Yashir Koach! Time to plan for the bar/bat mitzvah! A special day indeed. Hard to believe sometimes how fast our kids grow. For most ceremonies and events to be successful, I believe most of us know there is some serious planning involved. And with a bar mitzvah/ bat mitzvah, the planning can start as early as 3 years before the actual ceremony and reception.

No worries, we got this!

Set The Date

So, where do we start? Well, why don’t we get that date locked in? Now it’s not just like any other event where we just pick a date and go from there, because we have to make sure the date works for the synagogue and congregation as well. Team work makes the dream work!

However, most bar mitzvah’s usually happen on the 13th birthday. Some bat mitzvah’s for girls happen on the 12th birthday. This is a coming of age ceremony and celebration, so be aware that prior to the date of the event this will have to be completed.

Theme it up!

After the date is set and the ball has started to roll, this would be a good time to think of a theme or a style you’d like to have for the event. What are your child’s interests? Use this time to be creative and tap into their imaginations! A theme for this event can be a great way to enliven this special day without taking away from the spiritual experience it was always meant to be. There all kinds of themes at your disposal so be sure to have fun with this.

How much Do We Want To Spend?

It’s probably a good idea to have a budget for this meaningful day. We don’t want to fall short of making it special, but we also don’t want to break the bank. So this would be the perfect time to go ahead and have an idea of the guest list and type of food and drink we’d like to serve. This will help with the budgeting. Set that budget and let’s do our best to stick to it!

You might be thinking that 1-2 years before the bar/bat mitzvah ceremony is little too early to start planning, but let me tell you, it’s not. The more organized and planned out everything is, the less stress there will be on the day of this once-in a- lifetime event.

Choose The Perfect Venue

You will want to choose a venue that is worthy and respectable of this special celebration. Here are a few things to think of prior to searching for the perfect venue.

• Will it be a mixed crowd of kids and family, or are you going shooting for a bigger celebration?

• How many will be coming?

• Will this be an evening or afternoon celebration? Keep in mind that evening dates do book up first.

Some celebrations are held at the synagogue, but know if that is the route we choose to go, it will be our job to give the synagogue and congregation a heads up.

Food/ Drink/Caterer

It’s not just about food anymore. It’s about making it an experience. There are so many ideas out there to choose from in regard to how you want to serve your guests. Some caterers provide custom-made serving platters, and if you really want to provide an experience, some caterers can create a DIY interactive food station. This would be cool!

What do you want?

It’s best to have an idea of what kind of food you want to be served at your bar/bat mitzvah. Do you want kosher or non-kosher foods? Maybe you want a medley of both. What are your child’s favorite foods? Maybe you want to have simple finger foods for the kids along with some virgin cocktails for them, and cocktails for the older guests. Your choice, but remember it’s ok to have this dialed in even up to a year in advance.

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Choose The Perfect DJ

This is no easy task. You want to find someone who can incorporate Mr. C The Slide Man, get our 80 year old grandfather out on the dance floor and pull off the hora dance to a tee with no casualties, at the same time playing the hottest hits from Bruno Mars.

You definitely want to keep the DJ up to speed on all the important to-do’s prior to the ceremony. It’s more than just a Dj spinning the hits and rocking the headphones. The bar/bat mitzvah DJ should be more than capable of running the show.

Accurate Productions can cater to any of our needs from song lists, uplighting, Selfie Mirror and more. Accurate is now providing the Selfie Mirror along with an array of all kinds of fun props to keep the kids and adults laughing and enjoying themselves with every shot taken.

Remember the sooner you get the synagogue, congregation, venue, caterer, and all who will play a part on the same page, the more stress-free and wondrous this one- of-a-kind day will be.

Shalom!