Have you noticed it doesn’t cost anything to email a cute card? You’ve no doubt sent or received a greeting card online. Kids love to send and receive online greetings, so animated birthday party invitations are a natural for older kids. They just don’t get any cuter than the e-cards at Hallmark. 123Greetings also has a good selection.

You’ll find several selections at birthday party invitation sites. Some of the cutest are, not surprisingly, at the toner and specialty paper supplier sites. See what I mean at HP, Canon, and Avery. For a simple invitation, DLTK offer a good selection of kid themes.

Crafty parents can find ideas for creative homemade party invitations online. PBS’ Zoom has several ideas for homemade party invitations. You will also find ideas for homemade invitations under different party themes, such as these at Family Fun. If you want to learn more about card-making, order the book Cards That Pop-Up, Flip & Slide

Home printing software such as Hallmark Card Studio, Greeting Card Factory, Print Shop, and Printmaster include plenty of birthday card templates for you to print at home. If your family enjoys paper crafts, these software programs have tons of additional fun projects. My kids have loved our Print Shop Deluxe program. Plus, some of these programs include access to even more clip art and templates online.

Of course, you can always pick up inexpensive fill-in invitations with the matching plates and napkins at your discount store. But it’s frustrating when you can’t find enough of the theme you want, not to mention trudging around finding low-cost favors to go with it all. Online suppliers such as Birthday in a Box put the whole set at your fingertips.

If you’re not satisfied with the appearance of the free printables above, you can now find many beautiful personalized cards at the commercial card printing sites. Your computer actually makes this traditional way of purchasing personalized cards so simple to click and order. I’ve found a good selection of cards for birthday party invitations at “Noteworthy Notes” and “Announcements and Notes by Jeanette”. Don’t miss the amazingly pricey selections at “FineStationery.com” and “Madi and Company”.

Plan Your Guest List

Plan your guest list around the type of party you will be having. If you’re hosting a makeover party at a girly spot in the mall, your daughter will have to agree to keep the guest list down–and it will probably have to be a girls-only party. Many party places will tell you what the maximum number of guests can be.
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Invite Close Friends and Family

Invite close friends and family first. This is a no-brainer. Your child will undoubtedly have one or two favorite pals that simply must be on the guest list. Add any must-have family members, such as cousins, and that’s the start of your guest list.
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Don’t Invite Kids Your Child Doesn’t Know

Don’t invite kids your child doesn’t know. It is not necessary to invite your child’s entire class to his or her birthday party. That said, it would be wrong to invite everyone and exclude just one or two children. Try to keep the classmate list to the kids that your child actually plays with. And be sure to mail the invitations to the guest’s homes instead of having your child hand them out at school.
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Don’t Feel You Need to Reciprocate

Don’t feel that you have to reciprocate. Johnny across the street invites your kids to his party every year–but your kids don’t play with Johnny any other time. Don’t feel as though you have to invite him just because he always invites your kids. By not sending him an invite, it may send a message to his parents that your kids don’t actually play together.
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Don’t Hurt Feelings

Don’t hurt feelings. No trimming down of the guest list is worth hurting a child’s feelings. If you’re having a backyard circus party at your house and the kids next door is going to be sitting in his yard watching the festivities, then that’s just wrong. Be sure to use your judgment to spare any ill will.
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