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How to Plan a Baby’s Birthday Party on Any Budget

When I started planning Charlotte’s first birthday party, I knew that I wanted it to be the Charlotte’s Web theme but with more of an elegant flair. That’s about as much as I knew about party planning: pick a theme. But then what? With the help of my sister and some friends, I quickly learned how to plan a baby’s party. Here are some steps you can take in order for your baby’s party to go off without a hitch no matter what your budget is. I’m sure I’ll be using this checklist for many years to come. 
When I started planning Charlotte’s first birthday party, I knew that I wanted it to be the Charlotte’s Web theme but with more of an elegant flair. That’s about as much as I knew about party planning: pick a theme. But then what? With the help of my sister and some friends, I quickly learned how to plan a baby’s party. Here are some steps you can take in order for your baby’s party to go off without a hitch no matter what your budget is. I’m sure I’ll be using this checklist for many years to come. 

Planning a First Birthday Party

1. PICK A THEME. 

This is probably the most fun out of the entire process. Be inspired. For me, I was inspired by a classic children’s book, Charlotte’s Web. I knew I didn’t want a cartoonish birthday party just yet, and I wanted to focus more on the color scheme from the hardback’s cover. Once I had my theme nailed down, I started pinning away. I created this board on Pinterest to house all of my ideas. 


Follow Kristy Moreno / Seven Graces’s board Charlotte’s Web on Pinterest.

 
Picking a theme can be as simple as picking a few colors that you want your decorations to be or as elaborate as recreating the set from Frozen. You can pick whatever your heart desires so long as your budget allows. Which brings me to…

2. MAKE A BUDGET.

I knew we weren’t about to break the bank when we planned Charlotte’s first birthday party. We made a budget to fit our needs and went from there. I then decided which elements of the party I wanted to allot the most amount of money to and worked my way down the list of costs. Food, Decorations, Venue, Invitations, Cake, Present, Party Favors, Games, Activities, Miscellaneous are some categories to consider. Creating a budget will help steer everything you plan for the party.

3. CREATE A GUEST LIST.

Creating your baby’s guest list is super important. Do you want a small party? Do you want to invite close friends? Would you rather just have your family attend? Or do you want both? I know some people who do very small, intimate parties with just immediate family, and that sounds wonderful. For Charlotte’s party, we decided on family and a few close friends. Remember, the more people you have, the bigger the space you will need, and the more mouths you most likely will have to feed. 

4. PICK A LOCATION/VENUE.

Picking a location goes hand in hand with picking a date. If you pick a venue, you may want to check the availability first before nailing down a date. We chose to host the party here at our home, so we were able to pick the exact date that we wanted. Just don’t forget about your budget. Your venue could very well take a big chunk of that depending on how much you want to spend and how much a venue costs. Your home is free. Your community’s club house also may be an option with a very low cost, if any at all. A local toddler gym, party location, or children’s restaurant could cost anywhere from 100-200 dollars, depending on how many guests will be there.

5. PICK A TIME. 

By the time your baby turns one, you should have him/her on a pretty good schedule (at the very least, a predictable schedule). Plan your baby’s party after his/her morning nap. You’ll have a happy baby for a good two to three hours before he or she needs another nap. This ensures plenty of time to enjoy the party’s festivities. One-year-olds and most young children are busy little bees, and you want them to enjoy the party as much as they can. It’s all for them after all!

6. ORDER INVITATIONS. 

Once I had the when and where nailed down, I looked high and low for the perfect invitation. I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for, so I worked with a fabulous designer on Etsy called Abbie Lee Design Paperie. I actually found her through a friend, and of course, you know I love friend referrals. I loved her work! I wanted the invitation to look like the book’s cover and after emailing back and forth, she came up with the proof below. Perfection! She now sells these in her shop if you are thinking of a Charlotte’s Web theme, too. (She even told me that now they are her best seller.) Etsy is the perfect place to find sensible customized invitations. Once they are bought or printed, be sure to send the invitations out at least three weeks prior to the event/party.
 

7. ORDER THE CAKE. 

Having never ordered a child’s birthday cake before, I took to Facebook and asked my friends for recommendations. My friends never fail me. I ordered the cake about a month in advance, and I was so excited that I did. I called three different places to get quotes on a cake, and I chose by who was the most reasonably priced. I was thrilled with who did our cake for us. My biggest request was that I wanted it to taste great. No brainer there. I’m sure I’ll be using the same baker for next year.

Charlotte's web first birthday party cake!
 

8. MAKE A DECORATIONS PLAN. 

Before I headed to the store for decorations, my husband, the ever fabulous planner, had me draw out what I envisioned the house to look like for the party. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that sooner. It was a brilliant idea, and it made the shopping for decorations a little bit easier. I’m not an artist or interior designer by any means, but I looked at my Pinterest inspiration and sketched out what I wanted and where I wanted things to go. This made me visualize what decorations I was actually going to need. Making a mock-up also helps you avoid spending more than you would without a list of essential items. Imagine that. Also, use what you already have. That can save you some money, too.

