By Sarah Babineau
This article focuses on small–scale parties for annual or semi-regular events such as birthdays and graduations from nursery school, kindergarten, or to the next grade, where the goal is to:
- celebrate the occasion
- keep the guest count manageable
- maintain a reasonable budget
- minimize clean-up time after the party.
Kid's Party Places
Some of the best places in this area to hold children’s birthdays have in-house athletic activities and parents drop the kids off. They even have staff dedicated to keeping the kids amused. Although some parents may choose to stay and watch their children, they are usually not big participants in the event. Some party packages offer discounted food through partnerships with outside food vendors such as Itz My Party in Taunton, MA (www.itzmypartyma.com) Places like Chuck E. Cheese have multiple locations, offer food selections for kids as well as adult food and beverage selections (beer and wine!) to ensure parents have a good time as well.
For the creative and artistic child’s party, painting pottery has become one of the most expressive types of parties thrown. Local pottery studios such as The ClayRoom in Walpole, MA www.theclayroom.com are becoming more and more popular. The best part about these types of parties is that all the children get to take home their artwork about a week after the party (to allow time for glazing and firing.) The ClayGround in East Greenwich, RI (http://www.claygroundstudio.com/b'day.html) also offers beading parties for children ages 7 and up, so your child can choose to paint pottery, make jewelry or perhaps construct a combination of beaded and painted pottery!
Other Creative Locations for Kid's Birthday Parties
Does your child take karate? Gymnastics? Swimming lessons? All of the above?
There is a chance that this organization also provides children’s birthday parties. Some innovative karate studios such as Seishin Martial Art / Sport Karate Academy in Medway and Sherborn, MA www.seishinkarate.net, have children’s birthday parties. Kids that are enrolled in the classes are allowed to bring their school mates, neighborhood friends and fellow martial artists to celebrate their birthday in the dojo. Usually there is a special program designed for the kids to have fun and learn some basic stranger-danger and street smart techniques while enjoying the party.
The Jungle Gym in Bridgewater, MA (http://www.bridgewaterfitness.com/other.htm) allows small children’s birthday parties for kids to come in and play on the equipment (supervised of course) and Kid’s Planet in South Easton, MA (www.kidzplanetgymnastics.com), offers a slightly larger facility and discounts on invitations.
Drawbacks of Hosting Outside the House
Guest Limitations:
There are a few cons to this type of children’s party, one of which is that the number of children you are allowed to bring is limited, so if your son or daughter wants to invite their whole class and the kids from the neighborhood they play with, they may be stuck with some tough choices about who does and doesn’t get an invite. The thing to remember is that a child’s birthday party is no place for tears or hurt feelings.
Time limits:
Many children’s party hosting services allow a 1 ½ to 3 hour limit of party time, which is generally enough for kids to have a good time with their friends and activities, but not enough to serve a full meal much more than birthday cake. If you want to have a meal in addition to activities, you may need to think about how to transport your young guests between events.
These are fantastic and easy solutions for parents who want to celebrate their child’s achievements, but do not want to spend a fortune, or a lot of time doing preparation before hand and clean up after wards. And there are a lot of great ideas for decorations and favors that can be found at local party stores or online to make these parties more personal for your son or daughter.
There are also some solutions for larger events where the objective is to include everyone you want, serve food, and provide entertainment and activities to ensure every guest of any age has a great time.
Sarah Babineau
Drive Productions
Acoustic Duo & DJ Team
www.DriveProductions.net
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