At home Build a Bear type party?

[eeyorefan74]

My DD has asked for a Build a Bear party for her 6th birthday in September. We could do it at the mall, but because of the cost, would definitely have to limit the guest list. I hate to not invite all the girls in her class because she will have just started kindergarten at a new school, and I know she'll have a hard time picking out who she wants to come that soon after school starts. Plus I'll feel bad if she gets invited to all their parties later in the year and we didn't invite them to hers. Anyone have experience with any of the companies who do the Build a Bear type parties at your house? I've also heard of people just ordering the bears online and doing it themselves. I'd love any tips from someone who's tried this.

 

[StephMK]

We did that for DD7's bday in March. I went through Noah's Ark and she loved it. I would buy them & do it myself next time so I could string it out & make it last longer. The rep turned out to be someone from school & think she felt a little awkward w/the kids. I used to teach preschool & would use more games because it was over quickly. Pricey but fun for DD.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

Hobby Lobby also sells build a bear type dolls, clothes and such that come with stuffing. You do it yourself at home. You can put something together for each girl and then in the goody bag, have some accessories and such. They are priced really well and if you can make a couple of trips this week at
www.hobbylobby.com they have a 40% off coupon for 1 item on there!

 

[katiesmomluvsdizne]

My DD girl scout troop just did this at their end of the yr party. The leader had a scavenger hunt for the girls to find all of the pieces (bears, clothes, name tags, etc). After that they did the stuffing. The noahs ark was very nice. I don't know what the cost was, but BAB is sooo expensive. BAB was what my DD wanted to do for her 9th BD, so I agreed but only with limiting the number of guests.
Good luck!

 

[problemchild718]

Look, as the mother of 3 kids, keep it real. Your daughter doesn't play with all these girls and you are setting yourself up for your child to expect that many children every year which unless you are finacially able is very difficult. Tell her to pick her best 5 or 10 or however many friends you can afford. If you feel the need, have a teddy bear party at home (bring bears, have teddy bear food, games and stories and wear pjs) on a different date with all of the kids.

 

[DsnyDrmr]

My 10-yr-old son just attended one of his good friends' (a girl) b-day party, and this is what they did. The mom ordered the animals on-line with some outfits that the kids got to decorate with fabric glue, beads. They came with the birth certificate, stuffing. Each child chose what animal they wanted in advance so the mom could order them. The kids had a ball! Now if I could only remember the company!

 

[eeyorefan74]

Thanks, everybody. I'm going to check into Noah's Ark and look at what they have at Hobby Lobby. Any others with experience, good or bad?

 

[lady9]

We just did a BAB party for my DD's 6th birthday. She invited 7 girls and with her being #8, it was the perfect amount for that age. Yes, it is expensive but we feel this is a once in a lifetime party. I wouldn't worry about not inviting every girl in her class at the risk of her being invited to their parties. Not every child has a kid party every year. We do kid parties for our kids in Kindergarten, 2nd, and 5th grades. We do a family party every year. I don't have any experience with at home build a bear parties but do recommend BAB if you can at all afford it. The hostess we had was wonderful with the girls. She kept them very engaged the entire time. I'd check for sure that an at home party would be significantly cheaper than at BAB. You can do just an animal for $10.

 

[eeyorefan74]

Thanks, lady9. After some research, I think you may be right about paying just as much for some of the at home parties as I would at BAB. Plus, judging by the pictures I've seen, the animals aren't the same quality as BAB.

 

[crisi]

Look, as the mother of 3 kids, keep it real. Your daughter doesn't play with all these girls and you are setting yourself up for your child to expect that many children every year which unless you are finacially able is very difficult. Tell her to pick her best 5 or 10 or however many friends you can afford. If you feel the need, have a teddy bear party at home (bring bears, have teddy bear food, games and stories and wear pjs) on a different date with all of the kids.

Any of your kids have a September birthday? I didn't think I'd ever do a class party, but with my daughter's September birthday, I didn't feel I had a choice. It was too soon in the year for her to have 5 or 10 best friends, she wasn't going to keep her daycare friends, and we aren't in a neighborhood with a lot of kids. Kindergarten wasn't good, and first grade wasn't much better since her kindergarten "best friends" were not friendships we wanted to encourage (they were seperated for first grade at our request). We could have a guestlist of two, or we could invite the class.

Now that she's in second grade, she has five or ten good friends that we can invite - but that first and second year of school were very tough.

I agree that if the party is big, keep the expectations low. A cake and ice cream and party games at home party for the class - perhaps followed by a sleepover with her best friend and a trip to build a bear for two the next day.

 

[sjms71]

Also, check out A.C. Moore craft store. They have a section with bears and clothes and accessories you can buy.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

Just got back from Hobby Lobby. They have the smaller bears in a 3 pack for 19.99. In this pack comes shoes and clothes for each bear& the stuffing and such. If you use the 40% off coupon on a few of these you would be all set