When my son declared he wanted a mystery party for his 10th birthday, I turned to the Internet to research party games and ideas. Happy surprise, the No. 1 Google result for “kids mystery party” is my friend Liz’s hilarious post comparing the type-A Pinterest-perfect mystery ideas she found online vs her own totally type-B mystery party. 

While anyone who has been to my always-messy apartment will attest I am definitely not a type-A mom, when it comes to birthday parties, I love to go all out with really creative activities that always leave the kids saying, “That was the best party ever.” Let’s face it, kids don’t care if your paper goods are fancy; they just want to have fun. 

So, in response to Mom-101's post, I took up the challenge to create an A-is-for-Awesome kids' mystery party that anyone could throw without a MFP (Masters in Fine Pinterest).

For the past few years, I have dreamed about having a party with a photo booth. Not only does it seem like a fun party activity, but the guests end up with great favors: The funny photos that show everyone together, having a blast. You can rent a photo booth from a local company, but the prices start in the high hundreds and go up from there, so I looked into different options for DIY photo booths.

After much research, my photo booth solution ended up being incredibly simple and free, and it was a huge hit at my last gathering. We got terrific pictures of all the guests, but the biggest surprise was how great having a photo booth was for the kids. We had children ages 3 to 12 completely occupied, snapping away, leaving the grown-ups to eat, chat and mingle.

While this easy DIY photo booth works for grown-up parties, I think it's a particularly great addition to a kids' party. The only downside is, if you want the kids to do anything else, it might be hard to pull them away. Find even more fun and easy birthday party ideas like this in our Guide To Kids' Birthday Parties.

This fall we did an at home beading party for my daughter and I found this to be one of the most fun, versatile, inexpensive and easy to organize birthday party ideas we have ever done. A beading birthday party is a great idea for girls from preschool age to teens and it's a great idea for NYC kids because it's easy to do even in a small apartment and in New York we have easy access to all the wholesale beading stores where you can pick up all kinds of fun beads.

I'll never forget the year I tried to do an ice-skating birthday party on the cheap by taking a bunch of kids to the rink at Bryant Park and then herding them over to a diner afterward for dessert. If I had known we could have a regular ice skating party for less than $350 I probably wouldn't have this nervous tic whenever I hear a Zamboni.

Read on for the real deals on ice skating parties all over New York City. We've even dug up all the hidden fees you might not have calculated so you can truly compare the costs at these seven ice skating rinks.

Beading is a really fun craft activity for kids of all ages and grown ups, too. In fact, it can be a great moms night out. Basic beading doesn't require any skill, but still gets your creative juices flowing as you piece together your own creation from a selection of beads.

We've written about hosting a beading party at home but there are several city spots that will host your party for you, too.

Lest you harbor a notion that I, as "Mommy Poppins," am some uber-organized, type-A, helicopter mom, let me dispel that myth for you right now with this story about my daughter's 10th birthday party. Yes, double digits, big deal birthday...and the morning of the party, what had I prepared? Nothing.

Last week Ted Cruz accused the Queens-born Donald Trump of having “New York values” and the Internet went crazy. He meant it as an insult. Senator Cruz seems to think that New York is made up of a homogenous type of person who is ultra-liberal, uber-rich and values wealth above all else. Maybe he’s never been to New York.

As parents raising our kids in NYC, we have to admit we agree with one part of the GOP presidential hopeful's sentiment: New Yorkers are different from others. We won't dispute you there, sir. But here's what you missed. One of the big draws to raising kids in New York City is that they will possess New York values.

We can count many more, but here are 10 values every NYC kid has that maybe Ted Cruz could take a note on.
 

Susan Izatt is an Early Childhood, Infant and Toddler Development expert and the Director and Co-founder of now-closed MoonSoup Early Childhood Studio. With years of experience playing with and teaching babies, Susan certainly knows how to get babies moving and make it fun. She agreed to share some activity ideas that parents can easily do at home with their babies excerpted from her upcoming book New Moms & First Time Dads. Thanks, Susan!