by Suzanne Rose

Created on: July 20, 2010   Last Updated: June 24, 2011

You want to give your child the experience of a lifetime at his or her birthday party.  Yet like many Americans, you might be struggling in the financial area, concerned about jobs, rent and the difficulties of everyday life.  You may be searching for ways to save on your child's birthday party, and one way you can do so is by providing the entertainment yourself. The following are some ways you can do this without spending a lot of money.

Have a dance party

A lot of little kids love to dance and get moving to the music.  You can buy different CDs for very inexpensive prices that have a lot of different dance tracks for a kid's birthday party.  They might have the classics like the Hokey Pokey, the Chicken Dance and more.  You can lead them in these dances.

Play games

There are a lot of fun games that cost little more than your time.  For instance, you can get some old pillow cases and have sack races. You can have musical chairs.  Some kids might get upset when they lose such a game so you might want to have a little treasure chest of 25 cent or dollar store toys and let them get a prize when they exit the game.  You can also do Simon Says.  

You can incorporate games into your dances.  You can blow up a bunch of balloons and have them try to keep the balloons up in the air while they are dancing. You could have a freeze dance where they have to stop dancing every time you turn off the music.  Get a broom and make a limbo game. 

Make a backyard carnival

A backyard carnival can be a great way to celebrate a child's birthday party. You can make games such as a ring toss or make your own game of Pin the Tail on the Donkey. Kids also love to do scavenger hunts. 

Perform yourself or have a friend perform

You can get dressed up as a clown and put on a little act. You can buy an inexpensive magic set and do that for the kids.

Have a theme party

There are many great inexpensive theme parties. Bunco doesn't have to just be for adults. You can get some of your girlfriends to put together a little makeover party for little girls and do their hair and makeup. Have a craft making party.  You can also have a "solve your own murder mystery" party.

A child's birthday party doesn't have to be expensive to be fun. Consider the above ideas for inexpensive entertainment. 

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