Party Help!!

How about try a bit of veggies with the dip also, celery carrots, etc cut into matchsticks.

Good Luck and have fun!

I agree, it can get expensive and it adds up quickly. Trader Joe's is a good place for inexpensive, and unique snack items. I like to do a simple cold veggie pizza (Boboli shell, cream cheese and sprinkle with chopped carrots, broccoli, cucumber and sprinkle with dill seasoning). Have fun!!!

Animal Crackers...
You can get a huge bag for cheap at walmart.. or Price Rite if you have one near you.
I think it's a 3 pound bag!

AND, pretty allergy friendly.

Hi! I have always found that the kids could care less about food when they are having such a good time.Drinks are what usually go first at our parties.Goldfish is a great idea.If there is a theme you could plan around that.Cheese curls are a big hit with kids.Good luck. T.

Hi R.,
Think small. Whatever you have, keep the portion mini-sized. Mini candy, mini cupcakes, etc. Actually one of the best birthday snacks is also an activity. Before the party bake sugar cookies from the Pillsbury roll. At snack time, sing Happy Birthday to start. Then give each child a big paper plate, one cookie, a dab of frosting on the plate, and a spoon. Let them use the spoon to spread the frosting. Then, when each child is ready, let him/her choose from tiny decorations (mini-marshmallows, candy hearts, m & m's, mini-pretzels, etc.) Some children will decorate with everything and some only one item. After all the work, some will eat them and some will not! But they will have a wonderful time! I usually serve this with a plate of cheese and fruit, each cut in small pieces.

If you are trying to keep it inexpensive then I would say the chips and dips and goldfish crackers are just fine. Well, and of course the birthday cake. If there is some sort of theme to your party I might be able to give you a few more creative ideas. Not sure if you'd want to offer a healthy snack too though like veggies. That can get a bit pricey though. Happy Birthday to your daughter. You can always ask her what food she would like to have as well. It's never too early to get the birthday child involved in the party planning.

R.,

You can never go wrong with pigs in a blanket. Adults & kids love them & they're relatively cheap to make.

Good luck,
R.

i would consider mini pizzas - you can make your own with pizza dough OR english muffins. fruit is always a good thing too.
have fun - relax kids do not expect a lot!

I am a big fan of simple and easy.

Here is my party plan.

I use paper plates, tablecloths, plastic utensils. I recycle 99% of the time, but I make birthday parties an exception to the rule.

I do a trail mix of generic-brand froot loops, goldfish crackers, pretzels and m&m's. This mix seems to work for every age.

I pre-pour the trail mix into plastic cups (fill half-way) This avoids sticky, grubby hands in a big bowl and avoids little kids walking around with plates of trail mix - which will inevitably end up on your floor.

I do juice boxes instead of big bottles of juice/soda. This avoids spills.

I serve individual small cups of ice cream (they are in grocery store freezer - usually vanilla & chocolate - usually sold in bags of 12) with the birthday cake - this eliminates time spent scooping, asking people what flavor they want and watching a scoop of ice cream roll off the cake plate onto your carpet.

Decorations: I buy a helium tank/balloon kit - you can find them at walmart, target etc. for about $15-$20 (much cheaper than at Iparty/party stores) It comes in a box & includes balloons and ribbons & enough helium to fill 30 balloons. You don't have to have tons of decorations if you have balloons.

Make sure you send each child home with a balloon - this way you don't have 30 balloons in your house after the party.

If you are having a pinata -
Birthday girl hits first
Then have kids line up in size order (small children hit first)
Give the kids plastic bags to put their collection of candy in.
Have a bag of extra candy - when the pinata is hit and the candy drops in one big pile - throw the extra candy around - so that every kid gets candy without having to fight over the pile in the middle.

If you are having goody bags - take a trip to the dollar store - tons of cheap stuff there.

If your daughter is opening gifts at the party - have a pen and paper handy to record who gave what - it makes writing thank you notes much easier later.

Put an adult in charge of taking pictures/taking video. You will be too busy to do this yourself.

I have found that 2 hours is plenty of time for a birthday party. Put an end time on your party invitations (2:00pm-4:00pm) You can then tell particular friends and/or relatives to stay longer, if you would like them to. This way the party ends before your three year old has a melt-down, not because your three year old is melting down....

