Oh, you guys. Dorothy wanted to have her party at a junky arcade full of vintage games. Our whole family loves this weird little place (you buy wristbands at the door and can play anything while you’re there— no token), but it’s weird. And so junky. It does not scream 8-10 year old girl, you know? That’s why we opted for a 90-minute party even though we technically had the party room for 3 hours. (But not a real 3 hours because that time includes set-up and clean-up, and another group had the reservation right after us with no buffer time. Still, we could have gone 2 or 2.5 hours. BUT. We were worried that other kids would not be as excited about the place as Dorothy is, and what would we do with a pack of 8-10 year old girls who were NOT enjoying themselves. We experienced something like this when Harry had an elementary school bowling alley party and the kids tried to go outside and play in the parking lot.
Luckily, everyone loved the dirty arcade. Coop brought a couple of friends, too, and it was super fun. It was NOT a good venue for a 2 year-old, but Ben and I juggled Minnie as best we could. She is a scary little ski-ball player.
After the party, my mom and her boyfriend came to visit, and my mom brought Dorothy diamond earrings made from my grandma’s 1951 wedding band— how awesome is that??
That looks like SO. MUCH. FUN! I love venues like that; it feels less pressured? My daughter is hoping for a pool party at a local hotel this year. We did it years ago and it was a huge hit, but I wonder if the waterslide/hot tub will be as appealing to an older group? Time will tell.
ReplyDeleteAnd what a sweet gift for Dorothy with those earrings. I love when heirlooms are repurposed and actually used and appreciated <3
Pool parties are ALWAYS a hit
DeleteYour mom looks so young! Blonds tend to age so well. My mom is 75 but looks so much younger. She's just starting to get some grays but they are so well disguised since she has blond hair. Meanwhile I have a ton of gray and have had to dye my hair to disguise them for 10 years.
ReplyDeleteI love the girls' dresses! What a fun place to have a party. I'd be terrified to give Will a skeeball. Lol. He is obsessed with sweeping so my MIL got him a little broom and dustpan set. But he has taken to swinging the dang broom around like a sword. And he's a thrower in general and is kind of strong for his size! So he could do some real damage with a skeeball!!
Can you even believe she's 70?!
DeleteWe took my 10ish year old nephew to that same junky arcade and he LOVED it. He's 13 now and still asks if we can go there the next time he comes to visit us. It's definitely a surprise hit with the kids and SO MUCH FUN!
ReplyDeleteIt is SUCH a fun place. I could play Tapper all day.
DeleteAwww, this sounds so fun! And the birthday girl's dress is amazing. I love the earrings idea, too -- what a fabulous treasure of a gift. TEN! Happy birthday to Dorothy!
ReplyDelete10 seems so old to me-- out of the little kid years, for sure/
DeleteThat earring idea is so cool... my grandmother broke her diamond necklace down to make earrings for her many granddaughters too. I hope Dorothy was excited? I remember being pretty meh about it at the time. Happy early birthday to Dorothy! Ten? Really? It seems too soon!
ReplyDeleteDorothy was excited! Although her friend got her some giant fake diamonds from Claire's and she also adores those. I was super touched because my grandma was my favorite person in the world.
DeleteTHIS is one reason it stinks not to have kids (or rentable kids, as NGS has, nearby). I would love to see that arcade, but a 40-something single woman in an arcade? Um, no. Thanks, but no. :)
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