Make 90’s Birthday Parties Trendy Again
My kids have birthdays a week a part, so we always do a joint celebration. For years I put a lot of pressure on myself to pull off perfect Pinterest parties. Themed snacks, hand drawn posters, homemade cake, water slides, ice cream trucks … what they asked for they got and then some. The kids talked about that one special day all year, so I felt like it was worth it. Making magical childhood memories is one of the best parts of parenthood.
Two years ago, I found myself in a pile on the floor, trying to draw cartoon Harry Potter, silent melodramatic tears running down my cheeks because I couldn’t get him exactly right. My daughter caught an attitude with me because I asked her to clean up after herself, and I lost my temper badly. At that moment, I realized I was so stressed out about affording the party, keeping the house clean, decorating, grocery shopping, baking, and planning activities, I forgot about who we were celebrating. I decided it would be our last big party for a while.
Maybe our parents got something right in the 90’s. A park party with family, good friends, and a sheet cake is often all our kids need to feel loved and valued on their special day. We don’t have to spend weeks preparing custom decorations and planning menus every year. It is okay to take a step back and make things more simple sometimes.
Last year, we ordered a cake from the grocery store, and I got some toppers online to stick on it according to the themes my kids chose. For favors, I picked up boxes of markers on clearance and gummy worms, and the kids colored brown paper lunch bags and stuffed them. All together they cost about $2 per bag, my kids were so proud of their designs, and it was zero extra work for me. We invited family and close friends and showed up early at the Lafreniere Park Spray Park to nab a picnic table (they stopped charging an entrance fee when they reopened it in 2022). I brought a cooler with some water bottles and individual chip bags. The kids spent 2 hours running around, having the time of their lives. I didn’t stress yell once the entire planning process, and I used the money we didn’t spend to take a simple but wonderful family vacation in Bay St. Louis.
I am all for the extravagant blowouts, but on the years they simply are not an option, a simplified celebration can still make the best core memories. My children honestly did not know the difference between the $100 party and the $1,000 one. They were just as happy, fulfilled and excited, and it felt like I was able to create some birthday magic.