The Day of the Kid Birthday Party

It is important to let the other parents know what the schedule is, as well, so that they can feed their child at an appropriate time before the party, and the child can enjoy the activities and still be hungry for the food, snacks and cake when it is time to eat. If your child is more than 3, she is probably ready for the social party skills, as well. Tell her to be sure to greet her guests and not to leave some guests in one room while she goes behind closed doors with other guests. It is important that she understands not to leave any of her friends out of the party or the guests will be unhappy. She should also know that she is to say ‘thank you’ and ‘goodbye’ when her guests leave.

Be sure you have all frozen foods defrosted in time for the party and, if you are cooking finger foods, pizza or other items, be sure the oven is preheated in time to get everything in the oven. If you need to keep things warm while you are cooking other items, check with a neighbor to see if you can use their oven for an hour or so. If you need to pick up food orders or rental equipment, be sure to do that as early in the day as you can so that you are home if parents call for directions or last minute changes. If it is winter, you should plan a place to put coats, hats and gloves so that they don’t get mixed up. If the children are going outside, be sure you have a place to put muddy or dirty shoes or wet items. Designate a place by the entry door for shoes or boots if you want the children to remove their shoes when they come in. Straighten the house and begin your decoration. If you have to move furniture to make room for games or to ensure that items don’t get broken, do that now!

If you can set up your games in advance, you will have more time to focus on the other details in the party and it will be easier to move the children along from one activity to another. Organize favor bags and items so they are ready to hand out as your guests leave. Set the table and get it ready for the food so that you only have to serve when it is time – you don’t want to be playing with paper plate packages and tablecloths when you have hungry children at your elbow. Clear serving areas in the kitchen to place hot or cold serving dishes as they come out of the oven or refrigerator. If you have someone helping you serve, go over all the food items, where they are stored, when they will be ready and how you want to serve so that you don’t have a lot of people asking you questions when you are trying to focus on serving. Prepare foods in advance, whenever possible. Cook and cover them to be heated closer to the time they are to be served. Place cold items in the refrigerator in the serving bowl or on the plate you plan to use to serve the item, with foil or wrap so you can take them out, ready to serve, and place it on the table.

Be sure you have plenty of ice, if you need it. If you are short on ice, send someone to the store to get a bag of prepared ice. Make sure the dishwasher is empty and ready to receive dirty dishes as you clear away items after you serve. Be sure the drinks and beverages you will serve are chilled (or buy ice). If you are recycling cans and bottles, label a garbage can for ‘trash’ and one for ‘recycling’. Just before the prescribed arrival time, check on your child to be sure he/she is dressed and ready to greet guests. Check any items in the oven. Put on background music, if appropriate. Walk around the house one last time and check for loose cords, furniture that may be in the way, etc. When the guests arrive, you and your child should be on hand to greet them, take coats, and give general direction on what the group will do until everyone arrives. If you find it necessary to discipline a child during the party, you may offend a parent if you yell or raise your voice. You CAN say something to let the child know that you and your family do not behave that way in this house and ask them politely to abide by your wishes. If children get over excited during the party and they begin to misbehave or get wild, you may need to take a moment to slow the party down and get the attention of all the children to tell them they need to be more careful or quieter. If the excitement is tolerable and standard for a birthday party, give the kids a little leeway. Remember, this is a party and they are supposed to have fun.