Friday was my middle son’s birthday.  He turned 19, so “having a party” was not the concern it once was when he and his siblings were younger.  At 19, dinner at a restaurant of his choice with family and a couple of friends was more than sufficient for a Happy Birthday.  No balloons, clowns or bounce houses necessary.  Of course, as I observed this rather mature celebration, I was reminded of the many earlier, more challenging birthday gatherings I’ve held and the trials and tribulations of keeping a motley crew of youngsters entertained and happy at one of my kid’s birthday parties.  As I am sure you have, we tried it all over the years: Bowling, McDonald’s, Chucky Cheese, Sleep-Overs, Barbecue’s in the park, Clay Pottery, Magicians, Pinatas, etc., etc.  Sometimes, however, the simplest things get the best results, and I want to share a simple tip we found very successful at many birthday parties when the kids were younger: The Dollar Store Shop-A-Thon!

CASH IS KING!

When celebrating a young child’s birthday and planning a party, some people spend a fair amount of money on elaborate “goodie bags” for each of the little guests to take home with them at the end of the party.  We found a relatively cost-effective way to let each kid create their own goodie bag and turned it into a party activity good for at least 45 minutes or so of fun (at least for the kids!)  After the party meal (at a fast food joint or pizza parlor), we’d head over to the local “Dollar Store” and hand each child a crisp $5.00 bill – theirs to spend!  For the next 45 minutes or so the party guests would browse the aisles of junk – er, bargain priced items – thrilled to have their own money to spend however they saw fit.  At a dollar store $5 equals 5 items, so each kid was able to create their own custom treasure trove of cool, useless things that, at the time, seemed to be worth way, way more than the lucky Lincoln they got from Mr. Sass.  We were always amazed at how “cool” the kids thought it was to be able to shop for and choose their own items and create their own bags full of the goodies of their choice.   We did have to monitor the checkout line and ensure our “guests” didn’t try to buy inappropriate items.  After all, we didn’t want to have to explain to a puzzled parent why little Johnny came home from the Sass kid’s party with a can of Bug Spray, Shoe Shine Polish, Two Packs of Kitchen Sponges, and a liter bottle of NoName Cola.  We did our best to encourage the kids to spend their dough in the toy section, but there were always a few eccentric exceptions.

How about you?  Have you ever done the Dollar Store dance at one of your kid’s birthday parties? What unusual activities have you created to make your child’s birthday special?  Let’s share some ideas here in the comments and help out all the Dad-O-Matic readers with kids celebrating summer birthdays!

Jeff Sass is the proud dad of ZEO (Zach, 20, Ethan, 19 and Olivia, 17).  He is also a seasoned entertainment and technology exec and active social media enthusiast.  You can see more of Jeff’s writing at Sassholes! and Social Networking Rehab.

Photo Credit: © Dmitry Koksharov – Fotolia.com

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