My girls’ birthdays are hardly a month away and it’s time to start planning (rather a little late but you know what they say….better late than never). Their birthdays are on 14th and 15th Feb. The first is a Valentine baby and the second is a step ahead! Everyone is like you better watch out when these girls grow up!!

I’ve always celebrated their birthdays together till now. But now the older is going to be 9 and the younger is going to be 4. It’s going to be impossible to do something which interests both! The younger will enjoy a theme party and the older doesn’t want a theme at all. P doesn’t want a party at all.

Planning their parties has always been a huge affair for me. I’m a crafty person and love decorating their parties. I want them to be grand and beautiful and pretty looking parties and everyone has to have a great time. So many things to consider. I usually follow the following:

1. The guest list. The first step is determining how many kids and of what ages are going to come. First are their cousins and then their friends. When they are 1,2,3,4 years old they hardly have a list themselves. I have to create the crowd. Invite my friends with little kids and invite her entire class. Then I can get a decent number of 12-15 kids so they can have some activities.

2. The Venue. The venue is dependant the activities and the number of guests. I always prefer a venue which is open to air and has lots of space for the kids to run around. After all that’s what they love doing most at that age. Even as P got older we preferred to choose a place where the kids can have physical activity to do. P herself is a very bubbly child. Always jumping and dancing around. So it’s nice to have something where they can spend their energy. And the kids (girls and boys alike) have always enjoyed them.

I try to make sure that the venue is bigger for the number of people. No one likes a crowded place with little place to move around. Also whether the venue has its own catering or no.

3. The Activities. You need to choose your activities wisely. Consider the age of the kids. Consider the gender of the kids. I like to choose activities which both genders enjoy equally. I usually have physical activities because I have seen that girls now a days also enjoy sporty activities. It’s no more that the girls are quiet or like to sit in one place and play quietly. For younger children I’ve had a musical and dance activity. This group comes and entertains the kids for about an hour. There is music and dance and bubbles! Kids between 3-5 really enjoy it. Then I’ve had this sporty group come and entertain kids with obstacle courses and sports activities. Kids of all ages enjoy this.

The tattoo artist is a must! Kids simply love the art on their arms or faces. Getting a painting of their choice on their arms is super exciting for them. And yes…. the Khoi bag! (Piñata) The kids simply freak out on this one. The whole anticipation of the goodies falling out and collecting them as fast as they can is so exciting for them.

Well… this is the beginning. Still so many more things. I’m going to complete the list in my next post. Until then….