Movie Theater Birthday Party?

[Avonlady1001]

My daughter is turning 6 in January & I had planned on having a small party in my house for about 12 girls. Now I'm rethinking....do I want all those people in my home? What if something happens? etc...My husband is against it.

Everyone around here (Long Island, NY) seems to do bounce house parties. I've been looking & they are very expensive...between $350-400 for 12 kids. I don't have that.

Has anyone had a birthday party in a movie theater? Are they as expensive? Do I have to pay for the parent's ticket or are they responsible for their own? Basically, how do they work??

Any ideas for inexpensive out of the home parties?? I don't have much time here...her birthday is Jan 14 & I'd like to have it sometime in the week following.

She's never had a birthday party with friends, but we've been to many. We promised her this year she'd have one. I'm at a loss...do I just suck it up & pay the $400? It makes me sick to think about it!

 

[scdak]

My daughter is turning 6 in January & I had planned on having a small party in my house for about 12 girls. Now I'm rethinking....do I want all those people in my home? What if something happens? etc...My husband is against it.

Everyone around here (Long Island, NY) seems to do bounce house parties. I've been looking & they are very expensive...between $350-400 for 12 kids. I don't have that.

Has anyone had a birthday party in a movie theater? Are they as expensive? Do I have to pay for the parent's ticket or are they responsible for their own? Basically, how do they work??

Any ideas for inexpensive out of the home parties?? I don't have much time here...her birthday is Jan 14 & I'd like to have it sometime in the week following.

She's never had a birthday party with friends, but we've been to many. We promised her this year she'd have one. I'm at a loss...do I just suck it up & pay the $400? It makes me sick to think about it!

How about McDonalds or other child friendly restaurants such as Chuck E Cheese? Our local roller skating rink has party times which allows a set number to kids to attend along with drink and cookies, and outside food can be brought in also, my niece and nephew had many parties there at your daughters age and it was great. There are indoor play places (I don't know the names) that can be arranged for a party. I am sure other DIS'ers will have some other great ideas too.

 

[mrsw94]

We did a really inexpensive home party this year that was such a hit a friend did the same for her daughter.
We had a non-sleepover PJ party. The girls came over in their pj's, some brought a stuffed animal or a sleeping bag. I spread blankets out on the floor and they laid around and watched a movie.
We served pizza, popcorn, candy, and cupcakes. Pretty low-key and fun! We had fewer girls, but as long as you have a decent-sized living room, 12 would probably be ok.
Good Luck!

 

[WLfamily]

I second the Chuck E Cheese suggestion. And no...I wouldn't pay for the parents. The price for the kids alone is expensive enough. If you do a party at a local movie they usually have a set price for the party depending on how many kids you invite. The parents would pay for their own but I believe they are given a set price they pay since its part of the party. Winter parties are difficult. My dd had a Build a Bear party when she turned 5. We met all the girls at the store in the mall, had the party which included a stuffed bear for each child, then went to the food court for cake. I made sure the invitation stated that the stuffed animal was included in the party, but any clothes would be extra. Hope this helps.

 

[azdizzymom]

Is there a small hall or something like that you can rent? When my son turned 6 I rented a building in park....it was about $60 (indoors as we are in cold climate). We played party games, had pizza and cake and drinks. The parents could stay. Instead of gifts we asked each child to bring a book then we donated them to the school library. For the thank you note I took picture of kids presenting books to library (we mainly invited his class) and used that on a thank you note. We have a January birthday also and I felt at this age they were ready to learn it isn't just about gifts gifts gifts. The school loved the books and kids all learned a lot.

I for one don't like the McDonalds playland and places like that...so germy and dirty especially in the winter with everyone sick. If you have ever had to get your child out you know how dirty they are....think of how often they get cleaned and I wouldn't do it.

You don't have to do a party like everyone else. Do what you think would be fun and your child would enjoy. If you do the movie I would word it so the parents know the child's ticket is paid for and if they want to stay they are welcome to but they will have to buy their ticket (I think most people would not expect you to pay for their ticket but there is always one person who might not get it). If you do that I would talk to manager and see if they can do reduced tickets and snack options for you...maybe a set price for small drink and popcorn. It might be easier to ask for something like that on a movie that has been out for awhile instead of one on opening weekend.

