Happy Cake Day!

For a change all of my girls were invited to the same birthday party this weekend. Ans as usual we were fashionably late (by 20 minutes!) and arrived somewhat flustered and full of apologies.

It was a lovely party. A bouncy castle outside in the garden plus an entertainer to watch once they’d run off their initial excitement.

The entertainment was a mixture of magic, a Punch and Judy Show, a few party games (pass the parcel, sleeping lions) and balloon animals. The man in charge was surprisingly good and even managed to coax some of the children to stand up in front of everyone and sing nursery rhymes … it was so cute!

It’s not often I’ve seen a gang of 4 year olds captivated enough to sit through a whole show but I have to hand it to him … he nailed it!

Personally, I find organising birthday parties quite stressful. I leave everything to the last minute (not intentionally) … it’s that ‘time’ problem again. I just never know what to do, what to book and who to invite. Each year I dabble with the idea of an entertainer but it always seems such lot of money to spend on a bunch of children who would rather run around screaming with their friends!

So the formula has always been arty crafty stuff and run around screaming. All of which I can pull together at the last minute. The children have great fun flitting from table to table. Making and decorating various baked goodies, card shapes, hats etc which fill their party bags nicely. The bonus has always been that the parents are around to help.

My eldest has a birthday looming and I really need to get things moving. It’s right at the end of August (over the Bank Holiday).  Not the best time for getting invites out to school friends especially as I have no contact details for a lot of them. That and the fact that the invite list changes weekly depending on who’s flavour of the week in the playground!

She’s growing up and not so little any more.  The ‘Arty Crafty Screaming Party’ no longer hold prime position. The pressure is seriously on and I am in no way prepared. The thought of playing the entertainer lottery fills me with dread. Do we go for the ‘Disco Diva’, ‘Barney the Clown’ or ‘Mr Mayhem’s Magic Show’. Do 6 year olds really enjoy this kind of party?

Time to find a new Happy Cake Day formula methinks. Decisions, decisions …