper airplanes!

Candy Shop: The parents might not thank you for this one but going to the candy store and getting tons of different candies and making a theme out of it is super fun! And for goody bags, let the kids fill their own with all the awesome candy decorations!

Animal Theme: You can go all out with this one and see if there is a place or company that has your child’s favorite animal that you can visit or just stick with an easy theme and have food and decorations that are all about your kids favorite animal! Some ideas are Dinosaurs, Barnyard, or Ocean!

Garden Party: Learning about how things grow is always fun and planting flowers or vegetables are a great learning activity for kids! Each child can take home a little pot with their seeds in it as a treat! You could even have a menu that is focused around things that come from the earth and teach the kids about how each food item grows!

Circus Time: What kid doesn’t enjoy going to the circus?! Bring the circus to them with this fun theme that can include carnival games, fair food, and maybe even a clown or magician!