I think the non-slumber party idea is cute. Another one I have heard of is going to do manicures and pedicures....contact a local beauty school and see if they would do a cheap rate for the girls. Maybe invite fewer girls and do a fun hairdo...buy crowns for cheap...get nails done and go out for a fun lunch a Mickey D's without the playland.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Remember if you invite 12 you will have 6-8. Very doable at home if money is an issue. At 6 it is a toss up whether parents will stay or not and you also have to think about the uninvited sibling at pay per guest parties. I think 6 is a little young for a movie party. Chunk E Cheese is easy and you can just order a few large pizzas for any adults that stay. You do not have to feed them but I was never comfortable not offering them food.

If you belong to a church do they have a room for free or very cheap? People use our church's life center for parties all the time. We are doing a family one there tomorrow (40.00)

Remember if you do an at home party the key is to plan so that there is not enough down time for them to get wild and go crazy in your house!!!!

 

[Kasmooth]

How about having it at a local gymnastics gym? My daughter had at least 2 partys at ours. The kids had fun the price wasn't that much per child and I was able to bring in the cake, ice cream and paper goods. Super easy, set timeframe and no clean up!!

 

[hambirg]

Most of the things I was thinking have already been suggested. But I just received a flier from our local park district today, and you can rent one of the indoor pools for an hour for $90. Let the kids swim and then take them for pizza or burgers. I did something similar for my son one year at the YMCA. It was a little more, but the kids got to swim and then the Y had a room to use for another hour. I brought in food. It was a lot of fun, and kids don't get to go swimming too often this time of year.

 

[Lovemydog]

Second the non-sleepover. We did the same and the girls loved it. Came in pj's with pillows, sleeping bags, etc. Decorated sleep masks then had pizza & cake, presents, watched a move and it was time to go home!

I have 3 girls & we have almost always done home parties, the kids & their friends love them. We have done "camping" themes, spa, scavenger hunts, crafts, games, princess themes, etc.

For out-of-home the cheapest we've done is bowling. It was about $10 per kid. I have a friend who rents out a large room at the local rec building for fairly cheap & she's done crafts and games.

Good luck!

 

[Charitycase20]

No advice but I feel pain, my DD's birthday is on January 14th too. I've been stressing trying to find someplace that doesn't break the bank to have her party too! Good luck!!

 

[pam95]

I second what a pp said about looking into a local gymnastics gym. We just had DS' 5th birthday party at a place called My Gym in our area. It was $270, and we were able to have up to 25 kids. (We invited about 16; only 8 showed up.) They took care of the entire party. All we had to do was show up with cake and goodie bags. It was nice b/c we were able to watch and enjoy the party instead of planning/coordinating activities.

Another place you might look into is Color Me Mine. That was our original choice, but as soon as DS saw the ball pit at My Gym, it was all over.

A co-worker of mine had his daughter's party at a local skating rink. The price included a skating lesson for the kids, skate rental, etc. He paid under $200 for about 10 kids. The party price included just the kids, but the rink offered a discount to any parents who wanted to join the kids on the rink.

One of DS' friends had a party at the Y which turned out pretty nice too. They closed off the gym and set out various things for the kids to play with.

I'd also try just a general google search for winter party locations in your area. I tried that when I was researching places for DS' party and was surprised at the number of places that came up! GL!!

 

[irisesareblue]

If you have a basement rec room, this works well - set up the room with sofas or pillows set up in rows facing the TV - when the kids arrive, "usher" each child into the "theatre" with popcorn and a drink and you're set to watch the movie - I used to make a "grand entrance" with each child as if at a movie premiere. Afterwards, we'd head to the dining room and have cake. The movie is the entertainment and with the room darkened (put blankets up if necessary over the windows) it helps to keep the party low key and relaxed. If you start the movie at 1:30 pm, you're done the movie portion by 3 pm, then have cake and you're all done by 4 pm. If you're watching a popular movie you can usually buy themed plates and such at the dollar store. No muss, no real fuss and happy little people.

 

[PA Princess]

Most of my suggestions have already been mentioned, but I can completely relate to your dilema. Winter birthdays are hard! We have 4 kids, but the older three are all summer birthdays - so much easier to plan and with a reasonable budget.

Our youngest has a December 20th birthday - so hard! A month ago I was debating the same options you have before you. Our dd is also turning 6 and we promised a friend party. I would do a home party, but with all of the Christmas stuff it is tough to pull off without losing my mind

In the end we made a compromise. The girls are coming here for cake and a small craft, and then we are traveling to a family fun center with an indoor play space and bounce stuff. Fortunately the place is only a mile from our home. I chose to do the cake at home to keep costs lower. The party package at the place is $300 for a minimum of 12 kids. Hard to get 12 kids so close to Christmas and that price was just more than I wanted to pay.

