A child’s birthday is always a cause for great celebration. For most kids, it’s the best day of the year! Aside from the presents and cake, the most highly anticipated part of any birthday is the party itself, which usually involves lots of friends and relatives.
But in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, we have to celebrate a bit differently. If your child’s birthday is coming up and you’re still in lockdown, you’ll be stuck at home. You might not even be able to invite close relatives over to celebrate, let alone have a party filled with other children.
Fortunately, though, your little one can still enjoy their special day without breaking social distancing guidelines. There are plenty of things you can do in the safety of your own home, involving just the people in your household, to make your child’s birthday fun and memorable.
1) Movie Night
Everyone loves a movie night, especially kids. While you might not be able to go to a cinema, there’s nothing stopping you from recreating the experience at home. Have a fun family movie evening with your child’s favourite films, popcorn and soft drinks. Don’t forget to dim the lights as if you were in a real movie theatre! You could even set up a pretend lobby, selling mini tubs of ice-cream and sweets.
If you don’t have a DVD or Blu-ray player, there are a huge variety of streaming services available these days, including sites like Disney Plus which are filled with family-friendly favourites.
2) Group Video Call
Just because your little one’s friends and family can’t join you in person, that doesn’t mean they can’t be involved in the special day. Thanks to the miracle of modern technology, you can set up a group video call using a smartphone, tablet or PC. There are many free programs that offer this feature, such Skype, Zoom, Facetime, WhatsApp and Discord.
Pick your preferred software and ask your friends and family to download it in advance, so there’s no technical problems on the day. Everyone can wear party hats, and sing happy birthday over their webcams! If anyone is unavailable, you could ask them to pre-record a birthday video message.
3) Treasure Hunt
Treasure hunts are always popular with kids, and they’re great for passing the time. They also give the brain a bit of a workout! Hide your child’s birthday presents around the house, along with clues as to their whereabouts. For very young kids, make the hints straightforward and easy to follow (such as “look in the letterbox”). For older kids, try making up riddles and puzzles that they have to solve as they go along.
Finding the gifts at the end will be so much more exciting than if you’d simply handed them over. You can get super creative with this. For example, if you have a garden, you could even bury the gifts outside (weather permitting) with an X to mark the spot.
4) Camping at Home
If you’d usually take your child on a holiday or mini-break for their birthday, they’ll no doubt be disappointed that this isn’t an option at the moment. But you can have all the fun of a camping trip in the safety of your own home!
Set up a tent, complete with sleeping bags and cushions, in your back garden or living room. Play some wildlife noises on a portable speaker to make it feel like you’re truly surrounded by nature. You can tell ghost stories, sing songs, and even toast marshmallows (if you have a fireplace or a gas stove).
5) Virtual Theme Park
Obviously, going to a real theme park is off the table at the moment. But did you know that you can watch videos online filmed from the seat of your favourite roller coasters, giving you the impression that you’re actually riding the ride?
If your child has a favourite theme park – such as Disney World – why not arrange a virtual theme park day where they can ‘ride’ their favourite rides via YouTube, and eat food that they’d usually find at a theme park (such as candy floss, ice cream bars, and Disney’s famous churros). You can even order personalised video messages from characters such as Disney princesses for an even more authentic experience.
6) Soft Play/Bouncy Castle Hire
You might not be able to go to a soft play or funhouse during a pandemic, but you can bring the fun to you. There are companies all over the country that offer bouncy castles, ball pools, and soft play apparatus (such as foam blocks and wedges) for private hire. You can have them delivered straight to your door!
Set everything up overnight and watch your little one’s face the next morning when they find that their living room or garden has been transformed into their very own private funhouse.
7) Spa Day
Spas and salons may be closed, but you can still enjoy a good old pampering session at home. Your little one will love having a grown-up ‘spa day’ involving a dip in the pool (the bath or a paddling pool in the garden), especially if fun-smelling bath bombs are involved.
Follow this with a glamorous manicure and pedicure, facial treatments, hair styling (or even a haircut, if you’re brave enough), and a makeover. You may find that your kid gets stuck in and wants to pamper you, too – a win-win situation!
8) Family Games
It’s time to break out the board games and have a family game day! Family favourites like Monopoly and Cluedo always go down a storm. And if you’re ‘bored’ of board games, why not play some retro party games such as pin the tail on the donkey and pass the parcel? Yes, you’d normally play these games at big parties, but they can be just as fun with parents and siblings.
You can even make your own party entertainment! You may not be able to hire a balloon artist, for example, but if you stock up on balloons and a pump you can have a go at making them yourselves. Or buy a magic kit and have a go at being your own magician.
9) Pizza Party
Pizza is a firm favourite food among children and adults alike. But rather than ordering in, whip out the yeast and try your hand at making your very own pizzas. Not only will you save money, but it turns dinner into a fun activity that everyone can get involved in! Everybody in the family can have a go at rolling and tossing dough, and decorating their home-made creation with their choice of toppings.
Warning: there’s a strong chance you (and your kitchen) will get covered in flour. But you’ll have so much fun that it’s definitely worth the clean-up afterwards.
10) Birthday Parade
You might not be able to go to a real carnival or parade for some time, thanks to the pandemic. But if your friends and relatives have their own cars, they can put on a socially-distanced and covid-safe parade especially for the birthday boy or girl.
Ask grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and school friends to decorate the side of their car with a birthday banner and/or balloons. Then arrange for everyone to drive past your house at a prearranged time. You can watch from your doorstep and enjoy the show!
11) Personalised Birthday Cards
Did you know that you can order personalised birthday cards from 123Print? Any child would be pleased as punch to receive a customised birthday card from a loved one. You can upload a photograph to the front of the card, such as a snapshot taken on a previous birthday, or even draw your own artwork and scan it in. Include any message you’d like on the inside for no extra cost.
12) Baking Day
Most children absolutely love helping Mum and Dad in the kitchen. If baking is one of your little one’s passions, why not dedicate their entire birthday to baking their favourite home-made treats? You can make your own biscuits, cakes, muffins, or even savoury treats like sausage rolls.
As a bonus, you could even let the birthday boy or girl design, make and decorate their very own birthday cake. It’s much more fun than buying one from a supermarket.
13) Online Shopping Spree
What to do with all that birthday money from generous aunts and grandparents? Normally, you might take your little one on a trip to the toy shop and let them pick out what they like. But at the moment, of course, we’re advised to leave the house only for essential purposes.
But there is a perfectly good alternative: online shopping. Most major toy shops, such as The Entertainer and Smyths, have online stores. Let the birthday child browse for what they’d like, and have their chosen gifts sent straight to your front door!