Kids Party on a Budget

So July is a birthday month for 2 of my girls (5 days apart) and this year, after getting away with limited parties for nearly 9 years, I decided it was time to do one at home for a group of friends.  My daughter was turning 8 so it was all things Frozen.  I wanted to decorate without breaking the bank and have things for the kids to do rather than just playing for 2 hours.  So here's a few of my things which were easy do and thanks to Dealz cost very little.

Craft table - get some blanks (in this case card fairies, socks, crowns) and some bling (feather boa cut in pieces, pipe cleaners, pom poms, stickers, wiggly eyes) and just let the kids loose with their imaginations.

Kids love this sort of thing and it doesn't need to be complicated, come with instructions or expensive.

I had planned on making Olaf with the socks but the kids just did their own things.

Decorating doesn't need to break the bank either.  I had lots of banners up.  Then made tissue paper globe thingys.  I also strung cotton wool balls on clear string for 'snow' and painted some branches with silver glitter paint for the forest going up North mountain.

I think they all liked it.  The only problem I faced was each ball had to be hot glued onto the string cause they kept slipping down.

And of course the most important part of any party is the food.  The proper food went down a storm - sausage rolls, chicken nuggets and cocktail sausages.  I also had crisps, sweets and buns.

These ones are my high heels.  So easy to do and again don't have to break the bank.  Simple cupcake with buttercream icing.  The 'sole' is a lotus biscuit (like the ones you get with your coffee in the shops) which  you can get in Dealz.  The 'heel' is a wafer biscuit which though I had seen loads of times before found difficult to get this time but you can get them, otherwise try using chocolate fingers.  They are simply stuck on with some buttercream.  Then decorate the top as you like.

 Now the cake is a different story.  I don't normally make these kind I usually just make it simple but I said I'd do something special this year.  It's basically a 3 tier chocolate rice krispie cake.  The topper is printed wafer paper from Sweet Creations which I stuck on with chocolate and because it was wafer paper it stood up perfectly.  The blue 'snow' is just roll out icing available from Sweet Creations, as are the white snowflakes.

I also had chocolate snowflakes which were tasty but too big, I sprinkled them with blue sugar.  The 'trees' I had fun with though.  They are ice cream cones piped with green buttercream.  Then I just kept them in the fridge until last thing so they wouldn't slide :)  I just thought they were super cool.

Needless to say this went down a treat and my daughter loved it ... she's already planning next years one.

Now I've to go and do another cake for my youngest :) I'll post you a pic when I have it finished.  I hope you like this, if you have any questions or comments please do ask and share xx

Surviving the Summer Holidays!!!!!

I have 3 kids (2 school going) so it's a busy house when school holidays come around.  It's also expensive, if I go out for the day anywhere costs are quadrupled and that's when the hubbie doesn't come.  So I'm going to give you my top ideas / places / tips for keeping costs at bay.

1. Don't go anywhere!!!  'Yeah right like that's going to happen' I hear you say.  But by setting up a few activities outside where they can get messy kids can be happy to stay at home the odd day.

Painting is perfect for this mostly because it's outside so it's not getting all over your furniture, etc and because it's something they are can do as a group rather than just 2 of them or on their own.

Dealz have a good range of craft bits if your kids like doing that.  You can buy a mixed bag of paper, flowers, ribbon, etc for €1.49 and a bottle of glue for €1.49 and let them use their imaginations or with a little guidance you can get all your Christmas cards made :)

2.  Check out Pinterest for things to do and make  I know it sounds obvious but not everyone is a Pinner and it really is a fab place to start when you need ideas.  Here's my page to get you started.  I have a folder for Kids Crafts which is my goto when I need something.

Today I made moonsand from just flour and baby oil.  Great stuff because it doesn't dry up and if they inevitably do put some in their mouth it's not the end of the world (not that I condoning eating it but let's be realistic here - it happens).

3.  Look locally and nationally for free places to do day visits.  We are lucky in this country that we are never far from somewhere to go for a good walk that everyone can enjoy be it up mountains, in the nearest OPW gardens, woodlands or boglands.

Heritage Ireland is a good starting spot where you can look at county by county and see what's out there.  Also worth noting is the some OPW places are open free on the first Wednesday of the month too.

These are also great places to do Scavenger Hunts - give the kids a list (or pictures if they can't read yet) of things to find as you walk around.  They can take photos of them, do drawings or bring them home.

4.  Annual Membership  Probably one or two of the most visited places in Ireland when you have kids is the Zoo and Fota Wildlife Park.  For us (2 adults & 3 children) to visit either would cost the best part of €50 before we've seen anything, eaten anything or dare I say it visited the gift shop!!!

For €170 per year you can go as many times as you want to either or both of them as well as Belfast Zoo and some UK places.  Last year I purchased the membership and we went lots (sometimes it felt like every week) so we definitely got our money's worth.  And most importantly the kids love it.

5.  Eating  I know we have to feed them too!!!!  Best option is picnic style and what kid doesn't love eating out on the grass or at a bench?  So many stores now do sort of snack packs of stuff (salad, pasta, etc), bread rolls and multi pack of crisps and drinks.  For less than €10 you can feed a family of 4 - cheaper than McD's!!!!

I hope this has given you a few ideas.  Let me know how you get on and if you have any more suggestions xx