9. DECIDE ON ENTERTAINMENT & GAMES. 

I failed to think about this too heavily since I knew Charlotte was only going to have a handful of friends the day of her party, but you do need to consider what is going to entertain all the littles. I had a wide range of ages attending, so I picked showing the Charlotte’s Web movie, coloring station with Charlotte’s Web coloring pages, and coloring with sidewalk chalk outside. Most of the babies played in Charlotte’s play area and the bigger kids enjoyed the coloring station and sidewalk chalk. The older Char gets, the more creative I’ll have to become with the entertainment and games. Inflatable moonwalk anyone? If you choose a venue with entertainment and games built-in, you are a rock star and ahead of the game. 

10. MAKE A MENU. 

When making a menu for the party, consider the time of day. Mid-afternoon or lunch time will most definitely require a meal of some sort. We had Charlotte’s party around noon, so we served a lunch of hot dogs and all the fixings, chips and cheese dip, dips, Cheeto puffs for the little ones, fruit, and veggies. For drinks, we had tea and raspberry lemonade. Sweets consisted of cookies and cake. If you have money in your budget to cater, that is an easy option so that you, friends, or family won’t be slaving away in the kitchen. My best advice is to keep it simple. Charlotte was barely eating solids at 12 months old, so I wanted something fun and kid-like for her first birthday. No need to get super fancy.

11. GO SHOPPING FOR FOOD, DECORATIONS, CLOTHING, ETC. 

Once you’ve made your decorations plan and your menu, now is the fun part. You finally can take your lists and go shopping. For decorations and clothing I started gathering things a month and a half before the party. I went food shopping the day before the party since we were taking care of the food ourselves. If you are ordering any decorations or clothing from an online vendor or shop, order with ample delivery time. 

12. CALL IN THE TROOPS FOR SETUP. 

The week of the party, I called my sister, family, and best friend to ask for help. Don’t be afraid to ask for help! More than likely, your people love your little babe as much as you do, and helping for a celebration in your little one’s honor is no big deal at all. The day before the party, I made sure that all  the items necessary for the party were bought. I arranged for the hubs to pick up the cake the morning of, and I had my best friend and sister helping with last minute details.

13. ENJOY YOUR BABY’S PARTY.  

All of your hard work is now going to pay off. You’ll be celebrating the birth of your child, and I can’t think of anything better than that! Don’t stress yourself out too much. At the end of the day, if your baby smiled with joy, you did your part. No matter how big or small your party is or will be, if it’s filled with love, it will be the best party ever.

After following all the steps listed above, here are few pictures of what my little C’s Charlotte’s Web themed first birthday party looked like. 

Charlotte's Web First Birthday Party
Charlotte's Web First Birthday party!
Charlotte's Web First Birthday Party
 
Charlotte's Web First Birthday Party setupFirst Birthday Party chalk board design.
 

Charlotte's Web First Birthday Outfit! Cutest theme for a first birthday.
DETAILS LIST 
Inviations – Abbie Lee Design Paperie
Paper Products – Party City
Cake – Dulce Nectar Bakery
Birthday Board – Moulage Collection 
Birthday Bib – Mud Pie on Amazon
Birthday Hat – Hobby Lobby
Personalized Onesie – Sweet Tulips Boutique
Handmade Tutu – Bella Bling by Melissa
 

Just a side note: I’ve had this post brewing since I started this blog over six months ago. However, I was waiting for the perfect time in the New Mama 101 series’ timeline. I’ve realized that there is never a better time like the present. Since I waited so long, I lost majority of my pictures from Charlotte’s first birthday, but I’m happy to be sharing the ones that I do still have.

Any more suggestions on planning a birthday party? Let a sister know! ;)

This post is part of the New Mama 101 series. Be sure to check here for previous posts in the series and to see what else is in store. 

 

 

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Comments

    • Thanks, sweet friend! Aren't they fun?! I can't wait for her second birthday. I'm sure she'll be a little ham just like she was for this one. I can't believe her first birthday was already over half a year ago!

  2. such a sweet little theme! I did a big party for #1 too, #2 is a different story, I don't have the energy or time haha! :) Maybe when she is old enough to remember I'll start planning more elaborate bdays again! I love your tips though :)

    • Thanks, girly! Yeah, I don't know just how much energy I'll have, but even when I do just family it's still about 30 people. Yikes. Thankfully, my family has always been a big birthday celebrators, so they help out a TON. These little girls are too much. ;)

  3. Charlotte's Web was such a cute idea for her first birthday party! I just had my son's first birthday last weekend, and there are several things I would do differently given the chance to do it all over again. Ugh! It all turned out alright…I'm just a rookie party planner and things never seem to look as good in real life as they do in my head. :)

    • Thanks, Chelsea! I am not a party planner at all, but I had plenty of people helping me and teaching me a thing or two. ;) I totally understand what you mean though. I think since I kept it simple, I didn't really set my expectations too high. Lol. That helped. I think I'll keep that in mind for her 2nd birthday, too. I'm sure your son's party turned out just great! :)

  4. Kris,

    You are amazing. Is it totally horrible that we gave Jameson a small piece of store bough cake, gave him a balloon, had a small gathering with about 5 family members (including my husband and I) and called it a day, lol. We are terrible!! The cake turned out so beautiful and you all look so happy in the pictures. Happy way late birthday to Charlotte :)

