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This article is from my inbox, but I thought it was very creative, so I wanted to share it...
Birthday Party on the Cheap
by HubSub Urban Mom
Host your own decorate-a-bear theme party for $7 per child
As a single working mom of 3 kids, I was used to throwing
creative and fun budget birthday bashes. But my then 5 year
old stumped me when she requested a party where she can bring
her friends and cousins to a place where they can make and
dress their own bears. After doing some research, I found the
cheapest option to be about $15-$20 per child for just a bear
and a top, and that didn't include food or a cake, so it was
definitely not in my budget for about 15 kids. I stretched my
creative mind and came up with a home-based-decorate-your-own-
bear party theme called "A Beary Special Friend" that cost me
about $7 per child, which included the bears with
clothing/accessories for all the kids, the cake, and enough
food for the children and adults.
The Invite
The invitation was a simple one pager created on my computer
using teddy bear and balloon clip art that I printed on my
color printer. I had invitation-size envelopes on hand
already, but if you don't want to spend the money to purchase
these envelops at your local office supply store, you can
create a flyer and simply fold it and affix a sticker if they
are hand-out invites. You can purchase letter-size envelopes
at the dollar store if they need to be mailed.
Story Hour
The party started with "Story Hour." This time allowed for the
kids to arrive, hang out and color pictures of clip art teddy
bears I printed on regular computer paper. Once everyone
arrived, I assembled everyone on the floor next to the
fireplace to hear the story "A Beary Special Friend."
Basically, I wrote a story and designed it using more teddy
bear clip art and big font so that it could be read aloud by
my 10 year old while she showed the pages to all the kids. I
printed and assembled everything in a thin binder decorated
with a "book" cover. The story was about a teddy bear that
lived in Bear Town and was visited frequently by kids in the
summer. The kids always met a bear that they got to take home
as a friend, and one particular bear was not picked by the end
of summer since there were not enough kids. The story ended by
asking kids if they would like to meet and take home a bear
for a friend, and of course, the answer was a resounding
"Yes!"
Meeting a Beary Special Friend
The kids were then taken to another room where they were
greeted by bears artfully arranged on the table. First they
picked a colorful basket to hold their bear. Then they got to
pick a bear and name it. From there, they got to choose from
various themed clothing and accessories packaged in clear big
food storage bags. They had their choice of fairy bear,
princess bear, police bear, fireman bear, detective bear, or
baby bear. Once everything was chosen and named, they picked a
spot at the table and began to dress their bears. You
should've seen and heard the excitement! Five year olds have a
wonderful imagination and they came up with some great
adventures for them and their new furry friend!
Feeding the Masses
The food was simple. It included pigs in a blanket, macaroni &
cheese and chicken nuggets, which was a feast enjoyed by 5
year olds who had their new furry friends seated next to them.
The adults feasted on homemade sourdough bread, chicken
fettuccine and a simple salad. I made punch from bargain
packet drink mix placed in my fancy punch bowl (bought a long
time ago from a thrift store) with fresh sliced apples
floating on the top. I also had coffee and tea available for
the adults.
The Birthday [Cup]Cake
I've used this recipe for all three of my kids, but it came
especially handy when my 5 year old was diagnosed with an
allergy to eggs. This can be used for both cakes and cupcakes,
but when throwing a party where many kids are invited, I find
cupcakes to be the easiest since it simplifies and speeds up
the serving process to 25+ kids and adults. I used store-
bought frosting bought on sale at Food Rainbow for 79 cents
and decorated the cupcakes using a box of teddy bear graham
snacks and a package of gummy bears bought at the 99-cent
store.
I then "drew" the number 5 using some of the cupcakes placed
on a foil covered cookie sheet with more teddy bear graham
snacks scattered artfully around. The rest of the cupcakes
were placed on a three-tier serving piece and placed next to
the cookie sheet. She loved it. The kids loved it because they
sang "Happy Birthday" and were given their cupcakes without
having to go through the agony of waiting for a piece to be
cut and served to them. It also eliminated the FAQ's such as
"Can I have the corner piece?" or "Can I have the piece with
the pink flower?" And the pictures of her birthday cupcake
came out great.
