10 Year Old Birthday Party

I'll never forget one birthday party I had - it was a scavenger hunt. I had a sleepover, and my parents organized all of us into teams. We lived in a neighborhood, and some of the parents and neighbors helped out. There was about 4 or 5 teams, with an adult assigned to each. We were given a list of things to find (such as a red rubber band, an unmelted ice cube, a burnt piece of toast, etc.), and had to knock on doors to find it. The ice cube obviously had to be last, so it didn't melt. It was hilarious - and we had so much fun! It's one of my most memorable birthdays!

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My niece and a great (quick and easy too) b-day party this year. Her mom had a handful of girls over for a few hours in the afternoon. She bought CHEAP flip flops (from Old Navy, I think) and bought stuff at Michael's to decorate them with. Then had cake, ice cream, presents and that was it. The girls had a BLAST!!

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How about a slumber party? Let her pick out a movie, invite up to 7 friends, set up the livingroom as the sleeping bag arena. When the girls get there let them help make pizzas and salad for dinner, then do a little "make-up" party letting them style each other's hair, paint each other's finger and toe nails, then it's pocpcorn etc., and the movie before lights out. Believe they will not sleep much so have some games ready like Twister, charades, with something small as prizes if you want. Little dollar diaries, stuff like that, and a radio/tape/CD player in there for them to listen to music and dance to as well. Breakfast can be simple, pancakes, milk, and bacon or sausage with the pick up time at noon the next day.

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I would just ask her. It seems like at that age she'd want certain friends to be invited and have a little control over what the party is like. Maybe she could have a sleepover and invite a certain number of friends to it. Then, you wouldn't really have to spend much money other than for snacks and soda.

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My son is turning 10 this year too. We will be doing the same thing that we have done for the last few years. He will get to pick 5 kids to invite over for a sleepover. Then we take them bowling. That night we will have pizzas and later snacks with movie time. The next day, the family will come over for his party (ice cream, cake). Then everybody sits and visits awhile. Eventually, all the parents pick up their kids and I smell freedom. It is hard to have that many kids to take care of especially since I have a little one and young boys aren't exactly quiet during nap time and such but it is worth it. My son has a ball! He is the one that has chosen to keep this going. If you call the local bowling alley, they often have reduced pricing for birthdays when your reserve your lanes. Good luck to you and Happy Birthday to the birthday girl! Shannon G.

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Hard to give suggestions when you didn't mention what she's into. I've got TONS of kids party ideas with various themes and ideas. That would be helpful.

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I think a sleepover is a great idea. I always loved to have my friends over to spend the night. You could get pizza for dinner,have cake and ice cream and just let thwe girls hang out. They are old enough to play board games or watch movies by themselves. Or, if you want a party in the afternoon, do something small for a few hours and let her have a few friends spend the night. Happy birthday to your oldest! :D

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My daughter is turning 10 in a couple of weeks. For her party, I am going to take her and a few of her friends to get manicures at a local day spa. I know you are working on a limited budget, so this is perfect. It gives you an excuse to only invite a couple/few girls, rather than a bunch. Many spas have different levels of serivces to fit most budgets. After we return from the spa, it will be presents, cake, and then time for the parents to pick them up.

Good luck planning!

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I think the sleep over idea is great. One other thing that I don't think anyone mentioned that I always loved to do at sleepovers was to play dress up. Just get out some of your old clothes, shoes, jewelry, etc and let them dress up and maybe have a fashion show! You could also do the pedicure/manicure/hair do idea at your house, if you feel up to it!

Another thought..do you have a YMCA pass? I think the birthday parties are pretty reasonable. And what 10 year old doesn't like to swim!!

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We did a fun game with the party favor gift at my son's party when he was about that age. I wrapped them all up very differently; some in boxes of different sizes, some rolled and twisted like a candy wrapper.... whatever you can think of to make them all unique. After cake and presents, they all drew numbers to see what order they chose their gifts. I've heard the process called a Chinese gift exchange. (in case you're not familiar with it, it's described at this site: http://www.amazing-christmas-ideas.com/chinese-christmas-... . Just don't let them unwrap them until everyone has a gift.) You should have seen the boys' faces when they unwrapped their gifts and found that the presents they had been "fighting" over were all identical!

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My son is 9 and this year I let him pick 3 friends (easier if even #'s) and we had pizza & cake and I took them to the movies. Then he invited 1 to spend the night (we live in an apartment and had a newborn at the time). It was fun and you can usually get discount movie tickets at your local credit union. So I bought the tickets in advance so it was less of an expense that day.

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S.,
I am pretty good at planning parties on a budget. What kind of things does she like?

Scavenger hunts are always fun, you could theme the hunt around things that she likes. If she is into makeup you can hide different makeup items. The prize could be lip gloss.

Or you could do a mini spa day (little girl style)

If she likes to cook you could do an assembly line style set up in the kitchen with the girls with simple recipes and then they could eat what they make.

If the weather is nice you could take them for a picnic at a local park and go for a nature walk.

Feel free to e-mail me if you want more ideas or details to these: ____@____.com

K.

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How about a "Fancy Nancy" type party. Let your daughter enjoy an evening with her mom, sister and very best girl friend. Let them "dress up". Nail polish, lotion, extra curls with the curling irom always make my girls feel dressed up. Then head out to a nice dinner (don't have to spend a ton of money) you can pretend Applebee's, Max n Erma's or anywhere really is fancy. Everyone can use their princess manners and feel like they are out for a big night on the town. Girls are so much fun at that age. I think if you spend time with her and make her know how special she is, you won't have to spend a lot of money.

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