Ideas for Combined Bday Party for My 8Yr Daughter and 2Yr Old Son?!

just my two cents - if there are fun activities for the kids, I think the majority of kids really don't care much about what the party "theme" is. So if I were your "consultant" I think I'd keep it simple - 2 solid colors for decorations, and cupcakes instead of cakes (no cutting required and then you could have different color decorations for cupcakes). Favors - I don't know of any parent who likes the bags of cheesy candies and toys and most kids I know aren't crazy about them either. I prefer bubble jars, or small boxes of crayons or markers (you could probably get great deals on them this time of year now that "Back to School" sales are over), or other similar things (for your almost-8YO's friends, things like pencils and little note pads could be good - you can get pencils in lots of cute designs and kids that age can always use more pencils)

Bowling is perfect!
I think it'd be cute to do a girl/boy theme such as princesses/princes or garden/dirt (tractors or creepy crawlers).
I like the idea of 2 cakes or cupcakes. It keeps the individuallity of each of their b-days being celebrated.
I think bubbles or sidewalk chalk would be cute for favors or even some cups.
My niece had a Secret Garden party at 8 and the girls went home with a potted iris bulb. They painted the pots too, but that would be too much with the bowling.
Martha Stewart has really cute bug and flower cupcakes.
Have fun! Keep it stress free. It will be great even if you don't go overboard with planning.

Dear T.,

There’s two much age difference between your kids to have a combined party. Two year olds running around a bowling alley is not a good idea and could also be dangerous.

I say give your daughter and her friends the party at the bowling alley. Let it be her special day.

Give your two year old a small party at home with less people, maybe just immediate family. He’s too young to remember right now…your daughter’s old enough to appreciate something a little more elaborate.

Blessings…..

Hi!
I and a friend of mine are in the same boat! My kids are two weeks apart, turning 4 and 6 next month... and my friend's kids' birthdays are in May, but 4 days apart! :) We've both struggled with the idea of two parties, but financially, it just really isn't feasible. Plus, out of town relatives would make two parties very hard. I would have two cakes and you can be a little more selective with the favor bags, you might not do the theme thing, but go boy/girl instead. The last party I went to, my son got a shovel and pail and my daughter got crayons and a small pad and some pencils! How's that? Useful! No junk food or cheapie toys that broke before we got to the first stoplight!!! Other things that my kids have loved: matchbox cars for the boys--target sells a set of like 10 or so for usually about $8 or so, those bouncy balls (what boy can ever have enough balls????) and crayons and pencils and small coloring books! I'd do some decorations in his theme and some in hers, don't worry if they clash, all they will see is "their" side or their sibling's side. The other thing we decided to do, partly because my daughter has two sets of friends--we live in Sac and work/school in Vacaville and church in West Sac-- was have the party the middle weekend, a double party, in Vacaville, where the bulk of their friends are, and then, the weekend of my daughter's birthday, she's having a tea party (not a birthday party!!!) for her church friends. Simple, and cheap and satisfies the need for her friends to "come over" and have her own party. I hope that helps!
Have fun!!!

One year we gave baskin robbins gift certificates as party favors- it was uber simple, but kind of expensive.
Lately I've been throwing my boys gift/favor free parties. No gifts required, no favors at the end. It has been well recieved (my son still gets gifts from family). Have an awesome time bowling!
D.

I agree with another mom. Go with simple. Choose 2 colors. Your son's favorite color and your daughter's favorite color. If they both have something that they like that is in common (ex. horses), then you could go with a theme.

Cake: With so many kids coming, go with the cupcake cakes. It'll be easier in distributing the cake. I like the regular Costco cakes myself, but I haven't thrown a bday party with more than 13 kids! Then it will be your choice of one cake or 2. Personally, I'd go with 2 cupcake cakes that way your kids are not fighting over who is blowing out the candles, even though they are sitting next to each other.

Goodie bags: If you want to do goodies bags, DON'T do the cheap junk that usually come in the premade goodie bags. School supplies are cheap right now. Dollar store items can be good, like bubbles, puzzles, or activity books. End of summer deals, such as sand toys. Target also has a good dollar section that I like to get goodie bag items. Last year I did a Sesame Street bag with a Sesame Street board book both for $1 at Target. Put in a healthy snack and I was done!

Another choice is getting one item. One of my friends does that with her kids' bdays. She gets one item that costs about $2-$4 get put in a box. The kids get to choose what they take home. No little bags to have to get ready.