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The Recipe For The Perfect Children’s Birthday Party

It's a piece of cake

     Birthday parties became popular in the U.S. around 1850 when people started celebrating them with cakes, cards and presents–many of them homemade. Today, some 700,000 Americans celebrate birthdays each day and more people have birthdays in August (9.6 percent) than any other month of the year.

     But the simple family birthday celebration has evolved into a full-scale production, one that leaves many parents struggling to plan the perfect birthday party for their children. Yet, a wonderful birthday party doesn’t have to be a three-ring circus. In fact, with this simple checklist, planning your child's next party can be a piece of cake, one that creates happy memories that will last your child a lifetime.

Select a theme
     Figure out what your child loves the most and make it the party’s theme. This sets the tone for the party and helps determine invitations, decorations, games, food, birthday cake design and goody bags. Some easy theme ideas include a child’s favorite movie, television or book character, or a favorite sport or hobby.

Choose the location & time
     With the location and time set, the rest of the details fall into place. At home, you’ll need to plan for entertainment, games and activities, as well as food and a cake. Hosting a party at 11 a.m. or four p.m. means a meal is expected. Otherwise, cake and ice cream are adequate provisions. Hosting a party where entertainment and food are provided, such as a roller skating rink, may be convenient, however, if you bring your own cake and paper goods you can still incorporate the party theme.

Entertainment
     Children love to be entertained. The best at-home parties have something for everyone, including age-appropriate entertainment, games and other activities. If you plan to bring in outside entertainment, ask other parents what they’ve done for parties. Games keep children involved before and after the entertainment. For younger children, the shorter and simpler games are best and everyone should be a winner.

Food
     Make sure your paper goods reflect the theme. Next, plan a menu of “fun” food. Finger foods such as pizza, hot dogs and chicken fingers are popular, easy to prepare and fun to eat. Include side dishes that tie in with the theme, for example, a beach party might include lemonade and watermelon slices.

The cake
     What’s a birthday party without the cake? “Cakes are synonymous with birthday parties,” said Michael Keller, chief brand officer at International Dairy Queen, Inc., which specializes in ice cream cakes for every occasion, because “life is full of celebrations.” Ice cream cakes in particular can turn an ordinary birthday into an extraordinary celebration. Keller advises personalizing the cake with the party’s theme, or with an image of the birthday child doing something he loves, like playing baseball.

Goody bags
     Not necessary, but a nice touch, goody bags are a thank you for attending the party, and kids anxiously await these at the end of the celebration. Goody bags might include candy, pencils, crayons, bouncing balls, costume jewelry and more. Party stores typically have an assortment of fillers for goody bags.

     The key to planning the perfect party is to be organized. By following a checklist like this one, you’ll be able to have your cake and eat it, too.

Courtesy of Dairy Queen, Inc.