Celebrate a 14th Birthday

Your 14th birthday party is somewhat unique. It is a transitional party from early teenage years to late teenage years. Thus, your party should reflect your life at this important moment. Ultimately, though, there are many ways you can choose to celebrate your birthday. By deciding on the basics of the party, planning the party, and getting ready for it, you’ll ensure you have a great 14th birthday celebration.

Steps

Deciding on the Basics of the Party

1. Create a budget. Before deciding on the specifics of the party, you’ll need to put together a budget A budget will include all the money you have available for your 14th birthday celebration. Your budget is critical because once you create it, you’ll know what sort of stuff is possible and what isn’t.
   • Talk to your parents about how much they plan to spend on your birthday.
   • Add up any allowance savings or other money you might be able to use in throwing your birthday.
2. Figure out how many people you want to invite. After you create your budget, you can move on and begin to formulate a preliminary invitation list. At its very core, the size and scope of your list – coupled with your budget – will determine the character of the party. When working on your list:
   • Create a list of must-have people. This is will include your best friends and your inner circle. Anyone you hang out with on a weekly basis should be on this list.
   • Add a secondary list of people you’d like to have. These are people in your larger friend circle. They might include classmates who have invited you to their home, friends you see somewhat often, and friends-of-friends that you find yourself hanging out with a lot.
   • Try to balance your budgetary limitations with the fact that some people’s feelings might get hurt if you don’t invite them to your party.
3. Decide whether the party will be at home or not. Once you have your budget and a preliminary invitation list, you’ll be better able to pick the general location where you want to celebrate your birthday.
   • If your budget is low and you have a large invitation list, you may want to have your party at home.
   • If you have a small budget and a small list, you may be able to shop around for venues outside your home to have your birthday.
   • Parties at home can be traditional or they can be different. Remember, you don’t need to have an 8-year old style birthday with a cake and games. You can turn your birthday celebration into anything you want.

Choosing Between Different Types of Celebrations

1. Host a sleepover. Your fourteenth birthday party may be one of your last opportunities to host a sleepover party at your house. For many teenagers, late high school signals the end of these parties. As a result, use your fourteenth celebration as a final slumber party.
   • Provide dinner and snacks.
   • Play games.
   • Watch movies.
2. Take your friends to an amusement park. There are a wide variety of different amusements that you and your friends can enjoy for your birthday celebration. Ultimately, visiting an amusement park will make a fun and memorable party.
   • Attend a local county fair.
   • If you live in the proximity of a major park like Six Flags, Disney, or something similar, take a few of your best friends to the park for a day.
   • Go roller skating, ice skating, or bowling.
3. Invite your friends to a sporting event. If you're really into sports, you may want to take a few of your friends to see your favorite sports team. This way, you'll be able to spend time with your best friends while watching your favorite team.
   • Consider your favorite local baseball, football, hockey, or soccer team.
   • You may also want to consider organizing a sporting event that your friends can participate in, like a baseball game.
4. Watch a movie with your friends. By watching a movie with your friends, you'll be able to have a fun, yet, low-key birthday celebration. Your party will also be relatively inexpensive, depending on where you want to watch the movie.
   • Consider watching a movie at home with your friends. You can supply popcorn, soft drinks, and even turn the day into a double feature movie day.
   • Take a few of your best friends to a movie theatre to watch the newest blockbuster.
5. Visit a restaurant with friends. Eating at your favorite restaurant is also another great low-key way to celebrate your party. Not only do you get to enjoy your favorite food, but you get to spend time with your best friends.
   • Think about your favorite pizza or hamburger place.
   • Consider ethnic foods like Chinese, Thai, or Mexican.
   • If you have the funds, consider combining your dining plans with a movie or something else fun.
6. Throw a giant birthday party. While low-key options may be tempting, you might also be interested in throwing a large birthday celebration. By having a large party, you'll be able to invite many more friends than you would if you had a smaller gathering. Think about having a:
   • Beach party
   • Hawaiian party
   • Hollywood party
   • Spa party (at home or at a professional spa)
   • Host a What Not to Wear Party
   • Dance party (at your house or a community center).

