Economical Party

We have four (4) kids, and yes all of them will celebrate their birthdays yearly ;) plus me and my wife for a grand total of 6 birthdays a year. So, we want to celebrate these occasions (of course) but we also do not want to spend too much on these so as to allocate "expenses" in priorities. Celebrating in a "cheaper" way does not have to look cheap.

Today is the birthday of our 3rd son and since it's only his 4th birthday, we celebrated it in a simple and cost effective way. Usually, we (Filipinos) spend more on the 1st, 7th, 13th (teenager) and 18th (for girls - debut), but for those ages in between, lucky you if the birthday doesn't fall on a school day and celebrate it in school as well -- we can celebrate it in a simple and cheap-but-does-not-have-to-look-like-it manner.

Let me share with you some of the things that my wife prepared for the kids today. My wife is good at this ;)

We can't afford to rent a private pool & going to a public pool would eat time and money since we also have to bring/buy food, gas, the entrance fee, plus swim with tons of people who we don't know. So we borrowed my bro-in-law's inflatable pool and just filled it up with water. Though it took gallons from the faucet, it is still cheaper than renting or going out and pay for everyone who will swim.

These bunch of sweetie goodness - cupcake cum soft bread on icing is only Php 10.00 a piece. Buy 10 pieces and it'll only cost you Php 100.00 bucks (roughly US $2.29) and these are bigger than the palm of your hand. Worth it.

Bought a marshmallow twist pack, choco sticks, m&m type candies, sprinkles and hard candy - -Voila, instant Candy Corner.

This is how the kids' corner looked like. Plus the birthday cake which is only Php 500.00 (roughly US $ 11.00). You will also notice the small cups with a black straw on the lower right side of the photo. These are powdered fruit flavored shake which is like Php 10.00 per pack that makes 5 small cups (roughly US $ 0.23 cents).

Grilled pork belly and hotdogs for the kids. Oh, and there was spaghetti too. The usual menu that kids love.

The most important of all... home cooked lunch. In the end, what's important is you celebrate these special occasions with your family. If you have the capacity to spend, then by all means do so :) If you're prioritizing your budget, then spend less. Remember, you can do so by not-looking-like-it.

Cheers to Celebrations!

Oh...and did I mention that I'm munching on the leftovers as I am writing this blog? Hahaha.  XD