Birthday Parties

Those two simple words said to parents will usually get the same response: groaning, followed by the inevitable eye rolling. Some parents even put their heads in their hands and whine like their own preschooler.

Just thinking about birthday parties makes me cringe and want to go hide my head under the covers. Why you ask? Well, try having the responsibility of entertaining several highly active and loud children and remain calm. It’s an impossible challenge, but all parents have to do it, especially when they have a birthday party for their child.

Oh, the wonderful memories birthday parties evoke in us all. To this day people still talk about my brother’s infamous birthday party in 1963. They even stop us on the street and comment on that birthday party saying that was the most memorable time in their lives. Of course we laugh and joke about it now, but at the time we did definitely did not feel that way . . .

It was like any birthday party that most kids had back in the 60’s. Kids ran around outside and played games that my mother painstakingly did with the kids so they could have a fun time. Finally we watched my brother open presents that consisted of army paraphernalia and squirt guns to later torment me for hours with. Then my mother made some Kool-Aid in an aluminum pitcher so it would be nice and cold and gave all the screaming kids some with their piece of birthday cake. Unfortunately, she did not see on the package the explicit directions that said Kool-Aid should not be mixed in an aluminum container. Later, every kid was screaming, not from fun, but they were throwing up all over the place (thank God we were outside). Every kid ran, throwing up all the way to their home. Mom then received several irate phone calls from panic stricken parents wondering what in the world she did to their child to cause them to have projectile vomiting. This was waaaaaay before the movie “The Exorcist” so this was quite a shock to the grieving parents.

Does your special needs child enjoy parties? Mine does. I always went with my son just in case things were overwhelming to him so I could calm him down if necessary. My son always enjoyed going to birthday parties and better yet, having one for himself. Each year we planned well ahead of time, getting birthday supplies, decorations, invitations, goodie bag items, and plenty of aspirin for mom.



Words of Advice:

1. Never have the party at your house. You spend all that time cleaning your house and then all these kids and parents come and mess it up and sometimes even break things. You must also wait for the parents to come pick up their child and of course they are always late. You even have some kids that never want to go home and finally after sheer desperation of wanting to get rid of the kid so you can finally have some peace and quiet after your horrible afternoon, you take them home.

2. Have the party at McDonald’s, Gymnastics Center, Chuck E. Cheese’s, roller skating rink, bowling alley, etc. That way you are not responsible for entertaining the children the whole time and you do not have ANY mess to clean up. Plus, most of the time the birthday place provides food and drinks and you will not have to bring any. If the place is too loud for your child, have them wear ear plugs to filter out these loud noises. (Parents, you might want to wear some too!)

3. Make sure you have ALL the parents cell phone numbers in case of emergencies and to call them to come get their screamin’ meanies.

4. Have plenty of aspirin on hand for you and for other parents that stay and help.

5. Stock your refrigerator with your beverage of choice (beer, wine, etc.) for when you finally get home to relax from your horrendous ordeal.

6. Last but not least: DO NOT make Kool-Aid in an aluminum pitcher and give it to the kids.


As I always say, if my mom can do it, I can do it. This little mantra sometimes helps me when I have to contemplate a child’s birthday party. Just think, when they get older it is a lot simpler: sleepovers. Yes, that word is even worse than birthday parties. Start preparing yourself now for several loud and annoying kids taking over your house one evening and staying up all night. Oh, what fun!

Finally, after your child has become more mature, those infamous wild birthday parties and never ending sleepovers become a distant memory. You can now look forward to having your child pick where he wants to go out to eat for his birthday, maybe a movie afterwards, and then a quiet night at home.