Nordic Twist to Lavish Kids' Birthday Parties
You can opt out of the madness: simpler, free-play parties are just as much fun.
$75,000 for a kids’ birthday party? You wouldn’t believe it, but New York Times reported last year that both the price tag—and the extent parents go to create a unique, extravagant experience for their child—has reached a fever pitch. Hence, I want to offer a Nordic-inspired alternative that has a cost under three digits, workload of about an hour or two, and entertainment value so high that adults couldn’t even think of it.
6 Steps to a “Less is More” Birthday Party
I admit, I’m guilty of throwing one, what I would call “over-the-top” party, even though it really was just a party at an indoor play gym for my then 5-year-old’s class, along with a bouncy house and story time with an educator, and bubbly for the parents, and pizza and cake for the kids. And, of course, a massive balloon creation that featured the number 5.
However, it was so much time-consuming work for me, and so expensive, that I swore never to do it again. I have since done a 360 in how I arrange my kids’ parties. Some of my “less is more” experiments worked phenomenally well, and some didn’t—like the time I completely outsourced arranging our oldest son’s 10th birthday party to my husband (“Can you take him and his best buddies golfing, his favorite thing to do? I’ll bake the cake from the ready-made mix.”). Just coordinating a date that would work with the kids’ parents was so tricky that my husband gave up, and I then finally organized it, 5 months later. (For those who now feel concerned: my son did have a wonderful family birthday, and he did thoroughly enjoy his party, when it happened).
This just goes on to say how complicated it is to even put on the simplest party, so why make it unnecessarily hard, time-consuming and expensive, if there’s an alternative way that your kid would enjoy just as much?
If you are nodding, then let me present you with the 6 steps to a “Nordic Theme” Birthday Party:
Host the party at home to avoid location logistics and cost, keep it outside if possible for least amount of mess, and keep the guest list small (“Who are the friends you truly want to spend time with?”), and forget digital invitations: just group text the time & place—and you could even add a “I’d love to invite you to my birthday!” video greeting by your child, if your child would enjoy filming one.
Make the party a drop off, unless you have space for the parents and really want to spend time with them (and serve them something too): in Finland, to keep things simple, even parties for 3-4 year olds might be drop off. What age would you be ready to drop off your child, or host a drop off party?
Let kids create the magic. These days, what most kids yearn for, with over-scheduled weeks filled with supervised activities, is time to just free play together. Why not let them? For the youngest ones, there’s nothing more fun than running through sprinkles in the summer, or jumping in leaf piles come fall.
Older ones might bond over a soccer came, badminton, or street hockey, or jump rope games. To create not just a wonderful party, but an amazing memory, it doesn’t really need to be any more complicated than that. Imagine if, on your birthday, you were told not to sit and watch something, or to follow someone in an activity, but you could decide exactly what you wanted to do, with your friends?
Serve something really simple, like heat up a healthier frozen pizza and make a cake in minutes from a more nutritious ready-made-mix, with natural vegan sprinkles on top (I use Simple Mills with Supernatural frosting and sprinkles) or, to avoid the oven entirely, make it an ice-cream party. If you want your cake to resemble the $100+ custom creations from a bakery, you could place fun things on top: I have experimented from Amazon-ordered mini Pikachu cake decorations to a small remote control car, that drove off the cake, that was also the gift. All were big hits.
Don’t accept new gifts: gift recycle. Getting & paying for countless birthday gifts throughout the year is such a chore for parents; even brainstorming how much you should spend on a gift, and what the child really would like is a task.
There’s a more fun and sustainable way, that’s also a big trend in the Nordics: gift recycling. I tried it last October when my youngest son turned 3, and I asked the parents to only bring a gift if they happened to have any no-longer-used Paw Patrol related things (ideally in re-used gift bags instead of wrapping paper: less mess and you can re-use it yet again). My son had never been happier with his gifts.
For older children, like my 8 and 10 year olds, I ask for “experience” gifts that give them more opportunities to play. (“My son would love to just play with your son, so gifts could be anything from inviting him over to your house for ice cream or taking them to the movies when you have the opportunity).
I understand that, unless other parents specifically request recycled gifts, I can’t have my child bring anything used to someone else’s party, but we no longer buy physical gifts and offer an experience gift instead.
Don’t make goodie-bags. This goes without saying, but it’s not necessary, it’s not eco-friendly, and it doesn’t make your child’s birthday any more joyful or memorable. Just skip it, and recycle the goodie bags items you get as soon as possible, so as not to create extra clutter in your home.
Would you try the Nordic-theme birthday party? Or would this not fly with your kids, where you live or for some other reason? I can’t wait to chat:
PS. With parents’ lives already filled with so much overwhelm and anxiety, maybe kid's birthday parties don’t need to be another source for stress. So much enjoyment can come from simpler things.
Scandi Glossary
LAGOM [Swedish]/ TILPASSELIG [Danish]/ SOPIVASTI [Finnish] = just enough; not too much, not too little, just the right amount
This idea of “just enough” is common throughout the Nordics and is based in social awareness, sustainability and creating balance in one’s life. It’s a wonderful guide to help us make decisions—or to help us throw a kids’ birthday party: we don’t want too little, but we don’t need too much: we can do what’s just right when we take into consideration our and other parents’ bandwidth, our child’s joy, and our environment.
Scandi Smart
READ: Lagom: Not Too Little, Not Too Much: The Swedish Art of Living a Balanced, Happy Life—easy summer read on how to apply this Nordic philosophy to all the areas of your life. Would you read it?
WATCH: The Happy Worker—Created by Finnish director John Webster (born to British parents in Finland), this film is a creative documentary about office work and how to bring balance—the just enough, nothing too much—into work. Would you watch this?
SHOP: If you want to prep for summer like Nordic parents, you can make your life less stressful and allow kids to run outside all day long by getting them UPF 50 swimwear, a set of UPF 50 light-weight clothing, and sandals that are safe and comfortable to run, jump and climb in—from my personal forever-favorite Finnish kids’ outdoor wear brand Reima. You don’t really need anything else. Get 20% off with code ANNABELLA20
