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Is moving out of state the solution?

madwoman

Shared on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 13:26
It’s official. Gotta write this one down so I don’t have a “senior moment” next time. I have to move out of state. Any suggestions?                        
I have discovered that there is no really good way to have a party of 40+ people, in, around or out of your house! My daughters’ birthday was Sunday. Should have been simple, right? Problem is between Frank and my family; we just have too many freaking people in it!
My theory this year was to have the party outside at a shelter house. Not far for everyone to drive to, everyone would be outside of my house (12 kids – under the age of 5, all in one room of the house with nearly 40 adults, one word CRAZY!!). There was a nice playground for the kids to play at. I brought party games to entertain the young’uns. We fought the heat with water guns! All in all, everything turned out great.                   
   
Problem is, I don’t think it was any easier on us. I still had to prepare to “take” everything under the sun with us. We still had to crate everything to the shelter, then everything back home that evening. It was still nearly 11:00 pm before I got everything unpacked, cleaned and put away. (And of course, between all the said above my poor daughter is like “Mom, can you open this?” “Can I play with this?” “How does _________work, mom?”)    
  
 
So for my sons’ birthday in October, we may resort back to having everyone back at the house. Any suggestions from you experienced parents out there?
In the past we have always had outside activities for the kids. We have a large swing set, and plenty of outdoor toys to keep little ones busy outside, but they always migrate back inside at some point. I don’t mind having our family over. It’s the rearranging of furniture to set up tables and having a filthy house at the end of the day that is irritating to me.
    
 
Ah, well…it’s over and my daughter had a blast. Her cake turned out pretty cool and she enjoyed running all over and playing with her cousins and friends. I guess that’s all that really matters.    
      
    
Here’s a couple pics, luckily the batteries died in my camera better that halfway through the afternoon so I didn’t get a lot, but here a few. ( I don’t understand how those stupid things died either cause I just replaced them about 2-3 weeks ago!!!)

Comments

bear96's picture
Submitted by bear96 on Tue, 07/31/2007 - 14:57
Well, if all else fails, just pack Frank and the kids up and move down here to Tennessee. There I solved it! No more huge parties to worry about! :)
Spidey's picture
Submitted by Spidey on Tue, 07/31/2007 - 18:13
Like bear said, move to Tennessee! Everyone who moves here (Nashville area) loves it! The only problem is, your family will start to follow you down here when they come to visit and find out its nice.
OldManRiver48's picture
Submitted by OldManRiver48 on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 21:30
That many people I would look for a game/fun center. Yes it can be expensive but some really have some good deals with enough people. Many will provide pizza or similar food too. Its not uncommon to see invitations that invite folk but its "Dutch" as far as money goes. Or myself I would offer each family one free "ticket" to the party, but the rest would be at their expense. You might lose a few but I think it would work out well and wouldnt have to stress about entertainment etc.
doorgunnerjgs's picture
Submitted by doorgunnerjgs on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 13:51
One, you cooked too much. Except for the cake, have a caterer supply the food (and plates , utensiles, and cups). That all gets left behind in the trash. Two, you took too much support stuff. Glasses, utensils, etc. (see number one). Three, cut down the game type stuff to the bare minimum. Other than that, don't change a thing! ;-)
madwoman's picture
Submitted by madwoman on Wed, 08/01/2007 - 08:12
Doscon - I feel your pain...have been doing it for 6 years. Bats - I actually did get food from Hoggy's once, but with so many "boys" in the family it cost a small fortune and the food was gone in a millisecond. OldManRiver - I just found out about this place that has a play place and will do a pizza party pretty reasonable so that may be an option for my little guys b-day. Bear and Spidy - I would love to live down south. My limited experience with southerners has made us, actually talk about moving south (seriously) more than once. I used to work with southern agents and they were the absolute sweetest people. I don't think my mom would take kindly to uprooting "her grandbabies" and as you said Spidey, she would probably hitch a ride with us, so before you know it the the clan would move south too. Guess I'll have to do it in secret! ;)
madwoman's picture
Submitted by madwoman on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 14:03
Doorgunner - caeterer sounds like a good idea but I am sure that it is way out of my price range. I am a stay -at -home mom. So we gotta make do on one income. This was the most affordable option. Plates, utensils, food was all purchased for relatively cheap. I may have to do some research on that though. Thx!
dos's picture
Submitted by dos on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 14:29
We have about 30 per party. Everyone simply crowds into the house and we do everything with as little expense as possible.
BATMANKM's picture
Submitted by BATMANKM on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 14:48
Niiiiiiiice cake! :wink: :-) I second Doorgunner on the caterer. Or a cheaper way is to order the food and pick it up. - BAT

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