The secret to throwing a (stress-free) child’s birthday party

This is a sponsored post on behalf of Dr. Oetker USA LLC. I received compensation for this post, however all opinions stated are my own.

Thank you Ellio’s Pizza for sponsoring this post. Visit your local retailer to pick up your own Ellio’s Pizza for a pizza night in!

With four kids, Mickey and I find ourselves throwing quite a few parties each year… and our birthdays all fall in the spring & summer. I don’t throw elaborate parties. And we definitely don’t spend hundreds of dollars on decorations.

I am going to share with you a little secret. Do you sometimes see beautifully-themed birthday parties online, and feel inadequate because your parties don’t measure up? Don’t. Really – don’t give it a second thought. While those pictures of parties are beautiful to look at, many of them cost the host a lot of stress (and a lot of money). I am not one of those moms who wants to be running around worrying about everything. No, I want to be the mom talking to our guests, enjoying myself.

Oh and the real secret? Most kids really do not care about all the details. They do not even notice them. They just want to eat Ellio’s Pizza, snack on chips and play!

So the next time you want to throw your child a birthday party, just do the best you can. If it makes your child happy, then you had a successful party.

5 tips to have the kind of party that makes you smile, not stress.

Tip #1 Decorate with smiles!
When I am planning a party, I don’t focus on the decor. Instead, I let the kids be the decorations: they wear something as part of the theme. We’ve had princess parties, Steeler parties, sprinkler parties, 80’s parties…

Tip #2 – Go for Easy Kid-Friendly Foods
We like to serve Ellio’s Pizza at our birthday parties. We cook it as the guests are arriving and serve it with their favorite snacks.

We started because Mickey said it reminded him of his parties when he was a kid. Ellio’s frozen pizza is uniquely convenient. Plus, it is satisfying and works as a fun snack or as the main meal. It’s an option you can feel good about serving your kids in no time. I feel good about giving it to our kids because Ellio’s only uses the freshest ingredients, with 100% real cheese and no artificial flavors.

Tip #3 Let your kids help make the decorations.
Remember, this party is about YOUR KIDS, not you. Your kids like to see their own work, so let them make the decorations. Let go of those insecurities that says “It has to be the best because people will be coming over” and just remember that your kids are more important than your ‘appearance’

Tip #4 – Let your kids play.
You don’t have to have a million activities. I usually don’t plan any activities at all, honestly. During our daughter’s party, she was happy to just have her friends there, dressed up with her. They just played with toys, had Ellio’s Pizza and cake. They were happy as could be and she loved it!

Tip #5 Party Favors don’t have to be “toys”
Last year we stopped giving out party favor bags filled with ‘fillers’. We give something that the kids can use, like a water bottle or themed cup from the dollar section of a store. We wash the cups & use them at the party, then we send the kids home with them. Or let them have bubbles to play with and to take home. One year we even did practical gifts that the parents would like: hand sanitizer, hand soap, themed bandages, etc… the kids liked it because of the theme, but the parents knew they would actually use it.

Remember… the kids don’t care about those things that we care about, so let it be about the kids.
Serve their favorite Ellio’s Pizza in Original Crust or Sicilian Style Crust…

Serve your favorite TREAT (It doesn’t have to be cake. We’ve done doughnuts, pretzels, brownies & cookies- whatever the birthday boy or girl wants)

And let them have FUN…

This is a sponsored post on behalf of Dr. Oetker USA LLC. I received compensation for this post, however all opinions stated are my own.Schedule