3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
6 tbsp. powdered baking cocoa (not hot cocoa mix)
2 tsp. soda
1 cup oil (you can substitute 1 cup melted margarine/butter)
2 tsp. vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups water
Sift dry ingredients in a bowl. Add oil, vinegar, vanilla and
water. Mix well. Pour into cupcake lined pans half or three
quarters full.. Bake at 350 degrees for about 24 minutes. Cool
1-2 minutes in pan, then remove and cool on counter or cookie
rack. Frost and decorate after completely cooled. Yields about
1 1/2 to 2 dozen cupcakes.
Games and Party Favors
Normally I have games, prizes and party favors for the little
guests, but with the "A Beary Special Friend" theme, the bears
they decorated tripled as both the game, the prize and the
party favors so it was great for my budget! I also placed the
leftover teddy bear graham snacks and gummy bears in small
colorful bowls placed throughout the table and surrounding
areas. Kids and adults alike snacked on them throughout the
party.
The Bottom Line
$17 - The Bears: 15 bears + tax at my local Dollar Store. The
bears were about 14" long and came in various colors.
$17 - Bear Baskets: 15 colorful plastic basket bins with
handles + tax. These could later be used to store small toys,
crayons, cars or hair accessories if they outgrow the bear.
$15 - Bear Clothes/Accessories: I was able to find police and
fireman accessories, fairy wings and wands, tiaras, magnifying
glasses, mini note pads, colorful pens, baby t-shirts, baby
blankets and hair accessories in the toy, party and baby
sections of my local Dollar and 99 cent stores. Many of these
items made multiple themes for 1 to 2 bears so I was able to
keep costs down. I also used ribbon and fabric scraps that I
already had.
$50 - Food: I bought store brand hot dogs, biscuit dough,
cheese slices, macaroni pasta, bulk grated cheddar cheese, a
bag of frozen pre-cooked chicken nuggets, fettuccine pasta, a
couple of jars of Alfredo sauce, 3.5 lbs. of chicken breast, 4
packets of drink mix, 2 apples, 2 heads of lettuce, 4 carrots
shredded for the salad, 1 zucchini, and 2 bottles of store
brand dressing. I already had condiments (ketchup, mustard)
for the pigs in a blanket and the flour and yeast for my
homemade sourdough bread that purchased previously in bulk.
$3 - Birthday [Cup]Cake: I purchased a box of teddy bear
graham snacks, a bag of gummy bears, and frosting. I already
had the other ingredients in my pantry that I always keep
handy since I like to bake.
$0 - The Invite: I already had the computer paper and
envelopes on-hand.
$4 - Decorations: I purchased a bag of balloons, simple white
paper plates, a package of colorful napkins. I already had a
bulk purchased box of plastic forks and reused balloon sticks
from another party.
$105 - This was the total for the entire party (bears, food,
cake). That works out to be $7 per child, lower if you factor
in about 7 adults because this cost also covered enough food
and cake for everyone.
Of course, costs may vary depending on your menu and what you
find at your local discount stores. Even if you doubled my
costs above, the per-child cost would still come up cheaper
than the $15-$20 bear-and-top-only option since food and cake
are covered in my budget birthday bash. Most frugal folks plan
way ahead of time, and that is what I did so it gave me the
benefit of time on my side. I always stopped into my local
discount stores when I was in the area to check out the
stuffed bear merchandise and made my purchase when I found the
right bears. I also asked the store staff and they gave me an
approximate timeline of when the bears were arriving. I had
seen them previously stocked months prior and was told they
were coming back. The menu was based purely on my 5 year old's
fave foods, which happened to be much appreciated by the other
children. Pasta and chicken are always safe bets for adults
and it is relatively cheap compared to other options.
Most importantly, my 5 year old loved her bear party, her
friends and cousins had a blast, and the adults were truly
impressed, all of whom shared the idea with their co-workers
and relatives with young children. Enjoy and I hope you and
your young child have a beary fun time too!
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