Take it Outside
How about taking your children's party outside?
This is a compromise option. Organise the party in a place where you can picnic. You could organise outside games (football, rounders or party games). Alternatively, you could choose a venue where there is access to some form of entertainment - a boating lake, or model railway for example.
Pros
- This option should be reasonably cheap.
- Your home is safe.
Cons
- It's entirely weather-dependent. Do you dare risk it? Have you got an alternative?
- The onus is on you. You will have to organise transport to the venue (which will probably involve enlisting other parents' help). You will be responsible for organising entertainment.
- The catering is down to you. A decent picnic takes quite a bit of organising (remember you will not be thinking just about food, but also about plates, cutlery, paper cups, rubbish bags etc.)
- You're responsible for the children's safety in an open space. If you've got a large group of children (and not many accompanying adults), this could turn into a nightmare. Over-excited children will run all over the place and it will be hard to keep tabs on them. For this reason, you probably should think about limiting numbers (or enlisting extra adult help).
