My son's 1st and 2nd birthdays

               As much as possible i want to do things that i can do on my own for my son's birthday parties to SAVE. As much as i want to take advantage of party packages from party stores like Hannah's, Ballooney and Sparkles, i found out that i can save if i do it myself. But if you are a busy mom or dad, these party stores can be your best friend. I am lucky that my job doesn't demand too much of my time giving me more time to prepare and figure out options for me to save.

               I started planning for my son's 1st and 2nd birthdays 2 months before the party. 

1. FOOD

We chose Maria Lina Catering to provide us with food and catering services. They are always our 1st choice.  And they never failed to give us value for our money. There are negative comments i read from other sites about them but i can honestly say we have never experienced them. Guests always comment about the good food. 

After all the parties we had them cater for us, we always have EXTRA FOOD for us to bring home. During my son's 2nd birthday they  had refills for the food but they were unable to refill, despite going over the number of guest we have reserved,  so we had all the extra to bring home. =) So we don't worry if we have enough food or not.

The only downside for this caterer is their presentation. Its not really that bad but its not as grand as well. Just OK, not really an issue. 

                                                          photo from: marialina.com

TIPS!

• Make reservations few weeks before the party date. 

They are fully booked especially if the party date falls on a weekend.

If in case they are fully booked, I have another caterer option which i will be blogging about in a few days. 

• Have extra drinks.

We bought 1.5L drinks, plastic cups and ice just in case. And its cheaper compared to the amount you have to pay to the caterer in excess to the number of heads you have reserved.

• Have extra paper plates, spoon and fork.

Again, just in case.

Here are photos of  Maria Lina Catering

  This was from my son's 1st birthday. The presentation is just simple.

  We reserved for 80 persons and almost if not more than a hundred came. 

And we still had extra food.

This is another photo from my son's 2nd birthday. 

This photo also shows the table setting.

Again, simple but OK for occasions like this.

I would also recommend Lola Mary's Catering Services. Only Php 200.00 per head and free lechon for every 60 reserved. they have very good presentation and there waiters are neat and good looking. Seriously. Very good service and they set up early as well. 

We asked them to cater for us twice already for my Uncle's wedding and for my sister's birthday..AMAZING SET UP!!

Color theme is pink, green and blue.

Pool party. Venue: Metropolis Subd. clubhouse, Pit-os.

I will blog about my sister's birth day soon..

2. KIDDIE FOOD

         I cooked spaghetti ( 1 kilo was more than enough), i ordered pork BBQ from 2K's BBQ in Talamban across the market (its super delicious, i ordered 100pcs for 6pcs each), i ordered pizza also and ice cream. i spent less than 3k which is already way cheaper. some kiddie party food packages cost from 115-150 per kid and with little serving.

3. VENUE

 Compiled PARTY VENUEs IN CEBU

         For my son's first birthday, my husband wants it to be a kiddie pool party which i immediately agreed so the kids will enjoy ( and allowed me to save, i didn't have to rent bouncers etc)

         The easy choice for us was Metropolis Subdivision clubhouse, Pit-os. We live near. We rented the clubhouse for Php 3,500 from 4pm-10pm and the pool was made exclusive for us. There is a pool for adults and a separate pool for the kids.

This is the adult pool and on the right is the kiddie pool.

My sister and cousin is going to kill me for this. hahahaha.

       Another option we have for the pool party was Family Park. The place is larger. 2.5k for 9 hours use. But we will have to pay for each person who will use the pool, its more expensive. And we will have the party on a weekend and the place is crowded on weekends. 

        For the 2nd birthday party, its not as grand as the 1st, we just need food and venue. We celebrated it at the Virginia Hills clubhouse in Banawa. For 3.5k plus 500pesos deposit. You may call this number for inquiries 2553434.

 4. INVITATIONS

             I made the invites myself also. For the 1st birthday, the theme was Hot Wheels. I was lucky to find in the Hot Wheels website printable Hot Wheels driver's license, i just tweaked it a little, printed it poster-like, cut and laminated it. You may also search from YouTube for invitation ideas. I assure you there are a lot. 

Total cost for the invites Php 250 only.

5. DECORATIONS 

• TARP

Fuji in Talamban across Mercury Drug prints tarps like this for only Php 14.00 per sq. ft.

