Pledge Your Birthday

***This blog post is featured over on Little Hands Can! As a momma to three I spend lots of time planning their birthday celebrations. They love to help me pick out a theme, colors, games and more. We make a treats menu and make themed party favors. Birthday celebrations are a big deal in our house! My children’s birthdays also provides a memorable teaching moment, my kiddos are fortunate to have a party and receive many gifts however many children are not.

One in five children are fighting homelessness here in the United States and one in five lack access to adequate food. When these parents have to choose between food and shelter or a birthday party they always have to choose the basic needs. However a birthday party provides a child confidence, self-esteem, joy and hope they may not otherwise get throughout the year.

For my kiddos and I we love pledging our birthday to Box of Balloons. Box of Balloons is a national nonprofit providing birthday parties to children in need. They put everything needed for a celebration into a box and give it to the child’s parents or caregivers, they then can throw their child a memorable birthday party! It is a small act of kindness that can change not only a child’s but an entire family’s day and year.

This past month my oldest son turned ten so we pledged his birthday and chose to become the party planners. Our local Box of Balloons chapter gave us a birthday request, it was a unicorn themed request for an eight year old girl who is in need and otherwise would not get to celebrate her birthday. Trexen, my son, and I purchased tableware, decorations, a unicorn pinata and more.

The little girl likes to draw so we decorated journals with matching pencils for the party favors and bought the birthday girl a doodle book and a big art set. Trexen and I filled the unicorn pinata with candy, we picked out a gift bag and card, bought themed cupcakes and then put it all together in a box. Trexen and his brothers decorated the white box so it would be a festive, happy surprise.

This project was perfect, it offered many teachable moments as we talked about the importance of every child being celebrated and the fact that all parents want to celebrate their child. I loved being able to put together a Packer Football themed birthday party for Trexen knowing him and I were able to give a child in need a happy birthday party this month as well.

Pledging Your Birthday not only fills a need for a child but it provides a community service opportunity for my own children, I love being able to volunteer with them!