Planning Your Child's Birthday Party

Here are some ideas for cheap and cheerful birthday parties that prove you don't have to spend a lot of money to host a birthday bash for your child:

• Gardening Gala. Give kids the chance to plant bulbs or seeds at this one-of-a-kind birthday bash. Obviously, you'll want to tip the party guests' parents off to the theme ahead of time so that none of the kids show up in ultra-frilly party dresses!
• Garage Graffiti. Cover your garage door in heavy-duty craft paper and hand out washable markers, roll-on deodorant bottles filled with washable paint and art supplies.
• Crafty Solution. Got a kid who positively lives and breathes crafts? A craft party is a natural. As an added bonus, the flower pots or picture frames that the party guests decorate make ideal goody bag fare.
• Homegrown Magic. If you're entertaining a group of young kids, see whether you can persuade one of your kid's older cousins into doing magic tricks for the party guests. If you're hoping to entertain older kids, you'll probably have to spring for a professional magician. It won't be fun for the kids or the magician if they're able to figure out the "magic" behind the tricks.
• Mad Science. A lab coat, a wig, a pair of nerdy glasses, a book of science experiments and—of course—a larger-than-life persona are generally all that's required to play the part of the mad scientist. You can either play the role of Einstein yourself or hire a neighborhood teen to help out.
• Road Hockey. If road hockey is the passion du jour of your birthday boy or girl, ask each birthday guest to bring a hockey stick to the party. Let it be known that you'll be supplying the three Ps: pop, pizza and the puck!
• Backyard Olympics. Introduce your kids to such classic picnic games as the three-legged race, the bean-bag toss, the sack race and so on. If you're dealing with an extra-tough crowd, you may want to suggest that the party-goers try some of the picnic games after dark, in the swimming pool and/or while blindfolded!
• Do-It-Yourself Disco. Make your own music tapes by recording selected tracks from an assortment of albums—either current favorites from your child's music collection or picks from some vintage disco albums scooped up at a second-hand store.
• Home Spa Day. Treat your daughter and her friends to a day at Spa Chez Vous. The party guests can have fun making all kinds of homemade spa delights—everything from cucumber facial masks to lip balm to bath fizzies.
• Book Party. If you've got a child who loves to read and happens to hang out with an equally bookish crowd, a book party could be the ticket to birthday party nirvana. Everything, from the party invitations to the party games, can be tied into the book theme, with wonderfully creative results.
• Seeing Stars. Borrow a friend's telescope and help your child host a backyard astronomy party. Of course, you'll want to hedge your bets by renting a few kid-friendly astronomy videos, too, just in case Mother Nature decides to rain on your child's birthday party parade.
• Gallery Gala. Not too keen on the thought of having your house invaded by a tribe of highly rambunctious kids? You can always take your party act on the road and head for the nearest children's museum, recreation center or other kid-friendly venue.
• Reel Fun. Host a midnight movie madness birthday party—a late-night bash where the movie doesn't even get popped into the VCR or DVD player until after bedtime. While the kids are waiting for the movie to start, they can entertain themselves by making pizza, testing their knowledge of movie trivia and making a reel-shaped party cake.