Birthday Party Menu - Kids focused themes,favors,food,games

The birthday parties or events centered around kids are exciting events. I have celebrated 2 birthdays so far and have thoroughly enjoyed my time. 
The key to arrange birthday parties or kids populated events is to kick off the planning with gusto that matches their enthusiasm levels. Nothing about their parties would be over the top so flow with the mood.


In my head there are a million things that I want to do but practically it may not be possible. I am listing some of the ideas below which would help you for your event planning


Themes - Following a theme is not mandatory and do not stress about it if you find it difficult. Although, I do feel that theme puts a lot of things in perspective for the party. 
The cake , the decor , kid's costume, favors need to match the theme. These days it is also easy to find dishes,napkins that match the themes.
1) Cartoon based characters - This works best for young children. Considering this is popular approach, you need to be very innovative here. 
For younger kids - Winnie the Pooh, ShinChan, Doraemon, Tom & Jerry & the popular Chota Bheem.
2) Sports theme - Cricket, Football, Tennis, Badminton are popular options with easily available cakes and other party kits
3) Princess theme - Very popular option for girls' birthday. Doll cakes, castle cakes, fairy like dress, Star wands for fellow girls.

4) Fancy dress theme- Asking the invited kids to dress up in fancy clothes will also take care of games and fun part
5) Traditional - If you wish to celebrate the birthday traditionally or have an event like hair  cutting, sankrant you can do so by making the other kids part of it by asking them to be traditionally dressed up. The food, decor, games can also be matched up. You can reach out to your parents or grand parents and ask them to introduce games that they played in their younger days with the kids.


Games help you keep the reigns in your hands. If let loose the kids will overpower the party. So it is always better to plan the games and execute them the way you want things to progress.
Since this is no school the kids will arrive at different timings. You cannot wait for all to arrive to start the games so plan games that could be played with different set of groups.
The first game always has to be create groups. The easiest is to make chits containing the names of differents groups and ask the kids to pick their own luck. The group names can be as per the theme. For e.g. for a cricket based theme, you can create groups based on team names or cricketer names.
For younger kids you can start with basic games
1) Passing the parcel
2) Tele games - box cricket, throwing balls in basket,
3) Blindfolding and marking the tail of monkey
4) Mask making 
5) Clay dough competition


For elder kids
1) Treasure hunt (Can be messy if the venue is small)
2) Quiz contest
3) Balancing acts
4) Dumb charades
5) Pictionary





Party Favors are the next best sought after items in a party post food or to be precise cake. This needs to be most thoughtfully planned. The party favors need to be aligned to your theme. The other constraint is that you should not buy anything very expensive as there are certain trends we need to follow. 
Few ideas
1) Goodie bag with fancy looking stationery (pen, pencil, eraser, sharpeners etc)
2) Theme aligned toy (soft toys, balls etc)
3) For girls - accessories , hair bands etc
4) For boys - Sports band, cricket kit 


Food runs on most kids (and adults ) on the mind during parties. The curious minds may even opt for a sneak peek in the kitchen or the more extroverts may directly ask on face. Considering that we also like to cook we should only be happy to play to their demands.
Generally the menu should be non fussy, nothing new. Opt for colorful menu. Simple dishes can be made attractive by planning about its presentation and the way it is served.
Avoid runny gravies or liquid based curries as you dont want to run with a sponge or washcloth from one corner to another. Health should not be compromised at any cost. Also, kids are supposed to eat fat and high calorie food their metabolism compensates. Avoid junk food though as you dont want to be at loggerheads with other mothers who painstakingly avoid this through the year.
The food should be classified broadly in 3 courses only
Starters should be simple , non fuss and easy to move. Ideally serve them in one large bowl(non breakable) and or set it at an easily accessible spot and encourage the kids to come and pick their own share
Chips
Cookies
Fries
Flavored Popcorns
Lollipops
Stuffed Toasts

Main course should be ideally one pot meals, non runny and easy to re-serve. Opt for minature versions as kids like small things (mini-idlies, mini pizzas, mini pancakes)
Pav Bhaji
Mini Pizzas
Pastas with Vegetables
Healthy Burger


Dessert
Doughtnut/ Donut
Cup cakes
Cake Pops
Chocolate Fondue





General Tips
* Always remember to offer food at regular intervals rather than at one go. The tiny packages need to be replenished with energy time and again
* Try to make the venue kid friendly. Stove back large objects and breakable items out of range.
* Make the food less spicy even at the cost of displeasing accompanying elders. Kids cannot compromise as it is beyond them


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