Celebrate Express

Full review
I'll be the first one to admit that I don't use BirthdayExpress.com very often for my party supplies. While I love getting their paper catalogs in the mail and seeing all the different themes and extras that they carry, I've usually been able to find the same supplies at other retailers, including my favorite, Party Etc.!. However, as usual, my daughter's birthday comes around much too quickly after Christmas, and due to my talent at leaving things until the last minute, I didn't have enough time to adjust for ordering from my usual online store, and my local party store didn't have the Kim Possible theme my daughter wanted. I went to the trusty BirthdayExpress.com knowing that they would have all the items in stock and ship quickly.

::: Birthday Bonanza :::

When it comes to buying party supplies online, BirthdayExpress.com is THE place to go. They carry everything from party basics like napkins and balloons to cake pans, costumes to match your theme, and even birth scrolls that detail current events for the day your child was born.

The site itself is incredibly easy to navigate considering all the items that BirthdayExpress.com carries. Links from the splash page allow you to shop by theme, pi&ntidle;atas, party favors and prizes, or cake supplies. Sidebar navigation provides even more choices, with Ultimate Parties (everything you could possibly need for a theme party together for one price), Kids' Party Themes, First Birthday, Piñatas, Crafts & Activities, Favors & Prizes, Kids' Toys, Birthday Scrolls, Solid Partyware, Cake Supplies, Balloons, Dress-Up and Sale. BirthdayExpress.com also provides a section for party planning, including cake ideas and party games. Live help is available via online chat, and they also have an option for catalog quick ordering if you have the paper catalog in front of you.

BirthdayExpress.com features over 100 different party themes, and accepts online orders with Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express, debit cards with Visa or MasterCard logos, and mail-in orders with personal checks or money orders. All domestic orders are shipped via either US Postal Service or UPS, and they ship internationally to most countries. Standard delivery promises processing and delivery within 10 business days, with options available to upgrade to 4-day, 2-day, or next-day delivery. There are often special offers available for free shipping if you spend a certain dollar amount.

::: Express Birthday :::

As per my usual modus operandi, I was very late ordering supplies for Beanie's birthday. As in, I ordered supplies on Tuesday for a Sunday birthday party. A girlfriend and I decided that, since both of our children have birthdays right on top of Christmas, and they are so close together, we'd save ourselves the time and energy (and money) and the other pre-K parents the time and energy of having two parties back to back. However, this means that we have a ton of kids showing up to a party with essentially two themes. Beanie's, of course, is Kim Possible, and my local party store had NOTHING, not even a balloon. Obviously, I needed to order online and do it quickly with the party fast approaching.

I should add in at this point that I did something I've NEVER done before: I ordered pre-selected party bags. I'm usually very creative and do a bunch of shopping for inexpensive toys at Oriental Trading Company that coordinate with the party theme, but again, I had little time and less motivation. For lazy people such as myself, BirthdayExpress.com offers favor packs, which include the empty box or bag as well as several pre-selected items to fill them with, all for one price. For $4.49 a piece, I was able to get an "Awesome Favor Purse" which included a cardboard Kim Possible backpack, a cell-phone-shaped lip gloss, a notepad keychain, feather gel pen, lipstick-shaped candy, and a Kim Possible sticker sheet. It was worth the money for me to not have to THINK about what to put in the party bags. I also added on plates, napkins, balloons, thank-you notes, and, since I'm really behind, the birthday scroll I had gotten for my older two, but hadn't gotten around to ordering for Bug yet.

The total for my shipping with a 2-day express upgrade came to $23.95, but with a promotional code, I was able to get free standard shipping and only ended up paying the $10.00 upcharge for two-day shipping. My order arrived exactly two days later (in the evening, and I was starting to panic a bit), packaged neatly in a box that was just the right size. The birthday scroll was between two pieces of corrugated cardboard with rubberbands to keep it from getting crinkled, and as with all BirthdayExpress.com shipments, the items were surrounded by a sheet of lime green paper with a thank-you sticker on top. An extra paper catalog was also included in case you are new to the mailing list.

::: Birthday Saved! Child Happy! :::

Beanie's birthday was saved thanks to BirthdayExpress.com, as she will have her cherished Kim Possible theme and I don't have to look like the lazy bad-guy mom. While I know that I could have paid less elsewhere, it was worth the extra expense this time to save time and energy and be absolutely sure that everything would arrive on time.