My nephew was born on Christmas Eve 3 years ago this year. It made that Christmas extra exciting (and a bit stressful) and my sister was wrought with Mommy guilt. Guilt that her older son was missing out on Christmas (he was 1-1/2) and guilt that now her youngest son’s birthday would be forever competing with Christmas! I am sure those are the same worries of any parent with a child born around a giant holiday! But there are ways you can make both occasions special!
1. Celebrate on the child’s half birthday
Some people have the big birthday celebration on the child’s half birthday – thus not competing with the holiday at all. And in June you have a lot more options in terms of locations due to weather (in the Northern hemisphere anyway).
2. Embrace the holiday and incorporate it into the birthday celebration
An easy way to do this is to have a birthday theme that relates to the holiday. For example:
- Winter Wonderland birthday (especially perfect for first birthdays – ONEderland)
- Grinch themed
- Christmas cookie decorating
- Santa themed
- Snowman themed
- Ugly Christmas sweater themed
3. Do a special act of service for your child’s birthday
Ask guests to bring an extra toy for a toy drive. Bring an item for pets and donate to your local Humane Society or animal organization. Ask your kiddo what they would like to support.
4. Use the theme your child wants and incorporate holiday type activities/colors
My nephew’s 2nd birthday party was held before his birthday – so the party space was decorated for Christmas (my sister has a big party for friends every year). C really loved Daniel Tiger at the time, so I went with it! We incorporated a ornament making activity with Daniel Tiger – that I actually found on the pbskids.org site. See all the party details HERE.
Most of the characters websites probably have some type of holiday activity for kiddos that you can use during the party. No one really seemed to mind the Christmas tree!
Tip for guests/family: Please make sure and wrap that birthday gift in BIRTHDAY paper (not Christmas paper)! The kiddos notice!
Really the most important part is to have fun and celebrate your child’s day in a way that works for your family and makes them feel loved and special!
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