Pajama Party Birthday Bash
In an endless search for new and exciting (for us parents anyway) themed birthday parties, my wife and I cobbled together a successful pajama theme for our son’s second birthday. All the kids arrived in their favorite jammies, most with their favorite slippers on and ready to eat. We decided to throw a late afternoon soiree, for a couple reasons, first and foremost to be in phase with the Birthday Boy’s midday nap. Surprisingly, a few of the parents thanked us for having the party at this time because it worked out better for them too.
For food, we tapped a couple of our favorite local haunts hear in West LA, Dos Hermanos catering and Paddy Mac. Dos Hermanos has been around for 20+ years and like the name suggests, is a couple brothers originally from the Jalisco region of Mexico who have been serving up distinctly regional fare out of their small yet immaculate kitchen. There menu is short but these incredibly fresh dishes are memorable with favorites like savory chicken or cheese enchiladas, hearty Birria de la Jalisco and an almost cassoulette-style fajita. You cannot beat their price at $4.50 a person, you get an entree with rice and beans, salad (with dressing), and chips & salsa.
One of the few things our son can eat seemingly endless amounts of is macaroni & cheese. Always kid-friendly and parent-approved, we decided to order some of the famed Mac and Cheese from Paddy Mac. They have a diverse menu (all Mac & Cheese) including the standard, The Ship, with five kinds of cheese (pictured above) – you know the kids won’t go hungry. Our personal favorite is the Super Mac which slips in puree of cauliflower and carrot for a super vitamin boost, which goes virtually undetected amidst all that cheesey goodness. Other items on their menu seem to cater to a more mature palette like their Gourmet Mac (braised leeks, mushrooms and a touch of Gruyere) and the Old MACdonald’s Farm (bacon, broccoli and pockets of goat cheese & feta), regardless all recipes are perfectly balanced, thus always reminding you that what you have on you plate is some fresh and fancy Mac and Cheese.
My wife was in charge of fun and games, and considering we were hosting a party full of 2-4 year olds, she kept all the games non-competitive. Here is the break-down of the activities;
- She had the kids make a big circle and grab the ends of the Play Parachute while singing “Ring Around the Rosey” and other songs.
- When that started to get a bit tired, I (tried) to up the ante, by coming out with dozens of balloons that I had previously blown up and tossed them on top of the outstretched parachute. Unfortunately, we all quickly discovered one half of the kids wanted to pop the balloons while the other half was scared crazy of the popping noise. Note to self; strike the balloon surprise from next toddler bash.
- Musical Chairs with an equal number of chairs (nobody gets bumped out of the game), to reduce mid-party melt-downs.
- Simon Says – you really can’t go wrong with this one.
- Duck, Duck, Goose – fun for days.
- We have learned that setting up a “Chill-out” Zone for the kids is great to have. We set up our little beach tent in the corner of the backyard, so kids could slip in there, lie down and catch their breath.
- We set-up a kids table filled with Play-Dough and cutters, rollers and stamps for those who wanted to relax with one of their favorite quiet activities.
While all of this was going on, I was able to clear the food and set up the cake and coffee. The light was quickly fading, which works out well with the theme of the party. As our sleepy guests filtered out my wife gave each of them a clear gift bag of her homemade butter cookies (*pictured above) in the shape of Zzzz’s and wished them all “sweet dreams.”
PARTY TOOLBOX:
Paddy Mac
Dos Hermanos, 4510 Inglewood Blvd Culver City, CA 90230 (310) 391.1303
La Pinata Party Rentals, 1711 Lincoln Blvd (@ Superba), Venice, CA 90291 (310) 306.3348 [*they have kid's height tables and chairs]
