Birthday Party Question - Need Help!

[spare+a_pair]

Tomorrow we are having my twins 5th birthday party from 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm. I had decided not to serve food - only drinks and cake, but now I am second guessing myself. Should I serve something in addition to the cake?

The party is at my house. We have a pretty packed schedule. Upon arrival, the kiddos will get to make thier own pirate (or princess) bandanas. Then we will give them a treausure map. My DH will take them on a hay ride to find the "burried" treasure. We also have a pinata and we were going to do presents and cake -

SOOOO do I need extra food or am I just nervous? Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[MariDisney]

I have found that activities I've planned have taken much less than I estimated. So, figure out how long you think the craft will take (10-15 min?) and the treasure hunt (depending on how far maybe 30 min?) as well as the cake and presents (30 min max?). So, if it were me I'd have a bunch more things including food. Now, you are at your house and maybe the kids will just be playing a long time. Personally, I've had 1.5 hour parties with 2 being the max and felt that was more than enough. If I was just doing it at home with family /cousins I wouldn't stress. But if there are a lot of school friends, etc. I'd add more to the plan for 3 hours.

 

[james'mommy]

Are parents staying? If parent will be there I would serve some veggies and dip or cheese and crackers. I don't think the kids will need anything more than cake if they'll be busy with activities.

 

[mjkacmom]

I know it's a regional thing, but my kids have never been to a birthday party without food (usually pizza). I don't know if this is your first party, but next year (and I think you will agree after the party ), kids' parties should last between 1 1/2 - 2 hours, tops. I think lots of parents will stay at this age - most start dropping off at home parties around kindy - first. Have fun!

 

[Sienna]

The hours of the party are between lunch and dinner, but I would have some additional munchies on hand. Seems like my kids are always hungry, always wanting a snack, I'm sure those kids won't be any different. Just get stuff that's easy, like chips, pretzels, string cheese, apple slices, finger sandwiches, etc.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I know it's a regional thing, but my kids have never been to a birthday party without food (usually pizza). I don't know if this is your first party, but next year (and I think you will agree after the party ), kids' parties should last between 1 1/2 - 2 hours, tops. I think lots of parents will stay at this age - most start dropping off at home parties around kindy - first. Have fun!

It's the same here - we always did pizza or cooked on the grill or something. Usually for a 5th birthday most parents will stay too so I would at least have some veg/dip, cheese and crackers, snacks etc. on hand.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Three hours is a long time for a 5 yo's birthday party. I would definetly serve pizza or something to break up some of the time.

 

[emma'smom]

If pizza seems like a bit much.....you can always opt for just some veggies (you don't need to do a whole platter....just put some baby carrots and cherry tomatoes--or your childrens' favorites in dishes). I'd put out a bowl of pretzels and a bowl of crackers/cheese puffs, etc.

 

[a1tinkfans]

YES, you will need FOOD!!!
at least snacks........
Some Veggies with Dip or cut up fruit with yogurt.
A three hour party is a LONG time for young kids...and you may want to be prepared for "bobbies sister" or Johnnys brother too.... cause you're having it at home and for some reason, Some parents think it is an ok thing to do (and I do not! ) ....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to your kids and have a great Birthday Party!

 

[spare+a_pair]

Thanks all! We've had several "house parties" before, but they typically fall during a meal time and we serve pizza or burgers/hot dogs. With the "odd timing" DH convinced me cake only would be ok, but I was skeptical.

I will be serving snack type stuff - thanks for the tips!

 

[MSSANDRA]

I would also consider not doing the food at the end. With a three hour patry, 5 year olds are going to need some down time in there and food is best. Also parents are not going to be happy with you filing them up with cake at 5:00, just before dinner. Maybe food at 3:30 or so and do some fun shape sandwiches, pig in blankets, cheese and crackers or other protien rich foods to balance all the sugar highs!!!!

 

[ZPT1022]

We did the odd hours thing too, and I had a table with snacks set up. Chips, pretzels, veggies, dip, etc... just easy snacky stuff for kids and parents.

Not sure if you have the cake already done but we let the kids decorate their own cupcakes, I just tinted a bunch of icing different colors and put out sprinkles and stuff- that killed some more time plus the kids really enjoyed it.

A big hit at my twins 5th birthday this past summer was a silly game. I counted how many kids, lets say 10, and took 10 pieces of colored construction paper. Take a thick black marker and label the papers 1-10. Take 10 smaller pieces of paper and also label them 1-10 and fold them and put them in a small bowl. Arrange the construction paper squares on the floor and tape them down. Have each child stand on a square to start and play music. When the music is playing, they walk in a circle. When you stop the music they must freeze on a square. Pick a number from the bowl and whoever is standing on that number gets a small prize. They LOVED this, they didn't want to stop playing. DH's grandmother was at the party and she, um, helped things along to make sure each child won at least once, but it was cheap, easy and the kids had fun. It probably killed at least 20 minutes too, and the kids would have played longer if we hadn't been tired of it