Planning the Party

1. Decide on a date. The date you want to celebrate your 14th birthday party is critical in making sure your celebration is a success. This is because the date will determine what sorts of activities you can do and who can come.
   • While you may want to pick the exact date of your birthday, it might be inconvenient for a lot of your guests. For example, if your birthday is on a Friday, you may want to postpone the celebration to Saturday.
   • To make sure it does not clash with other important events that you and your friends may need to attend, like a baseball game at school.
   • To avoid major holidays. While you may be tempted to hold your birthday on Halloween, some of your friends may have already made other plans.
2. Choose and book a venue. The venue is the specific place you intend to hold your 14th birthday celebration. Choosing a venue is important as you’ll need to decide early and book as soon as you are sure that’s where you want to hold your celebration.
   • Inquire about pricing and availability. Talk to the manager of the venue about whether they have other groups booked that day and how much the party would cost.
   • Book the venue with enough time in advance. Some places, like country clubs or pavilions at beaches may book up weeks ahead of time.
   • Consider a backup venue.
3. Secure entertainment. After deciding on your date and venue, you need to make sure you’ll have appropriate entertainment for your celebration. Depending on the theme, location, and other factors, entertainment may vary. Consider:
   • If you’re having a small get-together at home, you may just want to rely on board games, videogames, and movies.
   • If you have a big budget, you might hire a band, disc jockey, or another type of entertainer.
   • Some venues will necessarily include entertainment, for example, if you’re having your birthday at a bowling alley or a paintball park, you won’t need to worry about entertainment.

Getting Ready for the Celebration

1. Send out invitations. Once you’ve planned all the details of your party, you’ll need to send out invitations. Make sure not to put this off, as people will need to reserve the date and time of your party.
   • Include the date, time, location, and any relevant information your guests will need. For example, if your party is a pool party, let them know they’ll need to bring a bathing suit and a towel.
   • Give plenty of notice to the people you plan to invite. In most cases, you should give at least two weeks notice.
   • If you’re planning a last-minute party, you should call your friends directly and let them know.
2. Purchase supplies. After you send out invitations, you’ll need to purchase all the supplies for your party. Ultimately, the supplies you need will vary depending on the theme, venue, and more.
   • Parties at your home will require you to purchase a lot of items. You’ll need food, drinks, plasticware, and decorations.
   • Parties at country clubs or similar venues may require you to have less. Ultimately, though, you’ll probably have to buy decorations.
   • The management of ice skating rinks, arcades, and laser tag studios may supply food, drinks, and minimal decorations. Contact your venue to see what they supply.
3. Decorate in advance. During the day before or morning of the event, you’ll have to decorate. Setting aside time for decorating is very important, as it’ll help set the tone of your celebration.
   • If you’re having your party at home, consider doing some of the decorating the day before. This might include putting up signs, balloons, and any theme-related decorations.
   • If you’re having a party at a venue other than your home, you may only have an hour or even less before your party to decorate. Because of this, it’s very important to get some volunteers to help you set everything up before the party begins.

Tips

• Plan a lot of activities. They'll go faster than you expect.
• Don't start the activities until all guests have arrived.
• Do things that you want to do. Don't make decisions based on other people.
• Have fun and don't let anyone bring you down.

Warnings

• Be aware of anyone who has food allergies (like an allergy to peanuts). This will affect the food you serve at your party.
• Make sure everyone is included.

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Sources and Citations

See also

• Celebrate a 13th Birthday
• Dress up for a Party
• Throw a Party and Hide It from Your Parents
• Avoid Being Socially Awkward at a College Party
• Throw a Birthday Party for Ages 12 to 14
• Celebrate an 18th Birthday
• Find Raves
• Host a Teen Party
• Have a Tween Spa Day
• Be Fashionable at a Pool Party

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