I am a mother of two and with my eldest going 5 next month, I must say I have had my share of Jollibee Kiddie Parties, McDonalds and even KFC kiddie parties. I used to think they were the best choice for me as I get too busy to even think about organizing my own kid’s party. Choosing that method though will set you off a couple of thousand pesos.

This year, I have decided to challenge myself into organizing a very simple fun afternoon for my 2-year old son and his neighborhood friends for his birthday. I decided on planning the afternoon event myself with the overall goal of not spending more than P2,000. Tough right? Well not exactly. I gotta say my kids and their friends (and yayas even) certainly had fun. We (and my yayas) had fun as well. The party was a success in my book.

How did I do it?

1. Rent kiddie table sets. C’mon, if you are having kids for the party, why rent the big tables? Everyone, even I, can fit snuggly into the tiny monoblock chairs. Price: P60 for a set of 1 kiddie table with tablecloth and 4 kiddie chairs (Bebe’s Balloons)

2. Buy those simple balloons reminiscent of my own birthdays when I was much much younger. Price: P16 each blue balloon that comes printed already.

3. Serve sweet spaghetti, pinoy style. Since the guests will be kids, I doubt they will appreciate pasta that is al dente. This time I did not buy my usual Balducci Penne noodle but instead chose Royal Spaghetti. I also chose to use Del Monte Filipino Style Spaghetti Sauce instead of mixing up my own sauce from scratch. Add some thin red hotdogs, ground pork and you’ve got Jollibee Spaghetti - which a lot of kids absolutely love. Price: (approx) P300.

4. Get your family to chip in. Birthday cake from Red Ribbon c/o Tito. Chocolate Ice Cream and cones from Selecta c/o Lola. Price: Free

5. Dig up stock of disposable party items at home. Paper plates, kubiertos, drinking cups c/o myself. Price: Can’t recall.

6. For entertainment and giveaways, my yaya went to the market in Kalentong and filled a big bag with goodies like small coloring books (Spongebob, Barney, Transformers, Barbie), Bubble blowing toys, little pink princess notepads, Spongebob stickers, plastic cars and robots. Price: P5 to P10.

My kids and their friends totally had fun. My yayas and I were all exhausted but the enjoyment we got out of the happiness of my little boy (and his kuya) overcame the ache we felt in our toes, and in our knees from running around all day…. simply priceless!