I cannot speak from volumes of experience since I only have a two year old, but through my many years of surviving kids parties as a guest I have picked up some helpful tips. I would like to share my top four with you.

1. Set a specific end time – As much as you love having company, you’re going to want them to leave at some point! Make it clear on the invitation that the party ends at a specific time. Drop the universal hint of cleaning everything up, giving everyone a party bag and a ‘Thanks for coming’! Even better, have the party away from your home so the venue does that for you!

1. Hire a lifeguard – If a pool is involved, please hire a lifeguard. Never take party guest’s word that they will watch the pool. The thought of kids in a pool and 100 other different distractions, it gives me anxiety. It is worth every cent to hire a lifeguard, there is no price on any child’s life and safety. According to the Center for Disease Control, there are 10 deaths by drowning (non-boating related) every day! If you cannot afford one, make sure the pool is secured without any access to it. You can try local swim schools and YMCA’s to see if there is a teacher or a trained student for hire to keep their eyes on the pool at all times.

1. Buy prepared food – No need to get fancy. Think a sandwich platter, Costco appetizer trays, chips etc. It takes a lot of time to prepare a homemade meal for a large number of people and creates lots of cleanup. Most of the time it ends up even costing more than you think. On top of it, you will have people arriving at all different times so make sure to get something that can stay at room temperature for a few hours.

1. Enjoy yourself – Just because you are the host, it doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. Put your guests to work if you need help (they don’t mind, I promise!) and take some time to take a step back and enjoy!

Whether or not you live in a house with tons of space or an apartment with tons of amenities, you can survive the dreaded kid’s party. Remember, kids have fun just playing with other kids their age. Just revisit tip #4 over and over again.