Party favor ideas for 9yo bday party?

[mermaidwannabe]

We're having a simple inexpensive party at our Swim Center for my 9-year-old, and I wanted to give some kind of party favor that was fun, unique, and yes, not too expensive as there will be 13 people. Any great ideas? I saw the personalized M&Ms but for that many party favors, it would be $74! I hate to spend that on candy.

Thanks for any ideas!!

 

[yankeechick]

my son is also having a swim party and turning 9!w/29 kids that rsvp. i got glow braclets from the dollar tree $ and candy for treat bags. im wanting to get swim noodles but can't find any cheap ones!!

 

[Tinkermommy]

I really dislike most goody bag items - they are cheap and I have to pick them up or throw them away a few days later!

For my DD's party I gave everyone $3 gift cards to a local ice cream place. The kids seemed to love it and they have lots of other choices besides ice cream. It was a summer party though, so ice cream was a good idea for the hot weather!

 

[Crystal0608]

Boogie board, swim googles, beach ball, pool noodle? A lot of store are already 50-75% off some of these things. Check out Walgreens.

 

[mermaidwannabe]

I've done the ice cream certificates before too, but have always wondered if the Mom's don't appreciate them because they inevitably have to buy ice cream for the other kids in the family when they go. There will be boys and girls so it can't be too girl-y. Actually, my DD9 is more tomboy than girl-y anyways. I thought of doing swim balls but went to a party that gave those out and there was a lot of complaining that "so and so" had their's and not being able to find them since they had used them in the pool. Course I could always just give them to them at the end...I don't know! Thanks for the suggestions though!

 

[Terry36]

Boogie board, swim googles, beach ball, pool noodle? A lot of store are already 50-75% off some of these things. Check out Walgreens.

I 2nd these recommendations. Give them something having to do with the theme of the party.

 

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

Both my kids' birthdays are in the summer so I give $5 gift cards for Rita's Water Ice. I'm not sure if they are open in all parts of the country though. In any case, a gift card to a local ice cream shop is always a good idea in the summer!

 

[LisaNJ25]

My daughter is turning 9 and is doing camp rock theme swimming party. I am doing homemade cd of the music from the movie.

You can always do a cd of swimming/beach themed music.

 

[EthansMom]

You might be able to find some beach towels on sale for around $5 each this time of year. I know Walmart has already started discounting their beach towels. Also, Target is starting to discount their summer stuff... goggles and such.

One mom we know gives out individual toys in the $5 range instead of goody bags full of $5 of stuff. This last year, she gave out Lego Racers to each child, which were a huge hit at our house.

With school starting up soon, you could do a small pack of school supplies... a pencil box/case, box of crayons, colored pencils, pencils, etc... Those would get used and would easily run less than $5 each.

Good Luck!

 

[deedeecee]

How about portable mini fans? I can usually find the Cool Breeze brand mini fans at Party City for under $2 each. You could even create a label to attach to the fan. The text could read something like that: "Thanks for helping me celebrate my birthday! Hope you had a cool time!" and you could include a picture of the birthday kid.
Kids love those things. Very reasonably priced.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

DD9 had a pool party in June, and I did a candy buffet for favors (got the idea from a thread on the BB ). I bought twelve blue and green plastic containers from the Dollar Store (someone has a picture of the same ones on that thread), then got candy that wouldn't melt and was individually wrapped (Tootsie rolls, pixie sticks, Starburst, bubble gum, Laffy Taffy, etc.). The kids each got a Chinese food take-out container type box from Michael's and could fill their box with whatever kind of candy they chose. We gave the leftover candy to the lifeguards. The kids all said it was the coolest party ever!

We have also gotten pool noodles or pool toys (diving sticks, etc.) as favors at pool parties. Most recently DD went to a pool party and brought home a goldfish! Cute idea, but all of the girls' goldfish were dead within three days. Pet store goldfish are not known for their hardiness, unfortunately.

 

[LuvOrlando]

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[famofsix]

cheap flip flops and then give a sharpie to sign their friends name on them.

 

[Pixie Dust for Me!]

How about a $5 gift card to a book store? We generally do $5 gift cards to Borders.

Sometimes, if I'm thinking ahead, I'll look for the $.99 books in the Scholastic Catalog and order multiple copies to hold back for the gift bags. Parents and kids both love those !

 

[wdwhereicome]

Pool party favors my Dkids received in the past:
beach ball
swimming ring
pool noodle
body board
lifeguard whistle on a string
boats
water guns (a super-soaker was their favorite)
gummy fish in netting
fish that squirted water
home-made t-shirt
rubber duck they used as a game in the pool
seashells in a netted bag
mini-surf board
blow-up pool alligator

I do like the cd idea someone gave you. With printable cd labels, it could be personalized for the birthday party and include something kids get excited over even if it is "old" music - the Beach Boys.

 

[NEDisneyFans]

orientaltrading dot com sells lots of reasonable stuff for parties -- my niece got flip-flop charms and beads and the girls at her party each made key chains / cell phone charms / necklaces. Quite a hit!

they also have lots of the pool-themed stuff PPs mentioned.

Have fun!

 

[mermaidwannabe]

Great ideas, thanks! I'm going to Target tomorrow (we don't have a Walgreens) to look at sale summer stuff, but I also really liked the candy buffet idea and the cookie and balloon. Thanks!!

 

[disneyleslie]

My daughter turned 9 today - my inlaws have a pool - so we decided to just take some friends there for the aft. It was the best bday ever - they swam all aft. - got out to break a pinata (got it all at target) - made some hot dogs, had cake, opened gifts and big sister did nails. They all had a blast - I got a pack of 16 goodie bags from target (they were two shades of pink - I thought there were 8 bags but there were 16) - bought cute notepads and gel pens and erasers in dollar section and they filled their bags with candy. Everyone had a blast - 8 girls total and noone was fighting - it was one of our best parties yet and really simple and not that expensive.

Leslie