Teen Birthday Parties: Three Ideas to Inspire Memories

Teens want to make birthday celebrations memorable, parents want to make sure birthday parties do not break the bank! Finding ground between the two can often be a flustrating challenge. Here are three ideas that might bring parents and teens to agreement on the celebration.

1. Dying to be the Guests at THIS Party!

There is a large array of Murder Mystery Parties available. One can find these all inclusive packages in many book stores (Barnes & Noble, Book-a-Million, and Walden) or they can be found online (E-Bay, Amazon).

Each box contains all material needed to run a murder mystery party and each box has age specific information in order to find the right mystery for your child's group. A Murder Mystery allows each participant to "Dress" the role which adds to the excitement of the game.

As a parent, you can help out by either participating IN the action or setting up the room to reflect the Murder Mystery theme! Many are dinner parties which include a list of possible menu choices. Providing dinner and snacks can make the party more exciting and the mystery more "real"!

Murder Mystery complete kits/boxes can cost from $5 to $40. On certain sites, you can buy used boxes which are complete cheaper. Be certain to inquire how many people can play in a kit before you order or purchase one! Most kits are suited for 6-12 players but some can be as few as 4 and as many as 15. Because the boxes can only be played once, used kits are often complete. Once used, you can put YOUR box up for bids as well!

Depending on the cost of food, snacks, and the kit, a fancy and remarkable party can range in price from a low end $40 to a higher $80+ on how much you'd like to spend on it.

2. "Shoot 'Em up, Partner!"

How about a game about paintball guns and open areas? If you have a large group to entertain, why not divide them in half and have some fun? Paintball is great fun! It keeps your group in action, no sitting around or getting bored at THIS party!

Dressing in protective gear, renting a spot at your local paintball field, bringing a picnic style lunch with the birthday cake! It is a cost effective action packed game that both genders will enjoy! Tents and shade is provided by the paintball field. Often times, there are food stands available if hot dogs and hamburgers are preferred by the participants.

Bringing a cooler of Soda, Gatorade, and ice cold water would help keep the costs lower. Most paintball fields also provide different sections to those who participate. You can choose if you'd rather go out to a solo game with only your guests or play in the game with the general populations. A guide always comes along to ensure safety.

Loading up the paintball guns and heading to the shooting section might just be a lot of fun! The paintball providers rent in 4-8 hour blocks (or more, depending on what price you want) which includes the use of the guns, safety equipment, and field plus a set number of paint pellets. Count on buying additional pellets!

Typical paintball fields have party packages which include whatever is needed for a set number of participants. With 8-12 people, a package can be as low as $99 for a couple of hours play time to $150 for 12-15 people for a couple of hours more. Paintball pellets can range from $3-$6 each or $20 per box. Within a four hour time frame, having about 12 participants, expect around $60 more for extra pellets.

A paintball party for 12-15 including food, cake, and paintball field rentals will range from $150-$250. Parents can ask those who are attending to pay the cost of gun rental and paintball pellets.

3. Theme Party, Anyone?

There is just something special about dressing up! It is something that some of us never outgrow. Picking a "Theme" that suits your teen and putting it into action can bring a great deal of fun and excitement for all.

Does your daughter love Fairies? Have a "Fairy" Party! Have the participants dress in that fashion and gear the entertainment in that same direction. Have nature walks and hiking dressed as Fairy friends! People will smile and giggle as they see the troupe of winged beauties picking flowers and laughing at the attention.

Does your son love superheroes? Have a "Batman" Party! Decorate the BatCave to reflect his hero! Have a horse shoe tossing contest and a prize for who has the best superhero costume! Make mystery bags as treats for the teens filled with confetti and candies with numbers inside. Each number will correspond with a small prize! Make sure they all "win" a little something to take home with them.

Need a Theme? How 'bout Harry Potter? X-Men? Animals? Make it as exciting and as fun as it is on Halloween! Let your teen pick! It won't take them long to decide on a theme! Whether it is favorite "Story Book" characters like Little Red Riding Hood or literature characters like Sylvia Path or Dorothy Parker, it can be included as a game. Whoever guesses the MOST costumes and characters will win something!

Theme parties are the most reasonable to the pocket book. How much you want to spend on the party is up to you. Creating or finding a costume for your teen can be a blast too! Shopping for that perfect outfit or putting it together for the gathering brings parents and teens together.

Dress up WITH your child! If your child wants an "80's" Pop Music theme, go dig out the bright clothing and bangle bracelets, be Madonna or Cyndi Lauper!

The possibilities are endless! The price is based on whatever theme is chosen. You could also wrap this theme party into a slumber party, too. The teens can celebrate then spend the rest of the night giggling, talking, and enjoying each others company. Sleep-overs never get old to teens!

No matter what kind of party is chosen, take LOTS of pictures! After the party, you and your child can spend time together by putting a scrapbook of the event! From the book to the paper, stickers and borders, you and your child can spend quality time creating the pages together.

Be sure to have fun putting it together. Don't allow stresses or worries to take center stage. Keep your teen involved, they will help you keep things in perspective. It is THEIR celebration. If they are involved with the details, they better understand just how much work it can be and you are teaching them what is important or what's not. The efforts put into the celebration should not overshadow the actual event.

Remember, no matter what kind of party it is, it will be special and it WILL be remembered by your child, you, and all who attended. Tailor it to fit your needs, have fun, and laugh when things DO go wrong.

Celebrating your child's day is a special part of who they are and of who you are as well. Do it with a smile, wink, and a grin. "Happy Birthday, Baby!"