Hey everyone! Eleanor here from Des Moines. My grandson, Milo, is turning 13 next month – can you believe it? My little cowboy is growing up! We're doing a big party this year, a joint one with his best friend, and they’ve decided on a Wild West theme. Of course, my brain immediately went to thinking about cowboy goodie bags for kids.

I always over-prepare, you know me! I’ve already bought a dozen little red bandanas and some plastic sheriff badges from Party City – they were on sale, like $12 for a pack of 20, couldn't pass that up. But here’s my dilemma: what do you even put in goodie bags for 13-year-olds? It feels so different than when they were little. A few years ago, for his 8th birthday, I did a pirate theme, and those little eye patches and plastic coins were a hit. Easy peasy.

Now, I’m picturing these big kids looking at tiny plastic compasses and wondering what to do with them. I'm already months into planning this and I’ve got backup plans for my backup plans, but this goodie bag thing is stumping me. I even went to the Iowa State Fair last summer, hoping for some unique regional ideas, but nothing really clicked for party favors.

I'm considering a cowboy hat decorating station as an activity, which could double as a take-home item, but then what else? Do I even need traditional goodie bags? My daughter-in-law thinks it’s silly for teens, but I love sending a little something home with the guests. Any ideas for age-appropriate cowboy goodie bags for kids (or should I say teens!) that aren't just junk that'll end up in the trash?

Oh Eleanor, I totally get where you're coming from! It's sweet that you want to send them home with something special. I'm Luna, here in Baltimore, and with my crew (Leo's 2, Isla 3, Sofia 5, and Ruby 13), I've seen every age group. It’s hard when they get older, isn't it?

Last year, for Leo and Isla’s joint birthday – they're little whirlwind, so I'm usually a last-minute planner – we did a sort of "barnyard bash" theme, which is close to cowboy. I tried to do these cute DIY cowboy goodie bags for kids. I found some little plaid fabric scraps at a thrift store for like $3, thinking I'd sew little drawstring bags. That didn't happen. Two days before the party, I just grabbed some brown paper bags from the Dollar Tree (6 for a dollar!) and stamped a horseshoe on them with a potato stamp I made. William, my husband, thought it was hilarious how stressed I got over it.

Inside, for the younger ones, I put little plastic horses and some stickers. But for Ruby's friends who came, it was a challenge. I ended up just putting a small bag of local, fancy jerky – which cost about $4 a bag, way more than I planned – and a mini puzzle in each. Honestly, the jerky was a hit, the puzzle not so much. If I did it again for the older kids, I'd probably just do a small gift card to a local ice cream place, like $5 each. It feels less like "stuff" and more like a treat they can actually use. Or maybe just one really good, themed item instead of a bag of small things. My biggest regret was trying to force the same concept on all ages.

The memories are what count most, though. I still remember the look on Leo's face when he saw the pony rides (we splurged on that!). That's the real goodie bag, in my sentimental opinion!

Hi Eleanor! Madelyn here from Houston. This is a great question, and definitely something I strategize about for my freelance party planning clients. Finding the right balance for older kids with goodie bags can be tricky, as they’re past the tiny toy phase.

When I did a "Rodeo Round-Up" party for a 5-year-old client (which my daughter Ivy helped me plan, she’s excellent at quality control for kid appeal!), we focused on practical and slightly bigger items for the older siblings who attended. For the younger guests, we did classic cowboy goodie bags for kids with mini harmonicas, sticker sheets, and small bags of gummy worms. I sourced those mostly from Oriental Trading Company; you can get like 72 harmonicas for $20, so it keeps the cost down to under $3 a bag.

For the 10-14 year old crowd, I switched it up. Instead of a bag, I used small metal pails (about $2 each from Hobby Lobby) that looked like watering cans. Inside, we put:

• A small, themed notebook and pen (got a 6-pack of these cute cactus pens on Amazon for $10).
• A mini deck of playing cards with a "Wanted" poster design on the back.
• A travel-size hand sanitizer with a custom "Saddle Up & Sanitize" label (bulk purchase from Bath & Body Works, maybe $1.50 each).
• And one medium-sized, higher-quality piece of candy, like a gourmet chocolate bar from a local confectioner, around $3.

The total came out to about $7-8 per person, which is a good sweet spot for that age. My spreadsheet helped me track all the costs, of course! I always recommend checking reviews for quality; some of those bulk items can be really flimsy.

I find that for older kids, something they can *use* or *eat* is always better than more clutter. It's a different approach than, say, going all out with Minecraft treat bags where the theme practically dictates the contents. With cowboy, you have a lot of room for interpretation. I also suggest avoiding anything too gendered unless you know your guest list well. And take photos! I learned that one early on – I document everything. Good luck!

Hey Eleanor! Violet from Atlanta here. I completely feel your struggle with the goodie bags for older kids. It’s like, what’s cool enough but not too expensive, right? My niece, Maya, is also 13 (I have a little Maya too, she’s 1!), and when we did a backyard movie night for her birthday last fall, I totally over-prepared on the "party favor" front. I'm a Pinterest addict, so I had boards full of ideas for cool teen goodie bags.

I tried to do "Western Chic" for her friends, and my vision for the cowboy goodie bags for kids was totally different than what they actually wanted. I found these adorable mini succulent plants for like $5 each from a nursery, thinking they were a cute nod to the desert. The girls just looked at them. One of them actually asked if it was real! I also included some fancy lip balms and hair ties. It was all very "Pinterest," but not very "13-year-old girl."

What actually went over well? I ended up having Maya help me put together small bags with a $10 gift card to a coffee shop (Starbucks is always a winner), a big, soft scrunchie, and a few pieces of high-quality candy. Cost me about $15 a bag, which was more than I wanted, but at least I knew they’d use it. I learned that asking Maya what she thought her friends would like was key – they want things they can actually use or enjoy. Also, letting the kids help out makes them feel included, and they often have better ideas anyway! So ditch the tiny plastic sheriff badges and go for something more substantial if your budget allows. And I photograph everything too, so I can learn from what worked and what didn't!