If you have winter birthdays in your family, then you may have already experienced a few dilemmas over the years. December and January birthdays can be particularly tricky if you also celebrate Christmas, as that can lead to party fatigue, uninspired gift buying and a sugary-treats-overload. But don’t despair! There are some excellent tricks to help make those winter birthday celebrations just as special as their summer counterparts.
The Challenges of a Winter Birthday
This article is predominately aimed at parents of those celebrating their 6th to 8th birthdays.
1. Plan Ahead...
Even if you don’t thrive on planning ahead, it’s worth putting some thought in beforehand for your child’s winter birthday. We have a January birthday in our family, so I will start separating out birthday present ideas, activities and food options usually in October. I find that it massively reduces the stress after the Christmas break if I have still got some ideas in the bank.
So, as the boys write their Christmas Lists, I carefully make a note of those which will work for Christmas and those which can wait over for his birthday. It’s the same with food. We decide as a family which meals, goodies and treats we would like over Christmas – but I separate out a few for the birthday treats. That way we don’t find ourselves eating the same things for the two winter celebrations. Simply put, there is no coconut cake during the Christmas period; we save it for January.
Plan ahead to keep on top of things. Then you can keep both events unique and special in their own ways.
2. There is Nothing Wrong with Simple...
There can be a temptation to go all out with a winter birthday to ensure it has the same wow factor as a summer celebration. But sometimes that isn’t always possible – stretched finances, extra school activities, tricky weather and the festive season can all be major obstacles to achieving a bigger event.
But there is nothing wrong with keeping things simple, within budget and low stress.
Winter birthdays can be special, cosy and have their own distinct memory markers for the whole family.
Our ideas include:
Movie nights with friends or family – it’s easy to achieve the cinema feel with the dark evenings over winter.
Chocolate fondue with a mix of fruit and sweets can be made into a special treat – it’s messy, delicious and a great group activity.
Party games, pass the parcel, and quizzes are all great activities for this age-group and can be done with family or friends. Especially if all the grown-ups join in as well.
Treasure hunts are a firm favourite in our family – there’s nothing better than following a list of clues around the house or garden to find this year’s haul of presents. It’s also great fun to prepare and watch for the grown-ups!
3. Solve the Day-Trip Dilemma Early...
Birthday trips are great with kids of this age-group. But this does bring a major winter birthday dilemma that can feel impossible. My suggestion with this one is that you bring your child into the planning. What do they like to do? Where do they want to go? And when is the best time? Truthfully, we do the same for our summer birthdays as well. And then we go when it suits us and not when their birthday happens to fall.
We’ve done zoo trips in May (for our January birthday), castle trips in August (for our July birthday), birthday cinema trips in April (because that was when the film they wanted to see was out). We’ve decided to embrace flexibility in our winter and summer birthday celebrations – and our children have simply jumped on board, because at the end of the day they had a great experience.
4. Our Favourite Inside Winter Birthday Ideas...
But regardless of what you decide for your winter birthdays there are some great options both inside and outside at this time of year. Here are our favourites (so far…)
Aquariums
Legoland Discovery Centres
Cinema with a meal out afterwards
Indoor Climbing Walls suitable for young children
Family parties at home with a list of activities that span the whole day! And sometimes the whole weekend.
Click here for more ideas for your winter birthday parties.
5. Share Your Story (or even your birthday!)
Winter birthdays are common and actually happen to a lot of people – so therefore nearly everyone around you will have a treasure-trove of ideas to help you out if you are struggling with this year’s winter birthday plans. So, get talking. Share your ideas, ask for ideas, chat to your child and see what they are up for this year.
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