Help!! I'm trying to come up with a really cool idea for my 5 year old son's birthday next month -- somewhere to take the kids (since our house is too small for a party) -- any ideas?
Do you have a Monkey Joe's?? We had my DS 8th Bday party there and they had sooooooooo much fun. The parents got to sit and chat while the kids ran and played on the inflatables until they almost passed out. It was GREAT!
Chucky Cheeses!!! (well Chuck.E.Cheezes) but all well LOL
I'm bringing my son there for his 7th.
Or bowling... so fun
How about a swimming party?? Most local pools will have a seperate section for children's parties.
More and more movie theatres have party rooms for kids with games, cartoons with a hot dog and juice for lunch then the grand finale... a movie with a kids combo, then head back to the party room for cake and presents.
Or how about a good ol fashioned McDonalds birthday party... I know, not so good for you, but they're making better healthier options.
Last edited by tamaralynn; 02-12-2008 at 09:11 AM.
Thanks, I was actually thinking of a movie party but wasn't sure if the kids were too young to last -- thought it would be cool. What is Monkey Joe's? Wondering if it's like anything we have around here. The only pool is at the YMCA and I let our membership expire, so that's not an option anymore Thanks for the ideas.
My niece is 3 and LOVES to ice skate. They do some good parties there with fun games for the kids at our local ice rink.
Is it warm enough to take it outside to a park? You could have an old fashion picnic with potato sack races and a pinata!
Any of the indoor gyms for kids that have been popping up. My nieces also adore going to those tumbling places and i hear they have good party packages... like "My Little Gym" etc.
Rent a rec center and do a regular little party with a theme he likes... does he like Shrek? Do pin the tail on DONKEY and have green punch!
Monkey Joe's has nothing but inflatables. Big slides, obstacle courses, and thigs like that. I also remembered we've done several parties at the bowling alley. The kids have a lot of fun and sometimes their parents do it with them.
http://www.monkeyjoes.com/ I googled that place that she was talking about and you can see if any are in your area. From the looks of it, that would be ideal. You might also check with the Y b/c you may not need a membership to have a party, maybe you could do a day pass thing.
Last edited by Rhighlan86; 02-12-2008 at 12:54 PM.
Are you a member at your local YMCA. My daughter loves having pool parties. Her birthday is in May so we have had a party in our pool at the end of May. She loves it and is talking about her 6th birthday party already.
If it was in Winter I would go to the YMCA pool or the pool at one of the local hotels. Many hotels rent their pool areas out for parties. I also ask some of the parents stay for lifeguards.
Here in houston, the minute maid park (baseball park) has party packages where you can have the kids and parents come and have a party in the dugout. Some packages they will make the cake and food for you. There are different packages and if you schedule the party the day of a game, you get to sit in the front seats or something like that. We also have a place called Incredible Pizza. Its a pizza buffet and a big play room. For ideas on cakes, there is a free website called cakecentral.com and you can get lots of ideas from there. I am a cake decorator and I get all my ideas from there.
Do you have a sportsplex near you? My sons have been invited to batting parties - basically batting cages where they learned how to bat, football parties - there was a stretch of fake field and a ref teaches them football stuff, soccer parties - again, a ref shows them soccer moves and then they played a game.
Is there a kid's science center around? We have one that allows private parties and the kids absolutely love being invited to parties that are held there.
What about a tumbling tots like place? A local gym here provides space for parties with a gymnastic instructor showing kids all kinds of tumbling stuff.
Laser tag? Arcade Center? Aquarium? Mini golf? Inside amusement with go karts, bumper cars, etc.?
Would your local fire department be willing to give a tour, let the kids climb on a firetruck, and let you have the party in their dining area? My oldest son went to one like this and he had a blast! He's 17 now and still brings that party up from time to time.
Do you have an art facility near you? I work for an art gallery that has a ceramics studio in it and you can rent out the studio and make cute ceramic projects (it comes with a teacher too.) Or maybe one of those paint your own plate/mug/etc. places? Those are always fun. My 4-yr-old niece loves places like that.
You guys are great!! So many wonderful ideas, I keep writing them all down and plan on working on following up this afternoon. My oldest is an August baby, so we always have great themed outdoor parties -- I guess I should have planned Nicholas a little better -- way to cold in NY in March!!
One of the best parties one of my kids had was at our local tae kwon do studio. They had lessons, entertainment, an inflatable bouncer, and all we had to do was bring the cake. It was one price for an unlimited # of kids, and it was the one party where we were able to invite the entire class.
One year we also rented a childcare room at our local Jewish community center. They have a large rocket and other toys and there was a craft room we could use. You might try larger places of worship and see if they have a cool setup that you could rent.
We've done parties at ceramic studios, bowling alleys, Chuck E Cheese and numerous pizza/games equivalents, and at home.
Last edited by midwife; 02-12-2008 at 02:51 PM.
Reason: typo
You guys are great!! So many wonderful ideas, I keep writing them all down and plan on working on following up this afternoon. My oldest is an August baby, so we always have great themed outdoor parties -- I guess I should have planned Nicholas a little better -- way to cold in NY in March!!
i'm a mom in NY too, always looking for something cool for my early spring daughter to do. You should pottery shops. Many of them have party packages where kids can form, bake (with supervision) and paint their creations. It's super fun!
What to do for a 5-year-old's birthday?
Thanks for the ideas.
