How can a single Mom pull off a Fabulous Sweet Sixteen (on a budget) for an amazing & mature honor student?

Question

My daughter received a horrific present for her 14th Birthday... a Cancer diagnosis! She does not want a pity party, nor an end of chemo party. She's in remission, an honor student and anticipating her Sweet Sixteen. What's a single Mom on a budget to do? I thought of renting a limo for her and 4 of her closest friends (and me chaperoning) for a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure in July but the limo's soooo expensive. She's an amazing girl and always tells me not to worry too much about her birthday but I know she wishes for something amazing. Although she cheeses from ear to ear when she watches those sweet sixteen shows, she swears that she does NOT want a big party with the kids from her school, etc. She only wants her closest family and friends around her. Any cool, yet budget-friendly ideas?

Answer 1

I'm glad that she's doing better. It's good to cater to her interests. It doesn't have to be a super-duper-MTV-style-sweet-sixteen, especially if it's involving only people close to her.

It's really the personal touches that will make the day memorable. Blow up her image (or special images) into big posters or just huge photos (like at Walgreens). You can chronicle her life down hallways in a glitzy style (make a nice frame...sparkles.. you know). If she likes music, rent or buy a good Karaoke machine and get some good Karaoke music CDs (a mix of recent and old pop songs). Make or get her favorite foods. If she favors certain colors, make sure that they are the colors highlighted in at her party. If she has favorite subjects in school, you may be able to incorporate it in a theme. You can even get hits off the books she likes to read. (For example, a mystery buff probably would go for a mystery-themed party involving clues and characters). Get her one big-ticket item. It doesn't have to be a car. Perhaps something she's been wanting for a long time - like a pair of tickets to a particular concert.

She's making it easier on you by only wanting a limited number of people around. What you see on MTV is like the cost of a wedding to accommodate all those people. Even so, you are going to have to enlist some help though. It's a large project to do by yourself. See what people are willing to do for you & your daughter for free or inexpensively. It's time to call in favors.  :-) Just make her the star in your home or a rented out room at a nice, fun venue.

You might want to check out these sites for ideas:

http://www.party411.com/sweet16.html

http://www.birthdaypartyideas.com/html/s...

http://mysupersweetparty.com/sweet16 (read the message board)