So for my daughter's first birthday party i decided to keep it simple with a cupcake themed party. it was THE BEST decision i ever made. i rented the gym at a local church and decorated it with light pink and dark pink streamers, cupcake balloons, little cupcake ceramic candle holders and table cloths i got from the dollar tree, and had a HUGE round table for all of the cupcakes. I ended up making the cupcakes myself from the box (and the best part was, i had coupons, so it was less than $1 for each box). I made about 5 or 6 boxes of cupcakes, and to save money, i made the buttercream icing myself. I brought a bunch of toys from my house to set up in a section of the gym (like a rocking horse, a playhouse with tunnels to crawl through, ball pits, a dance mat, basketball hoops, etc..) and let the kids go to town. when they are all one or two, having little events and games set up is pointless, all they want to do is be independent and explore themselves, so i figured a big pike of toys ought to do the trick, and it definitely did! For food, myself and family all cooked one dish and served buffet style, and no one spent over $10 on each dish. we had hot dog bites, mac & cheese balls, meatballs, mini PB&J sandwiches, cheese doodles, mini ham & cheese sandwiches, pansit, noodles, fruit and veggie tray, just all kinds of food both adult, kid and toddler friendly. I maybe spent all together $150 (including her present as well, which was a polka dotted toddler sized rocking chair, they get enough toys and clothes, so it was a wonderful alternative that she uses every single day). I am VERY tight fisted, you can ask anybody, and it really paid off for this party, because it was nothing short of amazing :] EVERYONE had a blast, and i received so many wonderful compliments, and even had a few copy-cats! i would suggest this to anybody and everybody, it was the best! Even if you don't use the cupcake theme for your party, cupcakes are still a great way to go, and if they are older, one event at the party could even be cupcake decorating. every party my daughter has will involve cupcakes from now on! i hope this helps! have fun with your party planning!