It’s every parent’s goal to actually enjoy the experience of their child’s special day, but there are so many things to plan, and forget… Then, when it gets to the day, you’re winging it, and you’ve forgotten to bring all the things!  Oh, and then one of your guests brought a sibling along and you have no party bag for them, which will create a sibling war on the way home. So, instead of chatting with your Mum friends, you’re stressed, running around for last minute bits and need something harder than a popper to drink, urgently!
Now there are a few things you can do to make the day run smoothly so you can enjoy yourself with the least amount of hassle.
Start off strong and list it all- write a list of everything you need for the party to go down without a hitch, and start collecting these items beforehand, so you don’t run around like a madman.
Rather than creating a party from scratch, why not hire a kit?  You could even pay a little bit extra to get it all set up for you!
Things you will definitely need to keep the day going well-
*Candles and a lighter (for the cake of course)
*A knife, plus something safe to wrap it in!
*A bin bag (unless there’s a bin next to where you’re setting up)
*A speaker to play music on
*Blue-tack, string, sticky tape, scissors for when those pesky decorations won’t stay up!
*A cloth/wipes for spillages and clean up
*A spray bottle
Now we all want to be the best at it all- or is that just me? For the sake of your sanity, get a cake made, it is not worth staying up until 2am fiddling with fondant to produce an edible “masterpiece” unless you are a regular at making super snazzy cakes. It really isn’t worth the stress, it’s not a competition, plus it will be gone 5 minutes after its cut. Sometimes it’s best to get creative, sometimes it's not! I’m sure you can tell that this is advice based on personal experience! The trauma can be very real.
Rope in help. Invite friends early and ask your family to muck in – prepping before a party is not a one-person job! Delegation here is key- you need to take stock of your helper’s strengths to get an A+ finish. You really don’t want Aunt Bessie who burns toast to a crisp manning the sausage rolls.
Get 1 or 2 people in the kitchen on food production/styling. Get another 1 or 2 people setting up the party location.  Brief everyone before the day, so that everything runs tickety-boo!  Assign a teenager or family member to take pictures during the party, so that you can be the hostess with the most-ess/host with the most!
When planning, do not forget to organize food and drink for the adults, you are going to want to enjoy this party too!  Also, just buy extras – extra food, extra party bags – as long as it’s unused, in original condition and is not a refrigerated item, you can usually return anything you didn’t open/need, and if not, you’ll probably be able to use it for something else.  It’s so much easier to have things readily available, rather than to run out last minute when you’re short of time.
If you’re on the Sunny Coast, check out Bear & Miakat’s parties – we’re absolutely terrible at decorating cakes, but our party setups are next level!