Most of all, try to relax and enjoy it.

T.
SAHM of three (8, 7 and 14 months)

I saw these in Parent's magazine: 1)Yogurt parfaits. Use different flavor yogurts and let kids layer their own with a selection of fruits, dried fruits, granola; 2)Cereal Jewelry: let the kids string Cheerios, Fruit Loops, etc. on thing licorice ropes; 3) Face Crackers: Give round crackers spread with cream cheese, let kids make silly faces using cut-up grapes and dried fruit, use shredded carrots for hair.

Good luck! K.

How about cheese and crackers......I always make a big beautiful fruit salad whenever I have a lot of kids over and everyone loves that. I also like making those mini weiner dogs wrapped in crescent rolls, with some ketchup on the side. Everyone loves those too. Kids will also like veggies and dip like cucumbers and tomatoes. If you are looking for something more, english muffin pizzas are great. good luck.

throw in some popcorn, juiceboxes and a veggie platter for the adults and you are good to go! pretzels are good too.. you don't have to over do it .. they won't care, they just want CAKE!!!

Hi,

Another fun thing to do is cupcakes instead of cake. My kids and I have been to some parties where there is an assortment of things to decorate the cupcake with (icing, sprinkles, jimmies, red hots etc). This could be one of the activities at the party. Also, I have done goodie bags from things from the dollar store. I have added in a toothbrush a small tooth paste as well. Many parents are happier when they don't have their kid eating so much candy.

H. mom of three and nursery school teacher

It's amazing how much money it costs to throw a 3 year old a party isn't it! Here's something you could make that's easy and is pretty inexpensive too. Chocolate covered Pretzel Rods. Find sprinkles in her favorite color or the party colors and you have a theme tie in to boot. You could also wrap them in cellophane and give them away at the end as a favor. I always try to have a healthy alternative there too - cut up fruit salad or Kabobs are fun too. Kids can make their own Kabobs - banana wheels, apple slices, strawberries - whatever. Another fun thing.

Here's the Pretzel Recipe Good Luck with the Party!

Ingredients

* 1 (16 ounce) package milk chocolate chips
* 1 (10 ounce) box pretzel sticks
* 1 (5 1/2 ounce) container candy sprinkles

Directions

1) Put the chocolate chips in the top of a double boiler.
2) Put water in the bottom pan, and heat the water, to melt the chocolate chips in the top pan.
3)When chips are melted, take off stove, and dip pretzel rods first in the chocolate to about half way down the rod, then dip the tip into the sprinkles about 2" down the chocolate, and lay on waxed paper.
4) Let the chocolate harden a good 1/2 hour.

I agree about not getting anything too messy. I also agree that they really just want cake. There's also something to be said for serving things with toothpicks??? At my daughter's five year old party, I had a tray of fruit (with picks in it) and a tray of crackers and cheese cubes (cut myself...don't pay extra for the bag of cubed ones...with picks in it). The kids gobbled them up. I think three year olds can probably handle the toothpicks with supervision, but five year olds love it. Do you have a lot of adults coming?

I have a recipe for a really easy pumpkin dip that kids (and adults) love. You can sort of be flexible with the spices...use what you have...cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice...they all do well with this recipe. You'll want apple or pear slices and pretzel sticks or graham sticks for dipping. (Also good with ginger snaps)

Pumpkin dip
1 can pumpkin puree
1 3/4 c confectionary sugar
8 oz brick of cream cheese (fat free or reduced fat okay)
1 t cinnamon
1 t ginger
1 t pumpkin pie spice
Mix all with beaters or mixer.

Another idea: Frozen pizza baked in your oven and cut into small squares for small hands. I also have one on the side for parents!

You get mini cupcake papers and then take yogurt cheerios and chopped dried strawberries and mix it them with melted white chocolate chips put the mix into the mini cupcake papers. We are ussing them as valentine's for my son's first grade party at school my kids enjoy it. You could also make monkey munch from jon and kate +8

What about letting the kids make English muffin pizza's? They could do it themselves as an activity and you can have ready to go olives/veggies for eyes, mouth, etc...
fruit kabobs are a good idea, too.

Whatever you go with don't worry too much. The snacks are more for the grown-ups present. The kids are happy to be with each other and they are waiting for cake and ice cream!

