How (and Where) to DIY the Perfect Kid’s Party

As some of you might recall, I did a DIY birthday party for my daughter’s first birthday that we capped at RMB 5,000. This time around, my eldest daughter turned tw,o and my youngest turned 100 days, and we decided to go for it again! This time, armed with a few lessons and new ideas, we set out to create a Paw Patrol Party extravaganza!

Pro Tip: For RMB 100, I got a custom-made backdrop board on Taobao that was easy to assemble.

The challenges
Since my 2-year-old is so much more mobile now and has made more friends, it became more important that the venue we chose had activities suitable for various ages and that we saved money somewhere if we were going to have more guests, but the same budget. I also wanted to figure out how to save time on decorating while maximizing the ‘wow’ factor.

The Tried and Tested
The goodie bags worked great the first time, for a keepsake, for a thank you, and for a way to send home snacks and cake so that we don’t end up with enough sugary leftovers to induce diabetes. Balloons and a helium tank from Taobao are always a winner, and while I wanted a photo board again, I was on the hunt for one that took less work to assemble. Finger food platters worked wonders last time, so I wanted to do them again, but in a way that conserved the funds for the fun stuff!

The Results
Most importantly – Venue! Located in Olympic Forest Park, 乐仕堡儿童素质教育基地 (Le Shi Bao) is any child’s dream. They have it all… things to climb on, things to slide down, things to ride, and things to play with. Absolutely everyone had fun here, from the littlest just-starting-to-walkers playing in the sand pits or swinging on the toddler swings, to the grown-ups having go-kart races, and everyone in between.

They have two private outdoor party areas that can be rented for RMB 899 each, an indoor venue for RMB 800, and plenty of general seating benches and tables located all over the park. In the middle of the park is a stage that can be used as well, should you wish to hire any kind of performer or entertainment for your guests.

Some activities are included in the admission price, while others (like go-karts, humongous tube slides, and aerial obstacle courses) are extra. They offer different packages depending on the number of admissions you require, and then automatically include tickets for the paid activities as well. We paid RMB 2,680, which included admission for 20 kids (accompanying adults and babies needn’t pay) and 90 tickets. Each time you want to do a paid activity, it is always 1 ticket per child, which is more than enough! We still have unused tickets left… The playground’s operating hours are from 9 am to 8 pm, which allows more than enough time for setup and plenty of partying.

As our party included many kiddies who needed constant adult supervision, I decided not to rent either of the private party sections. While they were great, they were not near the small kids’ play area, which meant parents would not be able to keep an eye on their playing toddlers. Either we would have a beautifully decorated party area full of food and drinks for nobody to enjoy, or we would have a bunch of kids in a playground where they can’t go play. Instead, I requested to use the table-bench combo sets right by the small play area. While I still believe it was the right move for us, there are some things to consider:

1. As it is the general (communal) area, you don’t have to pay extra to use it, but you might find random people joining you at your tables and kids playing with (read: destroying) your decorations. The manager did kindly agree to put signs on the tables to say that they are reserved, but it still didn’t deter some people.
2. The venue staff and manager are all super accommodating. They gladly added more tables and umbrellas to the site for me and arranged them as per my requests. However, you won’t be so near to a power outlet if you need anything powered or charged.
3. The playground is not right by the Forest Park gate, but rather a short walk away, so when bringing decorations and such, make sure to have a little wagon or something to cart everything with.

Décor!
I decided to invest in an electric balloon pump, which saved me a lot of time and energy as it effortlessly blows up two balloons simultaneously. Armed with my new gadget, I made a balloon arch to frame the 1m x 1.5m arch-shaped photo board I had made for RMB 100.

Pro Tip: Instead of tying each individual balloon, tie two together; it’s half the tying work and much easier to knot!

With my balloon pairs, I twisted them together to form clusters that I then connected to each other by tying a long modeling balloon (not inflated, of course) into a band that I wrapped around one balloon of each cluster. I also got broad crinkled paper streamers that I tied a balloon to each end of, and then hung them over a line I hung from tree to tree (also a great way to section off the party area). Finally, I got foil balloon combos that I inflated with helium and tied to the poles on the fence behind our tables.

Food!
This time around, I decided to do more for less and ordered a variety of drinks and the ready-made finger foods such as mini hotdogs and pies along with pre-cut fruit platters from He Ma. The benefit of this was that they could deliver it all to the park for me, and it was very delicious! BIG BUT: For any venue, be sure to check with the staff well in advance how you can order food in such a way (for any waimai deliveries). Food needed to be picked up at the nearest Forest Park gate (wagon needed again), and some confusion delayed us getting the food when I wanted us to. With a bit of better planning on my end, this is a wonderful way to get great yums at great prices. I baked cupcakes, and a friend of ours made a beautiful cake for us. I also bought loads of Paw Patrol treats on Taobao that we put out on the tables. We still had the same cooler box from the last party that we kept drinks and ice in. To avoid needing paper cups, we got packs of single-serve bottles like mini Cokes, waters, and juices.

Goodies!
I got Paw Patrol paper bags that I put little trinkets like Paw Patrol puzzles, stamps, stickers, lollipops, and figurines in. I also ordered balloons of the characters that you put little wheels and a leash on so that the pups can be pulled around. Along with a themed pair of cardboard glasses and a blow-up headband for each kid that we set on the tables.

The Bill!
Food, snacks, and drinks: RMB 1,200
Venue and entertainment: RMB 2,680
Decorations: RMB 500 (with plenty of balloons leftover for the next shebang)
Goodie bags and contents: RMB 500 (Again… plenty of leftovers!)
Wagon: RMB 170 (more like an acquired asset)

The party was great fun, and our main objective of making loads of kids happy was definitely achieved! Every single age was catered for, the food was thoroughly enjoyed, and the setup looked wonderful. It was definitely lower maintenance this time around and more fun!

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