Tag Archives: Kids parties

Just Common Sense?

In a recent article found in Parenting Magazine, the author highlights some excellent points for do’s and don’ts of taking photos of your child. Rather than adhering to photography 101, they mention the safety issues of making her son’s pic and then distributing it across all your social media channels. Today’s world has become hazardous when it comes to places such as Facebook and Instagram. While we don’t want to discourage anyone from sharing family events and the like, we do think many of the tips in the article were valid. As parents, ourselves, we want everyone to have a safe and happy life without putting our kids in danger. In this blog, we expound on some of the important points you should know.

The first point they make is not to take pictures of your kids during their bath time. It’s downright sad to say they have a point that these types of photos can get into the wrong hands. While we think, kids are adorable, it’s their safety that counts.

Next, up, posting shaming videos may seem innocent but, it’s also something that can make a real mess. We’ve all seen a few videos on Facebook and Twitter where a child pouts or tells off a parent. The article claims this can be devastating in the long run. Not exactly sure how or why but they also advise this type of photo opportunity can cause a child to become stressed or develop anxiety. While this may be true, we do think this is an over the top statement by the author.

Now we know shaming and bath time are out, when do you know when to take a photo? The time may not be right if your child attends a private school where uniforms are worn with a school logo. This can tell perpetrators where your kids go to school. Be sure to give your kids proper instruction when babysitting or attending events. Children should be taught that people can find them online and places like Facebook aren’t good to advertise addresses, situations where they’re home alone or what school they go to. It may seem like common sense to you, but to your kids, it might be a different story.

Lastly, the author gives some excellent advice on not taking photos during unsafe activities. The picture isn’t the important part, the safety of yourself and your children are. People taking pics of your kids while you aren’t looking at all angles of a situation can be dangerous. Parents could be reported if they’re taking photos of their children sitting on their laps while driving a car when they should be in a car seat, can get you into some serious trouble, on top of backlash from your followers. The best suggestions we should think twice before grabbing your smartphone.

For more information on planning your party or event, contact us directly.

Tips for A Back to School Party

If you or someone you know has been selected to throw this year’s back to school party then this blog is for you! Seems many of the teachers and school administrators are looking for ways to make their back to school parties a hit. Of course we know that the main goal here is to get our children interested in coming back to school once summer is over. So what better way to do it than with an awesome party that will energize grades K-12? Let’s get started:

First, we want to say that safety is paramount to everything we do, and so should you. Be sure the parents have filled out all forms necessary if you’ll be incorporating bounce houses, waterslides or obstacle courses. Keep these in a locked file and don’t hesitate to make this a priority.

Next: Decorate according to the location of the party. Outdoor themes should have plenty of balloons and Streamers, sidewalk chalk is also another great item to have on board.

Don’t forget the Sanitizer: Keep plenty of jugs of sanitizer on board to lower the spread of germs.

Food: Whether you have it catered or your school is supplying, there’s nothing better than items you can eat quickly with your hands. An old standby like hot dogs, hamburgers and even pizza are amongst the favorites with the younger crowds. Don’t forget something sweet such as sno-cones or caramel apples that are great this time of year in Southern Florida.

Remind everyone to wear appropriate clothing to ensure they’re protected from the sun and are comfortable.

The first sign of rain, take shelter immediately. Again, safety is key here.

Organize an interactive game, such as a scavenger hunt. Have groups found items around the school or event area. Make sure a head count is done before and after for accountability.

Don’t stress out. Do meditation, book a massage or just take some quiet time either before the event or after allowing yourself time to unwind. The party should reflect how happy you are to have the kids back and telling them learning is fun as well as important.

Games are the one of the most important elements to any kid party. However, kids in the older age groups such as 13+ do well with our obstacle courses and competing games. Contact us for information on what works best for your event.

South Florida Birthday Party Hacks

It’s safe to say that every parent wants their child’s birthday party to be special.  If you’re anything like the rest of us, you live by Murphy’s Law. That being said, at one point or another we’ve all had to resort to a little bit of hacking. Although hacking sounds like stealing private information from the Internet, being a hack means additional creativity. In this blog, we highlight some of our favorite birthday party hacks for you to try out yourself.

Many of these ideas can be found in places like Pinterest. One creative way of making a hand washing station for your party involves a 5-gallon water cooler with spigot, to short bungee cords, a plastic paper towel holder with adhesive strips, and the utility bucket. Fill the water jug with water, place on the ends of a picnic table, remove adhesive strip on the back of the paper towel holder and stick onto the water cooler. Next, use bungee cords to secure paper towel holder in place. Place empty bucket to catch excess water. Place hand sanitizer or anti-batch soap and voila, you have a portable hand washing station.

Looking for a new way to present healthy snacks such as veggie tray or fruit? These two hacks are super easy and will make you look like a hero. Add sliced fruit to skewers and serve in place of cake or less health-conscious foods. Remove and seed the tops of two Bell peppers and use for serving bowls for ranch dressing, in an effort to give your veggie tray a fresh presentation.

Looking for the ultimate gift to give to your guests? Why not give them a puppy? Not a real puppy, instead place small stuffed animals that look like puppies in a white basket or a dog bed at the end of the party allow your guests pick the puppy of their choice. This is a great idea rather than giving gift bags or some other novelty idea.

When you live in a place like South Florida, bugs a can be annoying, uninvited guests.  Keep the little pests out of drinks with decorative muffin tins. Use a hole punch and place a hole in the center bottom of the muffin cup, tip upside down over an 8-ounce glass, add a straw. Not only does the muffin tins keep the bugs out away, the presentation can match the rest of your party decor making it functional and beautiful.

In addition to keeping bugs away, rather than serving ice cream use muffin cups.  Use one scoop per cup and serve to guests. This is the perfect solution for preventing ice cream from melting everywhere. Not only is this functional, it makes you look like a genius.

This and other party ideas can be found on our blog weekly. For more information regarding party rentals, contact our offices for the best selection in bounce houses, waterslides and obstacle courses.