So you’re having a party and decided on your Theme!! Woohoo step one check.
Next step is your guest list….sounds simple right? Nope! This I think is one of the hardest decisions, after all it is what makes the party really work.
Some guests are a no brainer…Family comes first! Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles & Cousins. I know that sounds like a party on its own but you do have to invite kids!
This is where it gets tricky… How many and who (or is it whom?) to invite?
It’s a standard that you should invite the kids age plus one. So if your child is turning 4 then you invite 5 kids. The first time I read that I almost fell out of my chair laughing. There was no way I am able to limit myself to just that, my girls and myself are too social for that.
The easiest way to help in deciding how many people/children to invite is according to the space you’re having the party in.
Almost all the parties I’ve had for the girls were in the garden so I’m pretty generous when it comes to numbers.
A good rule of thumb is to figure out seating. You should have 2.5 seats per child (the child + parent) this off course doesn’t include adults that come without kids (Grandparents, aunts, Mom’s best friend ….etc).
Next you may want to consider siblings. I have a rule not to invite Jennah’s friends to Zeenah’s birthday and vice versa. With that said I do have specific friends (you know who you are!) that have both age groups that I do invite.
Now how do you prepare the list…. I usually divide a nice white crisp A4 paper into 3 columns, yes as old fashioned as that sounds I like to have it on paper and in my purse so I can add and cross as I please.
The 3 columns are Family, Friends, Children.
Each column is then divided into Adult & Child. You can download my word document and fill it out.GUEST LIST
Here’s how it works…. First column for each Family member you’re inviting you have a column for their child/children. So my sister column one and her 2 kids in the next column.
The Friends column is actually the parent’s friends, but your child actually has to know their child and enjoys playing with them too…. so for example my friend “ABC” and her child “abc”.
Now that Jennah has been in school for a while some parents have become my friends but their children are no longer in the same class or school.
Here is where you as a parent need to make the hard decision of cutting people out. Sure you love “Mommy H” but your daughter doesn’t play with her “Son Y”. Off the list they go. No guilt, if you want set a date with the mom over coffee or dinner and enjoy the company of an adult!
Finally the kids column….this is where I use the child’s age plus one. These are usually children that are new friends, in her class and basically I have no knowledge of. I’ve let Jennah (almost 7) decide on those. That way your child can feel involved too.
After all it is THEIR birthday and “Making Life Memorable” for THEM!
