Last Updated on February 16, 2021 by Mary J. Grice
How to Organize a Picnic for a Children’s Birthday: Where to gather, what to eat, what to play, how to deal with the rain, what to think in advance and other tips on how to arrange a birthday party in nature.
I was born in early November and have always envied those who have a birthday in the summer. Yes, many friends and classmates travel to grandmothers and seas, but with those who have not yet left or stayed in the city for the summer, you can arrange a wonderful summer birthday – with a picnic, active games, running on the grass, with fresh fruits and vegetables in the gentle sun.
All this sounds great, but any picnic in the park or a country party in the country requires careful preparation. I tried to put together a detailed guide and wrote, as I usually do myself. Be sure to leave comments and share your findings, tips and options.
How to Arrange a Birthday Party in the Park or Outdoors
1. Choose a Place
Have a birthday party in a busy park closer to the city center (so that everyone can easily get there) or go out of town, gathering friends for a holiday in a proven and quiet place? It all depends on your ability to move (by metro, train, bus or car), the age of the invited children and whether you want peace or are ready to celebrate in a busy place.
Closer to the center, there is the Hermitage Garden, Gorky Park, Sokolniki, Kolomenskoye, Izmailovsky Park and others. It is not necessary to leave the Moscow Ring Road, in each district, you can also find a fairly large forest park, where the metro goes, and at the same time, there is an opportunity to take a quiet place.
2. Choose a Time
It is best to plan a holiday trip on the weekend. Although often all guests are with small children and can come on weekdays, when there are fewer people everywhere, it is better to focus on the weekend.
It is very difficult to guess the weather. Meteorological services can give an accurate forecast three days in advance, no further, and the forecast for a month is an approximate matter. Check every day for changes in the forecast, and if you see that long rains, thunderstorms or hurricane winds fall on your weekend for a long time – try to postpone the holiday to another day. What to do if it did rain? I will talk about this further.
3. What to Eat and Drink
Ready-made restaurant food with delivery or vegetables and fruits from home – there are a lot of options for treating friends and family at a picnic:
– You can agree with a local cafe in the park about a small buffet on the grass and order a predetermined amount of food for the holiday
– You can order food delivered home and take it to a picnic or ask the courier to come to the nearest metro station from the park and intercept. You know better what to order. It should be based on your budget, tastes, number of people and the average age of the invited children. There may be a different menu for children and adults, but be prepared for the fact that kids will want to try adult dishes
– You can cook food at home. I usually do that. I buy vegetables, fruits, wash them in advance and cut them, putting them in plastic containers. I cut cheese and other foods that are better wrapped in foil. I cook separately dressings for salads or sauces for vegetable sticks. I buy sliced bread and everything that does not require cooking on a fire or in the oven. Of course, if you plan to hang out in nature for 4-6 hours, it is better to take care of the main course, because in the fresh air everyone will definitely get hungry. Someone fries kebabs, someone brings pies with cheese, someone cooks pilaf
4. How to Decorate
Decorating a picnic meadow is a separate pleasure. Invite a decorator with ready-made solutions and “props” or come up with everything yourself. Here are a few ideas that I love:
– Long, multi-colored satin ribbons hung from the low branches of the tree. They “fly” very beautifully in the wind, and beautiful photographs are obtained
– Lush and light balls made of colorful rice paper. How to do them, you can see here
– Pieces of multi-colored fabric, randomly hung on the branches and spread out on the grass
– If the holiday is planned in the evening, you can take several garlands that work not from the mains, but from batteries. Light bulbs will create a unique atmosphere of magic and comfort
– Large wooden letters “Happy Birthday” or with the date of birth of a baby, you can order or rent
– A strange but interesting idea to decorate a picnic in nature with fresh flowers
– A very beautiful and requiring close attention option – candles … Away from children, blankets, trees and anything that could catch fire by accident
– You can pre-fold cranes, airplanes or flowers using the origami technique or invite guests to do this by hanging figures during the holiday
– Paper lanterns, balloons and other light, inexpensive things that can be hung on branches
5. What to Play
Bring all the active games into the park – balls, badminton, frisbee, skipping and other sports that you can’t play at home.
All games for the company are suitable – “the sea is worried once”, potatoes, bouncers, “you will go on quieter”, catch-up and their variations.
On a hot day, you can inflate a small pool, take toys for sand and water, water pistols. In this case, you need to be prepared for children wet from head to toe.
It is better to have a lot of toys such as balls, cars, animals, soap bubbles. Ask friends with children to bring some of the toys, take the rest yourself. Then you won’t have to separate the fighting three-year-olds and look for something to do for those who did not have enough toys.
Better to take bright and large enough toys so that they do not get lost in the grass.
Leave your dear and favorite toys at home. It will be a shame if they get dirty in the ground, get lost or break from a cheerful children’s company.
Plus, you’ll love the fun and games for the whole family in 105 Ideas To Make This Summer Unforgettable.
6. What to Do If It Rains
There are three options – either run in the subway (by cars), or hide in the nearest place (cafe veranda, gazebo), or stay at a picnic. It doesn’t matter what the forecast said. It can almost always start to rain. To stay in the clearing and wait out a short thunderstorm, it is better to take along the list in advance:
– a wide awning (a waterproof canopy that stretches on racks or branches)
– several children’s tents (they will definitely save from a light mushroom rain)
– umbrellas
– for children – waterproof raincoats and rubber boots (last year my son and I experienced a strong short downpour at a picnic from friends, but the children ran in the rain and got high, and when it was over, they could continue playing)
7. Mosquitoes
When going into nature (especially in dense shade or near water), prepare to meet mosquitoes. They will be driven away by the smoke from the fire, special burning spirals, sprinklers and creams. It is better to have in reserve a remedy for adults and, separately, a hypoallergenic one for babies.
8. Sun
Try to choose a clearing where there is both shade and sun. If the day is hot, it is better to move all games to the shade so that the children do not overheat. In this case, a lightweight fabric canopy can be useful. Just in case, take sun protection for children with a high value (from 50 units) so that the noses and shoulders do not get burned. Don’t forget about bucket hats, bandanas, caps and hats.
A Few More Tips:
– Bring plenty of disposable tableware and plastic cups
– Make sure everyone has enough drinking water, especially on a hot day
– Stock up on wet wipes and paper towels
– Bring a car first aid kit or assemble it yourself (sterile bandages and napkins, plaster of different sizes, disinfectant, an antihistamine for acute allergies, a remedy for burns, etc.)
– Ask friends to bring their rugs and blankets to sit on. So you don’t have to carry a whole bag on you
– Better to take tourist rugs or special picnic mats with a waterproof gasket so as not to be afraid of coolness from the ground or moisture after rain
– Ask someone from your friends in the car to help you
– Take some sealed zip bags (to hide electronics, keys and wallets from rain, sand and earth)
– Children are better to take warmer sweaters, especially if you are going to celebrate until the evening
– In the evening, you can light sparklers or launch lanterns into the sky
How do you usually arrange a birthday party in nature? Maybe there are ideas that I haven’t written about? Share your experience.