This tarp only cost less than Php 700.00. This tarp was printed after 3hrs or less.

To give you an idea of the tarp height.

They can also make layouts in Fuji but with an addition cost.

This is for the 2nd birthday only 300pesos. The theme was CAT dump trucks.

TIP!
To stick the tarp on walls we used double sided adhesive tapes (3m brand). 

• BALLOONS

I made all the balloons as well. I bought balloons in Manalili, near freedom and carbon. I couldn't remember the name of the store. its near Carbon market, Manalili, near the corner where you turn right for Carbon market and left for Freedom. Balloons cost from 115- 130 pesos 25 pesos per pack 10-12 inches balloons. Its more expensive in the party stores. And for the stick and cups 2pesos each.


I made my own balloon columns also. Its my 1st time but i managed. Balloon columns in party stores cost 600-1000pesos each. I searched YouTube how to make balloon columns and found out its very simple. I made the columns 4 hours before the party.

Here's how:

And here is mine: ( remember: its my first time) hahahah..

I tried to make a traffic light. hahahaha.

I made 2 others for the entrance, not a traffic light anymore, but my sister refused to show her face.

6. CAKE


I have a pasty chef high school classmate Lani who make great cakes. Unfortunately when i called to order a customized cake, she was already fully booked, she can only take orders for her regular products. So i decided to order cupcakes from her. THEY WERE REALLY GOOD!!!!! SUPER! You have to try. LMG PASTRY CHEF
I was planning to make a cupcake tower bur i totally forgot to inform her that. So I improvised..

I suggest you order ahead if you want it customized. 

These cupcake "tower" is made of plastic cups and cake cardboard base( i bought from Caro and Marie).

I added chocolate fountain and a simple cake to blow.

These cupcakes are actually LARGE.

Just check the website from the link above.

If you are tight on the budget, another option for your cake, Cakes and Memories. They also very delicious cake and very budget "friendly". I saw them in an expo in SM trade hall and they had a display and a taste test as well. I loved the cake plus i was amazed how cheap it was. And they didn't disappoint.


My son's 2nd birthday cupcake tower was from them.

This only cost Php 2,600 pesos. 50 moist chocolate caramel cupcakes with an 8 inch fondant cake.

This is another cake from Cakes and Memories i ordered for my sisters birthday.

Only Php 700.00. 10 inches moist chocolate cake. Lami!

I will blog about my sisters party soon.

7. CLOWN


The cheapest clown was from Hannah's. Only Php 850.00. We didn't have a clown for my son's 2nd birthday but for his 1st birthday they were from Hannah's. I only paid for 1 clown but 2 came. They were from a previous party and went straight to ours. I paid the other clown Php 500.00 for his services. Cheaper.


TIP!
I strongly recommend clown WENDY. Just inform the Hannah's personnel you want him. He is not like the other clown that shouts or yells and he is very good in English, unlike others. And he is always early.

7. KIDDIE TABLES & CHAIRS


 I rented from Hannah's. I forgot the exact price but I'm sure its more or less Php 500.00. 

9. LOOT BAG


I was luck for the 1st birthday i found Hot Wheels gift wrappers from Metro Ayala. So i made paper bags from them and bought candies, chocolates and toys. I spent around 3k for the 1st birthday because i wanted the contents to be good , candies and chocolates and good toys. I prepared 50. But you can adjust our budget, just adjust the contents.

Loots bag on the side.

For the 2nd birthday my mother gave me the idea to use small pails. She bought the pails for Php 18.00 each and we printed sticker and bought candies and toys. This time they are more simple but the kids really enjoyed.

10. MUSIC

I suggest you rent from party stores because they have kiddie music ready. we rented from Hannah's it ranges from 500-800 pesos, depend on what type of equipment you want. If you only need a cassette tape player its cheaper. They still have that. Seriously.

So good luck mommies and daddies. I hope i was able to help you. Feel free to ask questions. I will be very happy to answer them. Post also if you have other suggestions that can help all other parents out there. You can also read my other blogs for other party ideas which i will be posting few days from now. 

 click this link for PARTY venues around CEBU:

 Compiled PARTY VENUEs IN CEBU

you may also try this:

 Compiled Party Theme Ideas