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As parents, we show up for our kids, and we love to celebrate them. It can be hard to know what to splurge on, though, when the price of food, gas, energy and most other things continues to rise. 

Birthdays are a wonderful opportunity to show our babies just how special we know they are and shower them with love. But the party? It can be a stressor for us as parents.

Focusing on children ages younger than 5, here are some suggestions on how to create a birthday party for your kiddo that is oh so fun and special, but also is budget conscious. 

Step by Step

1. Pick a theme.

With young children, you may be able to pick a theme for your kiddo that will lend itself to simpler or more budget conscious decorating. Either way, a theme will help focus the decorating.

Use your version of a local dollar store as much as possible when it comes to the decorating and activities. Look for a “buy-nothing” group for your neighborhood on Facebook. Sometimes, members offer slightly used decorations for free. 

There are many different ways to keep a party entertaining on a budget. Have a movie party: Hang a sheet on the side of your house or building to serve as the screen for projecting a movie.

Set up different stations with activities that match the theme. Have a coloring station where there are printed out coloring pages that match the theme. Create a cupcake decorating station with different colors of frosting and candy decorations.

Keeping the party short, 1.5- 2 hours, will also decrease the number of activities you need to prepare for the children. 

Smiling young girl with a birthday cake.

2. Next, the invitations. 

There are a few options here. If you feel strongly about having physical invitations, find a template online and look into printing at the library if you don’t have access to a printer at home or work. 

Digital invitations work, too! Design an invitation using Canva’s free option and email or text them to the other parents.

It’s OK to keep the guest list on the smaller side when kids are small. As they grow and make friends, you can ask who specifically they’d like to have at the party.

3. Find a location.

Where will the party take place? This is where the cost tends to sky rocket. You don’t have to rent a bounce house or an arcade for the kids to have a good time.

Lots of public parks allow individuals to reserve a gazebo with tables and benches. Children can run around and enjoy the playground.

You could use a back yard or a courtyard area. In my area, a lot of apartment complexes allow residents to reserve a clubhouse. Community centers might have free or low-cost event spaces.

4. When to party?

We are going to be strategic about the timing of our parties. We are looking at mid- morning or mid-afternoon. That way, we are not responsible for feeding everyone a whole meal. Instead we will opt for a table of easy snacks and dessert.

For those goodie bags, let’s buy candy in bulk and split it up into smaller decorative bags we will buy at the dollar store.

It can feel daunting, attempting to throw a birthday party for the most special individual in our lives! Hopefully with a few of these suggestions, there will be a little less weight on your shoulders this year.

Sophie Hamel is a freelance writer and works in advocacy for victims of interpersonal violence. Her son is two-and-a-half years old.

Luminous removes the hassle of arranging for tuition vouchers and helps make childcare affordable. Vouchers can help ease your financial stress. Learn more about qualifying for HRA and ACS vouchers at our Bronx and Brooklyn centers. Payment can also be made by SEIU/1199 Child Care, check, credit card, and through the Luminous reimbursement program. Contact Luminous Early Childhood Learning Center at enrollment@luminouschildcare.org or call us at 929.228.1180.

Happy little African American boy in a pumpkin patch in autumn,

Hi, parents, and happy October! I’m so happy to celebrate my favorite season of the year. It's that time of year for fall fun with little ones. Here are some autumn- and Halloween-themed suggestions to keep your little one entertained.

As always, we are keeping these as simple as can be. Let’s get started! 

Squishy Fun

First is an activity that is great for our really tiny humans. If you plan to carve pumpkins, don’t throw away the guts of the pumpkin.

Instead, toss them in a gallon zip lock bag to create a super simple and squishy sensory activity for those 12-24-month-olds.

This way they are still involved in the pumpkin carving, but in a safe way. And this allows us parents to really focus on our own pumpkins, am I right? 

Pumpkin Washing

Another idea for our little littles is a pumpkin washing station. To keep it really simple, go for smaller pumpkins. You’ll need to grab a container, fill it with warm soapy water, and make sure there you’re set up in an area that is protected from the splashing or is OK to get wet.

Our three- and four-year-olds can really get involved in the activity by washing everyone’s pumpkins before the carving begins! 

With larger pumpkins, skip placing them in water. Instead, just give your little one a couple of washcloths and some warm soapy water. This way they can wipe down all the pumpkins, and get them nice and clean for carving. But you don’t have to find a giant tote to fill with water either. 

Sensory Bin

Another easy peasy sensory activity for our littles ones is a fall-themed sensory bin.

You could use multicolored dry pasta, pinecones, smooth acorns, or even some leaves. There is basically no mess when it comes to this activity since everything is pretty large and we parents love to hear that.

Give this one a try and let me know how it goes and how long your kiddo stayed engaged in the activity. 

Hunting for Decorations

This next one, I just did with my kiddo over the past weekend, and we had such a good time. I realized, I didn’t have any Autumn or Halloween decorations for our house! As such a huge fan of this time of year, that did not sit right with me. Lack of storage space keeps me from holding onto a lot of decorations, other than those we have for Christamas. 

So, I asked my kiddo if he wanted to go to the thrift store to pick out some decorations. Surprise, surprise, his response was “NOW?” It just so happened we had a few free hours before I had to go to work. So, I said “Sure!” and we were off. 

We headed over to our local Goodwill. I really tried to let him pick out the things he thought would be cute for our little home. He found some pumpkin string lights (LOVE), tealight candle holders (one black cat, a pumpkin, and a little ghost), a wooden pumpkin door hanger, and the cutest little stuffed pumpkin with a black top hat and black and white striped arms and legs. They are absolutely perfect.

Extra tip: Bring something to donate to the thrift store. Most thrift stores offer a coupon for making a donation. So not only was everything pretty cheap in the first place, we also got 20% off! We spent a total of only $10. And we had a great time doing it. 

But, the fun didn’t stop there. We still get to go home and decorate with our super fun finds. 

There you have it, friends! Easy peasy autumn activities to incorporate when you’ve got the time.

I hope they are just as much fun for you as they were for me. Let me know how it goes!

Sophie Hamel is a freelance writer and works as a crisis responder. Her son is a 3½-year-old preschooler.



Luminous removes the hassle of arranging for tuition vouchers and helps make childcare affordable. Vouchers can help ease your financial stress. Learn more about qualifying for HRA and ACS vouchers at our Bronx and Brooklyn centers. Payment can also be made by SEIU/1199 Child Care, check, credit card, and through the Luminous reimbursement program. Contact Luminous Early Childhood Learning Center at enrollment@luminouschildcare.orgor call us at 929.228.1180.