    Have a great day!
    Lauren

    • Aww, Lauren, you are too sweet! Like I said, I am not a party planner at all. I can think out the planning process and what I want it to look like, but actually putting it all together is another thing. I had some amazing helpers. :)

      And what you did for your little boy was absolutely perfect! I have some friends that did not have "parties" for their babies, and I totally applaud that. Having a day with just five family members sounds great! My family is so big that when we're all together it's always a party. We've always gone all out for birthdays, so I'm just keeping to tradition. ;)

      Have a great day on your side of the world!
      Kristy

  10. Thanks, sweet friend! Aren’t they fun?! I can’t wait for her second birthday. I’m sure she’ll be a little ham just like she was for this one. I can’t believe her first birthday was already over half a year ago!

  11. Thanks, girly! Yeah, I don’t know just how much energy I’ll have, but even when I do just family it’s still about 30 people. Yikes. Thankfully, my family has always been a big birthday celebrators, so they help out a TON. These little girls are too much. ;)

  12. Thanks, Chelsea! I am not a party planner at all, but I had plenty of people helping me and teaching me a thing or two. ;) I totally understand what you mean though. I think since I kept it simple, I didn’t really set my expectations too high. Lol. That helped. I think I’ll keep that in mind for her 2nd birthday, too. I’m sure your son’s party turned out just great! :)

  13. Aww, Lauren, you are too sweet! Like I said, I am not a party planner at all. I can think out the planning process and what I want it to look like, but actually putting it all together is another thing. I had some amazing helpers. :)

    And what you did for your little boy was absolutely perfect! I have some friends that did not have “parties” for their babies, and I totally applaud that. Having a day with just five family members sounds great! My family is so big that when we’re all together it’s always a party. We’ve always gone all out for birthdays, so I’m just keeping to tradition. ;)

    Have a great day on your side of the world!
    Kristy

  15. Thank you! We got it from a local baker called Dulce Nectar Bakery. She did an amazing job. I pinned the picture on my board, gave it to her, and let her know exactly what I wanted and this is what she came up with. Awesome!

  18. Thanks, Stasia! I knew it was the theme I wanted to do ever since I picked her name before she was born. Lol. I’m not a planner at all. ;)

  19. I think so, too! You can go way overboard if you don’t have a budget. I’m glad my hubs has taught me all about budgeting.

  21. Thanks, sweet friend! Aren't they fun?! I can't wait for her second birthday. I'm sure she'll be a little ham just like she was for this one. I can't believe her first birthday was already over half a year ago!

  22. Thanks, girly! Yeah, I don't know just how much energy I'll have, but even when I do just family it's still about 30 people. Yikes. Thankfully, my family has always been a big birthday celebrators, so they help out a TON. These little girls are too much. ;)

  23. Thanks, Chelsea! I am not a party planner at all, but I had plenty of people helping me and teaching me a thing or two. ;) I totally understand what you mean though. I think since I kept it simple, I didn't really set my expectations too high. Lol. That helped. I think I'll keep that in mind for her 2nd birthday, too. I'm sure your son's party turned out just great! :)

  24. Aww, Lauren, you are too sweet! Like I said, I am not a party planner at all. I can think out the planning process and what I want it to look like, but actually putting it all together is another thing. I had some amazing helpers. :)

    And what you did for your little boy was absolutely perfect! I have some friends that did not have "parties" for their babies, and I totally applaud that. Having a day with just five family members sounds great! My family is so big that when we're all together it's always a party. We've always gone all out for birthdays, so I'm just keeping to tradition. ;)

    Have a great day on your side of the world!
    Kristy

  26. Thank you! We got it from a local baker called Dulce Nectar Bakery. She did an amazing job. I pinned the picture on my board, gave it to her, and let her know exactly what I wanted and this is what she came up with. Awesome!

  29. Thanks, Stasia! I knew it was the theme I wanted to do ever since I picked her name before she was born. Lol. I'm not a planner at all. ;)

  30. I think so, too! You can go way overboard if you don't have a budget. I'm glad my hubs has taught me all about budgeting.

  31. You did such an AWESOME job with this! And I love the theme.. so personal and CREATIVE! I love a good kids party, so I really enjoyed this post.. glad you shared it on the #SHINEbloghop this week! ;)

    • Thank you so much, Lauren! :) Her first birthday party was definitely one of the best highlights of this year by far. Thanks so much for stopping by!

  32. You did such an AWESOME job with this! And I love the theme.. so personal and CREATIVE! I love a good kids party, so I really enjoyed this post.. glad you shared it on the #SHINEbloghop this week! ;)

  33. Thank you so much, Lauren! :) Her first birthday party was definitely one of the best highlights of this year by far. Thanks so much for stopping by!

  34. Such a cute post! The party looks so stinkin cute! I am going to have to send this post to a lot of my mama friends. This is a great article. Thanks for sharing!

  35. Such a cute post! The party looks so stinkin cute! I am going to have to send this post to a lot of my mama friends. This is a great article. Thanks for sharing!

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