Birthday parties cost more and more these days. It is often easier with our busy schedules to book birthday parties at trampoline places, arcades, and other establishments. Whatever happened to a little pin the tail on the donkey and a cake made from a box? Those days are long gone. My kiddos love attending these parties; however, we have to stick to a budget with so many kiddos in our home. As they get older, it is harder to create the magic they get when going to some of their peers’ birthdays. We can pull it together in the end.
Magic Making for our Princess!
This year for my daughter’s birthday, she wanted a sleepover birthday. Popping up around our area right now is the Tee-Pee party rentals. My daughter saw this, and this is what she wanted. I looked into the rental company, and with 5 girls, the tents would cost over $300, and then if I wanted to add their spa kit, we were looking at another $150; this is not including all of the food, favors, cake, etc. . This Momma bear accepted the challenge of figuring out how to give this to my daughter on a budget.
Where do we start?
First, I had to pick a room for this slumber party. The living room would be the most considerable open space. I sat in the room and thought out a few different plans. I could buy each girl a tent and push all the furniture aside, but I would still have to purchase the mats and blankets. I priced this out, and though it did not cost the rental $300, it was a lot of movement for my tight space. Then it dawned on me, “Why not use the couch?”
How do we make it happen?
Now my couch is not a pull-out, so I had to figure out a way to make it into a bed. The light bulb went off again (or my sister came up with the idea), “Blow up mattress!”. A twin blow-up mattress fit right up to the couch. I used a king-size fitted sheet around the couch cushions and the blow-up to secure it to the couch. I was amazed at how perfectly it fit.
Next, came the fun time. How would I decorate? I got a Pink canopy that used to make the couch look like a tent. We put eucalyptus vines to give it a fairy look, with fairy lights draped across the window and canopy. We made a balloon garland with more vines and weaved some fairy lights through it. Then we used her pink comforter and added some pink throw blankets I found at Target for $15. Viola, she had a magical bed for her friends to sleep in! Leaving us plenty in the budget for spa, food, and fun!
Breakdown and Comparison:
| Rented cost | Purchased |
| Tents and Beds-$350 | Canopy- $40 Blow Up Mattress- $60 Blankets- $45 Balloons- $10 Garland and lights- $22 Total: $177.00 If you did not own anything from above Our Total was $55 because we used what we had. Plan a party theme knowing what you might already own! |