My living room rug still sparkles like a disco ball because I thought loose glitter was a “good idea” for Sophie’s 4th birthday last April. It wasn’t. Truly. I found glitter in Leo’s soccer cleats three weeks later, and he’s seven, so you can imagine the face he made when his teammates asked why his…
My garage looked like a cardboard graveyard on the morning of March 12, 2024, and the smell of industrial-grade yellow spray paint was definitely seeping into our kitchen curtains. Leo was turning eleven, and he’d decided that “cute” construction themes were for babies like his four-year-old sister, Mia. He wanted destruction. He wanted a “Demo…
My first attempt at wrangling frozen birthday balloons ended with me face-down on a living room floor covered in static-charged plastic and a very disappointed five-year-old. It was March 12, 2020. I had spent exactly $85 on a “professional” DIY balloon arch kit that promised a majestic ice castle vibe for Maya’s big day. Instead,…
Standing in the middle of my Austin kitchen on a sweltering Tuesday last March, I realized my niece Lily was turning eleven, and she didn’t want a “cool” pre-teen vibe—she wanted Bluey. Most people think an eleven-year-old girl is over the Heelers, but in our house, we embrace the kidcore aesthetic. Lily specifically requested a…
Nineteen two-year-olds in the Houston humidity is not a party. It is a hostage situation. Last October 14th, I found myself standing in my backyard with a glue gun in one hand and a lukewarm Diet Coke in the other, wondering why I volunteered to host my nephew Leo’s second birthday. My sister-in-law had a…
My son Leo turned fifteen last Tuesday, and he didn’t want a “kid” party anymore, which basically meant he wanted high-speed adrenaline and the risk of a minor fender bender. I live in Denver, where the air is thin and the teenagers are restless, so finding race car party ideas for teenager that didn’t feel…
@the_real_madison: Hey everyone! Madison here from Pittsburgh. So, my brain has already moved past St. Patrick’s Day and is fully in Easter planning mode. Yes, I start early, blame the coffee! I’m trying to put together some truly awesome baskets this year, but with a strict budget. I’m thinking about what could be the Best…
My kitchen floor was covered in red corn syrup and sixteen pairs of dirty sneakers when I realized I forgot the most important part of the night. It was February 12, 2024. Leo and Maya, my twins, were turning ten, and we had nineteen kids crammed into our drafty Chicago bungalow for a “Midnight at…
My kitchen looked like a syrup-soaked crime scene on March 12, 2024. I stood there at 7:14 AM with a lukewarm espresso in one hand and a stack of flimsy, dinosaur-themed paper plates in the other. It was my daughter Chloe’s fifth birthday. Twenty-one kids were about to descend upon our Denver home for a…
I survived the Great Silly String Incident of 2018, so I thought I knew chaos. I was absolutely wrong. Hosting seventeen bouncing fourth-graders on a muggy May afternoon in Houston requires military-level precision. My nephew Leo begged me for a backyard superhero bash for his birthday. Naturally, I needed superhero party ideas for 10 year…
