Search Results for: blog childs birthday party part 2

Castle Birthday Party Idea

This next weekend, we are having a birthday party with a castle theme for our youngest son. We are planning  to include theme-based games, decorations, prizes, crafts, a large spread of food and a complete castle cake for less than $100 total. Now that is frugal! How are we doing this? The ideas and preparations are elaborate, so follow this blog over the next few days to get all of the details.  Here is our strategy. By having the party at home, we spend zero dollars on rent for a hall or one of those theme birthday places, saving anywhere from … Continue reading →

Cheap Birthday Cake Ideas

When spring rolls around, it seems as though there is one birthday after another at my house, all the way through to the holidays. Each birthday usually requires cake, and all of those cakes can add up. I remember the year when my daughter convinced my husband to get a store bought and created Princess cake, complete with the princess characters. Since it was offered in the bakery section of the grocery store, he didn’t thin much of it. When he picked it up on the day, he was surprised to find that it came with a $50 cost. Youch. … Continue reading →

Happy Birthday Little Girl

Today is Hailey’s 18th birthday. I cannot believe how quickly the time has passed. What a wonderful journey this has been, from conception to this moment it has been the most amazing thing that has happened to me. It hasn’t all gone as planned; I never imagined I would be a single parent. I wanted to live the fairy tale, be married to my Prince Charming forever and ever. I thought her father and I would grow old together and enjoy watching our grandchildren play. That really was just a fairy tale, our marriage has ended and we’ve moved on. … Continue reading →

Photography Week in Review for October 15-20, 2007

From wedding shots to fun photo projects… and everything in between we’ve featured a great variety of blogs this week. If you’ve ever wondered what to do with those leftover photos or how to spice up a child’s birthday party then you’ve come to the right place. The Photography Week in Review is your one-stop shopping resource to get all the photo tips you missed over the past few days. October 15th—–Photo Lessons: The Rule of Thirds. The “Rule of Thirds was one of the first lessons I learned in my college photography class and one that I have continued … Continue reading →

How to Save Money at Oriental Trading

Oriental Trading is my go-to for supplies when I am planning a big birthday party, as I am doing this year. They have a ton of stuff, from decorations to crafts to goodie bag items. It is easy to find items to fit practically any theme. The spending could quickly get out of hand, unless you know the Oriental Trading money-saving secrets. My youngest, who usually gets short-changed in most things, by fortune of his birth (hand-me-downs and a much slimmer photo album) is finally getting his do with an elaborate (for us) knight-themed birthday party. He is inviting all … Continue reading →

Cultural Lessons on the Cost of Child Rearing

Heeled sneakers are all the rage with hip moms in France right now. While I will happily pass on the Sneakletto craze; I’m not opposed to employing practical techniques parents in Paris and other parts of the world have mastered in order save cash while raising young children. Less is more:  Surveys show the average American household spends $200 per child for birthday parties and gifts.  That means forking over nearly $1,000 per year if you have three or four kids.  Compare that to most French parents who typically celebrate their children’s birthdays with a simple home-cooked meal.  In Japan, … Continue reading →

Summer Fun for Free

Summer is one of my favorite times of the year, not just for the great weather and the easy living but for all of the wonderful free fun that can be had, from free classes to free concerts, free food to free movies. You just have to know where to look. Skip the expense of the summer camp and take advantage of plenty of free fun for the kids instead. Do some research to find free events. Start local and work your way out. Find out if your town or city has a website or cable channel that lists free … Continue reading →

Adoption Transitions #6 Our Adoption Transition of Siblings

We ended up having a rather traumatic and stressful transition for Makala and Jeremiah. There was a combination of things that added to the stress we felt. Our children were matched with us during November and our state committee met the third week in December. We found out one week before Christmas that we were parents and our children were living in a foster home, over 300 miles away. The cards were dealt and we had a terrible hand. Everyone involved had to agree, given the seven-day waiting period, we would not be able to start the transition until after … Continue reading →