Choosing the best party time

Putting together the perfect birthday party for you child or loved one can be an extremely stressful task. We know this because we have children ourselves. In addition, we hear everyday from people who are working through the process. Because of that, I thought it might be informative to put together a few pointers to think about when considering the best time for your party.

First, you'll want to consider the type of party you're having. If it's an indoor party, then you can simply try to structure around the typical availability of your guests. Usually Saturday morning through early evening are extremely popular times for most birthday parties. If you want to try to avoid conflicts, you can choose to have an early afternoon party on Sunday. This may help avoid many conflicts of your invited guests. The reduces the chance that a child may have conflicting party invitations for the same time period.

Outdoor parties bring in another set of factors altogether. The above principles apply to outdoor parties, but you'll also want to consider a few more variables. One important thing to consider for outdoor parties is the expected temperature and weather patterns in your part of the country. In Baton Rouge, LA, where we are located, we can expect an afternoon thunderstorm on many (or most) days. If your party is completely outdoors, and you have a dry inflatable, this could spell trouble. If you have a wet inflatable, such as a water slide, then a brief shower may not bring an end to the party.

Another very important aspect of your party planning, is how to accommodate your guests. If you're having a party that is primarily outdoors, you'll want to make sure that you have adequate seating with plenty of shade. In addition, a fan or evaporative fan for cooling guests can be a great investment for a party.

Inflatables are an extremely popular item for many birthday parties these days. If you are renting an inflatable, you'll want to consider the amount of time that the company allows you to keep the inflatable, and the best time of day to play in it. If you're renting a water slide, then an afternoon party in the heat of the day isn't usually a problem. On the other hand, if you're renting something like the Mickey Mouse Toddler Interactive unit that we have, you'll want to make sure it's in a shaded area either early in the day or later in the afternoon, since it is a dry item that doesn't have a roof.

Birthday party trends are definitely seasonal. We believe that much of the reason for that is due to the heat of the summer. If you consider that along with the availability and comfort needs of your guests, you should be able to pull off a success of a party.

Good luck!!