Surviving Hosting a Kid Birthday: Part 2

This article is born out of comments from wahoodad 

We've hosted two of my son's parties at our house (not counting his 1st B-day).  We found that the first thing you have to do is have a plan and execute it. 

Step 1 is to have a defined party time limit and mark it clearly on the invitation.  Sometimes guests have trouble with an open-ended invite. You know, the cutesy "12:00 to ????".  If you tell them when to arrive and when to GTFO they won't be wondering if they need to stay longer so as to not appear rude, or when to figure out they've overstayed their welcome.

{mosnooad}

Step 2 is not to allow for too much idle time.  Have the whole event
planned out.  Here's what we did for a 4th birthday: When each kid
arrived they had a photo taken wearing a green plastic pith helmet in
front of a junglish background.  They then proceeded to a table where
they decorated a foam picture frame and colored their reptile-themed
goodie bag.  By the time everyone finished, the entertainment arrived
and was all set up in the basement.  We had a traveling reptile/animal
show called Curious Creatures.  The handler showed the kids a bunch of
animals, including a tarantula and a 7-foot reticulated python.  While
the show was going on, a couple of adults converted the craft table to
a cake-and-ice cream table.  When the show ended, the kids came up, we
had the cake, and then everyone left.  Later, we sent the kids a thank
you note along with their frame and photo.  Very little mess and
everyone had fun.  You don't need a lot of money.  You just need to be
creative.

Other thoughts: 

Save the present-opening for later.  Take the gifts from guests when
they arrive and put them in a secure location.  Present-opening time
can be a disaster. From kid guests not being able to handle watching
your kid getting all this cool stuff, to your kid letting everyone in
the room know what they think of the sweater a neighbor knitted for
him; you're doing everyone a favor by opening gifts later.

Don't be afraid to set limits to minimize destruction and messes. 
It's okay to tell kids where they can and can't take food and drink
in your home.  It's okay to tell them they can't play in your kid's
bedroom today or that they aren't allowed to use your leather couch as
a trampoline.  You don't have to surrender your home to abuse just
because you throw a party.