Hi R.,
Congratulations on your daughter's turning 3! You've had a lot of great suggestions. I'd do:
1. rice krispie treats (kids love them and they're cheap!)
2.carrot sticks
3.cheese and crackers
4.potato chips or tortilla chips.
5.Waters and juice boxes
6.Cake

And that's it! I'd avoid dips that can drip or spill on tables and floors. If you plan enough activities - even interesting enough toys for them to play with together - they might not eat that much anyway. Have fun and good luck!

Hi R.,

I think fruit platters are a great idea and healthy too. You can buy a platter at the market or make your own. You didn't mention how many kids you are having at the party but Trader Joes makes great appetizers like meatballs, mini pizzas, chicken drumettes (like nuggets), you can get a few boxes and warm them up in the oven. There is also mini pitas and hummus, cheese sticks/cubes and veggie sticks like carrot sticks, celery, grape tomatos, if you think the kids will eat it. Hope this helps!

Hi R.,

We are all tight on money so your not alone. For my sons birthday I bought a bag of oranges and cut them up, you will lots of slices. Kids love Goldfish, chips, even making cookies is inexpensive. I also made my sons cake and decorated myself, nothing fancy like the store ones. I think it tasted a lot better. They sell teeny weenie drinks by the case, around 4 or 5 dollars I think. You get a lot! If any moms stay, crackers and cheese for them. Just a thought. I would also go to a Walmart to buy it. Dollar stores have these things also. You dont have to buy brand names, just put the snacks in bowls. Have fun and good luck!!

You could cut up some apples, some veggies with dip, juice..vienna sausages...just think of the snacks your little ones like and those should do it.
No need to have a glamorous party hon...kids are quite happy with little and seldom know the difference.
Best wishes and God bless
Grandmother Lowell

Fresh fruit is ALWAYS good!! Have a great party!!

Hi R.:

When we have parties we do cheese and crackers with slices of pepperoni; small veggie platter usually baby carrots, a couple of sliced cucumbers, cherry or grape tomatoes, and raw broccoli. If they kids prefer fruit slice up 2 or 3 apples and oranges and add small bunches of green and red seedless grapes.

For a drink we mix a favorite juice with soda water.

Jenn

Hi R. -

Looks like you've gotten lots of great ideas - I just wanted to add one - instead of doing a fruit salad, you can put a variety of fruit on a skewer - kids love it!

Have fun!

K.

Super Easy -- Pepperoni Rolls
Buy crescent rolls in the tube, sliced pepperoni, and some shredded mozzarella. Unroll the crescent rolls, lay on the pepperoni and sprinkle the mozz., then roll up, and cut crosswise, about 3/4 inch thick. Bake in the oven at the temp listed on the package, until they look golden brown.

Saturday is Valentine's day, so go buy some watermelon, slice it a half-inch thick, and use a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to make little Valentine hearts! Or, if you can afford it, buy a few more cookie cutters and turn it into an activity for the kids to make their own watermelon hearts! Eating the scraps is fun too : ) Maybe the Dollar Tree has the cookie cutters?

I do this for my family every Valentine's Day, it's also a fun thing to bring to parties in the summer when watermelon's plentiful!

Have fun -- she's only three and won't remember the party anyway but these watermelon hearts are always a hit with the kids and adults alike!

don't focus on snacks. i totally agree that's a great time to have a party. The last few years we have had our parties from 1-3 pm. We have served popcorn and water or juice. Sometimes some chips or goldfish. If it's in your house don't serve anything that you don't want in your carpet....
Fruit is also a good idea if you want to go there. Get whatever is on sale. make orange slices or cut up a melon. Ours is in the summer so we do watermelon slices (outside). Kids are coming for the fun of being together and celebrating. I think it's silly that everyone thinks they need to feed kids pizza and cake regardless of what time it is.

Yes they due grow fast. My daughter is going on 3 in Aug. I do fruit and and a trail mix wich has M&M cherioes, chex. that is always a hit or our party's. We also do chips & dip. Good luck Happy Birthday sweet girl

Maybe popcorn and rice crispy treats? Punch is good you can buy a jug or mix it up and add gingerale to give it a kick and stretch it more. Adding scoops of sherbet to it also is appealing to kids