Sweet 16 is such a special birthday for kids … it’s often thought of as a grand time for a celebration. Has anyone seen MTV’s show My Super Sweet 16? Well, you probably don’t want to go that over the top, but a special masquerade ball with your kid’s friends would be a memorable way to celebrate.

Pick your colors: The best way to start is to pick your colors for the evening. Will it be black and silver, or purple and pearly white? Once you have chosen your colors, you can buy card stock in one of them and print the masquerade ball details in the second color (for example, silver card stock with black print). Match the type of font you use to the tone you want to set for the evening. A ball is usually very elegant.

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The Wall Street Journal’s Juggle blog featured a great article on an un-super sweet 16 party. A girl’s parents wanted to do something really special and glamorous for her on her 16th birthday, but the sweet 16-year-old wanted to simply be with her friends, conserve money, and have some low-key fun. Her parents listened to her, and she had a spectacular birthday without breaking the bank. The party lasted the entire weekend and included all of the people who were important to her. Seems like a perfectly perfect celebration to me.  How about to you?

So, your daughter is turning sweet 16, and you are making the very strong suggestion that her party be all girls! If she wants boys to attend, you may have to come up with some convincing celebration ideas that keep the boys at bay. Here are some suggestions to offer:
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Well, 16 is certainly a special birthday! Many kids, especially girls, want to celebrate it in a special way. Some girls may want a very sophisticated party with friends and family, others may just want to have a few friends over to have some fun.

I remember when I turned 16 I had a combined birthday/going away party because I moved to a new state on my actual birthday. At that age, I can’t say my parents really planned activities for my party. I do remember, since it was June, that I had made up a lot of water balloons and everyone had fun with those. It even went as far as getting the backyard hose out and spraying everyone! The rest of the party was spent eating snacks/BBQ/cake. Back then, we had the Top Gun video (does that show my age or what??), and some kids got that out and watched it, while others were off playing video games, and still others were off gossiping and chatting. The best part was having a big group of my friends together; there must have been thirty kids there with me.

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