Planning a first birthday party for the child is an exciting time for parents and family.
The first birthday marks the child’s passage from infancy into the realm of adulthood. It is when the child is ready to learn new things and be exposed to new environments.
The child also begins to learn his or her identity. His or her own body, mind, and spirit begin to develop and adapt to their new environment.
First birthday parties are one-way families can celebrate this important milestone in their child’s life.
Unfortunately, because of the COVID situation and the lockdowns in most countries worldwide, throwing a party might be out of the question.
With that said, countries are slowly beginning to reopen, and if your child’s first birthday is later in the year, there is a high chance that it will be business as usual and possible to throw a memorable party with appropriate gifts.
Get to know the other parents
There are several steps in which you can celebrate the occasion. One way is to invite the parents of your child’s friends to join you for the party.
Inviting them over to a first birthday party is a great way to spend time with them and get to know them personally.
You can even throw the party a couple of weeks before the actual event to sync up everyone’s schedules.
Party games
To make the gathering exceptional, you can choose some unique first birthday party games.
There are many ideas available on how to plan games for children’s parties. First of all, ask the child what he or she would like to play.
For instance, if the child wants to play Pin the tail on the donkey, you could make the game more fun by drawing a donkey on the invitation card. If the child chooses to play catch, you can give him or her a toy elephant.
Create a memory book
As this will be the first year of your child’s life, it is good to help the kids make a memory book.
Ask each guest to write down a little memory to give to your child once they get older.
Write the details as best as possible, and you can also create a personal book containing all of the memories.
This is an attractive way to give your child a special memento of the party.
Bake your own cake!
One of the most significant aspects of a child’s party is the cake. It should be creative and exciting.
A lot of children have cakes that they eat and not part of the theme. In this case, it would be a good idea to provide them with a lovely birthday cake.
Ask the parents to get the best baker they know. You may be surprised at how easy it is to find one with lots of creativity and imagination.
Better yet, you could attempt to bake your special birthday cake and include all of the things that your child enjoys.
You can even add this to the memory book mentioned earlier.
Get appropriate gifts that your child will enjoy
One of the best parts of how to celebrate a first birthday party is giving presents. This helps the parents bond with their children.
It is crucial to pick out personalized unique baby gifts that the child can enjoy instead of many cute ones.
You can find out what gift ideas for 1-year-old boys or girls are appropriate by asking around other parents or family that have already had this experience.
Keep it as simple as possible
If you don’t know what the acronym KISS is, you should look it up. Essentially you should aim to create a simple event, especially as this will be your first foray into every young child’s parties.
By keeping everything as tasteful and straightforward as possible, you will save some money and make sure that the other children enjoy their time and are not too excluded.
Prepare for tantrums!
By now, you will already be well aware of impromptu tantrums from your little ball of loveliness.
If you thoroughly prepare your mind for these outbursts and have sufficient distractions in place, you will find that your sanity will be left intact after the big day.
Prepare the party for adult-friendly activities.
If you can make sure to provide good entertainment for the parents of your child’s friends, you will have won half the battle.
You see, there is nothing worse than seeing other stressed out parents trying to fight to await their boredom.
This also has the attached advantage of earning brownie points among the other parents and ingratiating them to yourself.
Summary
It doesn’t have to be overly complex or stressful to arrange your child’s first birthday.
As long as you document the event and make sure to provide the usual birthday staples, you will discover that it runs far smoother than if you attempt an elaborate party.
Remember, your child will not really remember their first-party anyway, so make sure everyone has fun, including yourself!