We did invite all of the girls from her class and a few neighbors, but we will only have 6 girls plus the birthday girl - seems like a perfect number to me. And the cost will be about $100 total ($55 for the family center, $15 cake, $10 snacks, $10 craft, $10 paper products).

Good luck figuring out the right logistics for your dd!

 

[MSSANDRA]

Did the rest RSVP no? If not you may expect some with no RSVP to show up if they were invited. Happen to me more than one time.

 

[Allabtprincesses]

Craft stores....Michael's, JoAnn's etc. Usually reasonable and age appropriate.

 

[squirrel]

The only other thing I can think of that hasn't been suggested yet is a party at an ice rink. Here they have packages for a set amount of kids and a party room available for cake and presents.

What does your daughter like to do? Is she into swimming, gymnastics, skating? Does she prefer arts and crafts?

Renting a room doesn't have to be expensive. The YMCA does partys-not sure how much but I don't think they are that expensive.

 

[ORDisneyfans]

I can totally relate! Dd (8) just had her birthday on December 14th! Winter parties are hard! We chose the skating rink this time. $69 included 8 kids, party set up (plates, napkins, placemats, drink and ice cream), skating and skate rental! I brought the cake and party bags. We made up cute bags with a single littlest pet shop in each. (These were on sale for $1.60 each, bags 15 for 5.00 at Michaels and we stamped a little tag that said Thank you for being my friend. I thought this was better than a bunch of junk or candy from the dollar store!) The kids had a great time, loved the LPS and I didn't have a bunch of kids at my house with the tree up etc. We also went to a pool party on Sunday at the indoor community pool for a friend. It was nice too. We have done spa parties, craft parties and cooking parties all at home. This year it was nice to let someone else do the clean up! Have fun deciding!

Also wanted to add I always give my girls a budget (used to be $100 but we have gone over a bit lately!). They can pick and choose what they want to spend it on. We use oriental trading and costco alot! Also Birthday Express. The more friends less treats, less friends =more treats. Works for us and the girls have a better handle on what is going to happen at the party! (PS my other DD is 13)

 

[maslex]

I am no stranger to "out of the home" birthday parties. I have two boys. DS15 has a summer birthday, so he's always had an at home party with friends and family. It's Aug 23rd, so we always had a pool party/bbq. Worked out well. (we always gave him the option to have it somewhere, but he always chose to do it at home)

DS13's birthday is March 6. We have had a couple at home parties and while they all turned out fine, I much prefered to have them outside the home. Our rooms aren't all the big in our house so with everyone in there, it really got to be too much (all of their parties have included their friends and family, so there were always a lot of people here) So in the past years, he's had his party at McDonald's, the Trampoline place (2x), lazer tag place, bowling, an indoor soccer place and indoor-glow in the dark mini golf. The prices have usually been around $10-$15 per child. Depending on the place, it has included the cake, pizza, activity for the children, decorations, etc. But most of all.....THE CLEAN UP!!!! LOL That, in and of itself, is priceless.

As for the movie party, my boys have attended one before, for their cousin. The price included the movie, a popcorn/candy/soda combo and a few tokens to play the video games. I want to say the price was like $15 per child. My SIL had about 10 kids, so that came to $150. She was able to use a "party room" at the theater and she also brought in pizza and a cake to have before the movie started. I don't believe there was ever a problem with having to pay for any of the adults (they basically dropped their child off for the party and picked them up after the movie) But the adults knew that if they wanted to stay, they had to pay for their own movie ticket.

 

[leenie715]

Hi, I saw you were on LI. I did my daughters party at PJ Cinema in Port Jeff last year. $7.50 for a movie ticket, popcorn, and soda. Not a multiplex but shows all new releases. Staff is friendly and I felt they did a really good job. We had pizza and cupcakes at the pizza palor next store after the show. It was probably the most inexpensive party I ever had for my daughter.

 

[eeyore81]

We did the movie party for 8 yr birthday party. We invited the entire class thinking only a few would show up. The entire class of 18 kids showed up. It was wild having to keep track of 18 8/9year olds. Our movie theater is next door to Max and Erma's so we went over there for the sundae bar. The kids had a blast and having the movie saved on entertaining kids for the hour and half. I definitely say have something outside your house. It is much less stressful to know that when someone spills something, etc. it isn't on your carpet. The parents did not stay for the movie at our party. They all just dropped off their kids. Maybe you could write in the invitation that each child will get a movie ticket, popcorn, candy (whatever you are getting at the movie theater). That way it is pretty clear without coming out and saying you aren't paying for the parents. I say set a birthday party budget and then maybe do not invite the entire class. Since this is the first birthday party she is having, maybe you could limit it to her closest friends.