Adeline’s 14th Birthday Party
My daughter turned 14 this summer and we had a birthday party sleepover this past week to celebrate. We didn’t do the party during the summer because some travel plans made it difficult to find a date when everyone could attend.
It was a Friday night and everyone came over at 6 pm and got picked up at 10:30 am the next morning.
The Theme
We did a neon theme, which was a fun and easy decor theme. I found a birthday banner, streamers and other decor on Amazon and paper plates, party hats and blow horns at Dollar Tree. The girls really had fun with the blow horns and party hats – ha!
Adeline also asked all the girls to come in neon colored clothing. They looked so cute together.
The Favors
I had stocked up on favors during Target’s 90% off Christmas sale, so everyone got a notepad, water bottle stickers and candle that I paid next to nothing for. I also added some Tree Hut body spray that I got on sale on Amazon for $3. In total I think the bags cost about $4 a person.
The Menu
Adeline loves doing a spaghetti dinner for parties, so I did bow tie pasta (3 lbs) + sauce (2 jars), meatballs (2 lbs), Italian salad (3 heads of romaine) and garlic bread (2 loaves) for the meal.
For drinks we had water and sparkling lemonade from Trader Joes. The girls each got a glass cup for the party (90% off Target find), so they used that for drinking during the party.
I also made a huge candy snack tray with assorted candy and sweet treats from Trader Joes. I used this snack board, which I love because of the size, the built in bowl and that it has a cover. I also made a big bowl of popcorn to go with it.
For breakfast the next morning, I made brioche french toast (2 loaves of brioche bread was perfect), bacon (2 packs) and cut fruit. I precut the fruit ahead of the party, which made things extra easy. I also LOVE this griddle. Nothing sticks and the bread cooked beautifully.
Answering Your Questions
How to keep costs under control?
I think hosting a party at home is almost always more affordable than going somewhere. Also, don’t go overboard with decorations. You can find great stuff at places like Dollar Tree, Walmart and Amazon.
I also made all the food, which is cheaper than take out or going out to eat, especially with teenagers.
Do you bake the birthday cake?
This year, we did! Adeline requested that Matthew make this cake and then I did the frosting. I got the candles from the Target Kate Spade drop. They were so cute and colorful.
What was Adeline’s favorite present?
She got so many wonderful gifts. She is really into Snoopy and got several cute Snoopy items included this weighted Snoopy that she loved. A common trend is to include candy with your gift, so she got lots of candy including Sour Patch gummies, Reeses and Candy Apple Suckers. I’m going to do a gift ideas post soon!
What did y’all do?
Unlike the younger years, I didn’t plan activities. My goal is to create a safe and inviting place for the girls to have fun and be themselves. They played games (cards, Fish Fight and Tapple), went in our hot tub, took lots of photos (digital cameras with flashes are cool again) and watched Legally Blonde.
Anything you would have done differently?
No, the girls had so much fun and it was a pretty easy party. I did miss doing a craft with the girl (it was the first party since Adeline was 4 that we didn’t do a craft, but there just wasn’t time since we started the party a bit late. (Normally we do a Saturday – Sunday party and have everyone come at 4. Because we did it after school/sports, we had to do it later.) The girls didn’t miss a craft though. It was a great evening.
How many guests is realistic?
I think this is a personal based on your space. I always try to keep it under 10 girls for a sleepover. We don’t have a big house and that is about the max that we can do with air mattresses in our living room.