The one thing more stressful than planning a kid’s birthday party is planning a kid’s birthday party in a foreign country. In the states, you know you can get cheap party decorations at the dollar tree, you know which grocery store sells the best chocolate cake, and everything is fairly accessible via car or bus. Abroad, you may have some or none of that information, and getting around can be tricky. Despite the obstacles, you can still throw a great party your child will love.
To save money on your party, make decorations at home. Use old clothes or scraps of fabric for bunting, make a tassel garland from tissue paper, or make flowers from tissue paper. If you have construction paper, cut out letters for a happy birthday sign. You can also make signs or decorations with paper plates and paint. You only need a yellow, red, and blue paints to mix into any colors you want to use, so don’t waste money on a huge pack of a dozen colors. Just get the basics and get creative.
Make activities for the party by using a paper bag and tissue paper for a piñata. Or, have the kids fill eggs with confetti, then break them outside. This is activity fun from start to finish, from emptying the eggs, to smashing them in the yard or sidewalk. For a quieter activity, have your kids make snowflakes to hang on the wall from construction paper, or fold cute origami decorations, like swans or flowers. The kids will have fun working on their projects, and you can decorate your house with their crafts afterwards.
Another way to keep expenses down is to make a special dinner and dessert at home. Cook your child’s favorite dinner and dessert for their birthday. Cake, cupcakes, or pudding are all cheap and easy desserts, and you can often make them using an inexpensive boxed mix if you are short on time. Pancakes are another easy, cheap food, and since you usually drown them in syrup anyway, they can be eaten as a dessert. The same goes for crepes. If you need more activities for your kids to do for the party, make baking the dessert one of the activities. Your kids will have fun baking with you, and they’ll feel proud they helped make the food.
A birthday on a budget will most likely mean your guest list will be small, but you can still tell everyone about your child’s birthday. Send out invites or announcements to friends in the area or family abroad with Basic Invite. They are a US-based company and ship to all US territories and military bases. Their custom party invitations are super cute, and you can customize them any way you want. Basic Invite has a military discount code for 25% off your next order. Reach out to their customer service team at support@basicinvite.com for your discount code.
Throughout the planning process, make sure to have fun and enjoy yourself. Making decorations and getting ready for your child’s party is fun. And when it gets hard, remember it’s for your little one, and will appreciate you for making their birthday so memorable. Happy birthday to your child!
