I’m standing in the middle of my living room on March 12, 2024, surrounded by fourteen ten-year-olds who are vibrating with enough sugar-induced energy to power a small city, and all I can think about is why I thought making my own frozen birthday photo props was a good idea. My daughter, Maya, had decided…
Toby turned three last Tuesday, and if you saw my kitchen floor right now, you would think a literal pride of lions had just finished a feast. My house is still covered in green crepe paper vines and I am pretty sure there is a plastic hippopotamus living in the air vent, but we did…
My kitchen island looked like a pixie had exploded all over the granite. It was June 12, 2019, and I was exactly three hours away from Maya’s 4th birthday party. I had glitter in my eyebrows. I had hot glue stuck to my thumb. Most importantly, I had a half-finished fairy centerpiece that looked more…
Throwing a birthday party for fifteen nine-year-olds in a cramped Austin backyard requires military-level logistics and a massive amount of iced coffee. My golden retriever, Buster, was already hiding under the sofa to escape the pre-party chaos. I stood staring at a bare folding table, realizing I had exactly twenty-four hours to figure out a…
My son Leo’s fifth birthday was looming like a Checkered Flag at the end of a long, exhausting season of parenting. Being a dad in Denver means dealing with unpredictable weather, expensive venues, and the constant pressure to throw a “cool” party without draining the college fund. I’m the kind of guy who reads the…
Glitter is the herpes of the craft world, and my Houston classroom rug is currently a sparkling crime scene after the “Great Metamorphosis Mixer” I hosted last Tuesday. Being an elementary teacher means my life is a series of controlled explosions involving glue sticks, Capri Suns, and the occasional escaped hamster. I throw at least…
I stood in my freezing Chicago kitchen staring at a pile of cheap blue streamers. Maya and Leo were turning 12. Tweens. Tweens who, ironically, decided they wanted a deeply nostalgic, heavily sarcastic Bluey bash. Usually, I cap my twin birthday blowouts at a strict $50. Dollar Tree is my second home. But for their…
Easter Egg Hunt Chaos with Pets? Any Tips, Fellow Party Parents? @madelyn_partymom: Hi everyone! Madelyn from Des Moines here, and wow, Easter is creeping up fast! With Isla (5), Owen (10), Maya (11), and Cole (12) all buzzing, and our new rescue pup, Buttercup, joining the family this year, my brain is already in overdrive….
My driveway looked like a literal disaster zone last Saturday morning, and for once, the neighbors weren’t complaining about my twins’ discarded scooters. We had piles of dirt, yellow caution tape fluttering in the Chicago wind, and eleven screaming four-year-olds wearing oversized plastic hats. This was the culmination of weeks of stress. I had exactly…
My living room smelled like lavender and damp socks on the afternoon of March 14, 2024, after eighteen kindergarteners decided that “steeping” tea also meant dunking their glittery sleeves into the pots. I have spent fifteen years teaching in Houston, and if there is one thing I know, it is that five-year-olds possess the refined…
