We all remember the feeling of waiting for your birthday party when you were a child. Having picked your perfect party theme, spent hours writing invitations to your friends and then the agony of counting down the days.
This year however, coronavirus lockdown rules have meant that the annual large gathering of friends and family is now cancelled and we are now challenged with organising a micro home based party that will still be memorable for years to come.
In early April, our littlest Balloonista turned five and with some advance planning, the help of virtual meetings, bright balloon décor, plenty of garden games and beautiful weather, we were able to still make her day special. Based on our experience, here are our 8 top tips for organising children’s birthday party during coronavirus self isolation.
Delayed postal times, closed shops and limited food meant we had to order presents and cards at least 10 days before from online shops. In addition, three days before, we started shopping for food supplies and the birthday cake as it took more than one visit to get all we needed.
While you may not make it to a beautifully decorated party venue, you can still make your home look and feel totally different on your child’s birthday. You may choose to make homemade decorations, like paperchains, flags and decorate inside your home or in the garden. Our DIY balloon kits and video tutorials, will enable you give your home party the wow factor with brightly coloured balloons and a truly professional look.
This year we surprised our birthday child with a video call that brought all of her friends together to sing happy birthday and watch her blow out her candles. There are lots of options from House Party, Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype and more. Once we set up the party, we sent the link to all those invited. Our top tip for virtual birthday parties is to ensure you instruct everyone to click the link at least 10 mins before as they may need to install software.
Many party entertainers are now offering the ingenious idea of hosting interactive virtual birthday parties that come with entertainment, music and disco lights. Naturally the parties are shorter, but they are cheaper and offer a great alternative for those who would prefer not to provide their own party entertainment.
It’s spring, the weather is beautiful and the is so much that can be done in the garden. We filled our pool, played many family lawn, water and sand games and held a bouncing competition on our trampoline. Our little Balloonista’s highlight was the treasure hunt which entertained our children for 40 high energy minutes. Treasure hunts are so very easy to set up. All you need is several clues, which can easily be downloaded or handwritten, plus a prize for the end.
We all remember our favourite party games as a child – from pass the parcel to musical chairs and musical statues to pin the tail on the donkey. All of these can be easily recreated at home without the need to venture outside for more supplies. Preparing the games together with the birthday child in the days before also provides another fun and crafty alternative to going outside.
While picnics and BBQs are always firm party food favourites when the weather is good. Holding an afternoon tea party with teddy bears or making homemade pizza, jelly and fairy cakes together during poor weather are great alternatives. Additionally, they don’t require a large variety of food which is great for combating the current food shortages.
It is surprising how much stuff you accumulate over the years. From searching through our garage, we managed to find disco lights, a disco ball, and bubble machine. We combined these supplies with a toy karaoke machine and had ourselves a party. However, we would’ve had just as much fun with music, dimmed lights and a dancing competition.
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