Party Time

Nieces and Nephews are a special gift.  They give you just enough “kid time” to remind you why you are not ready to have children while also satiating your parents’ need for grandchildren so they are not consistently bug you about having kids.  We have a few nieces and nephews in the family and get together for holidays, family vacations and birthdays. 

Little kid birthdays are the best.  You get to do things like bounce in a bouncy house, go to a petting zoo, swing, fight over presents, play with water guns, (1) etc. I was especially excited about my 5 year old niece’s birthday party this past weekend.  We were meeting then in Big City, South to go Snow Tubing at a local amusement park.  I was pumped! (2)

Unfortunately we got a call shortly before the party was to start telling us that because of the incoming rain, the outdoor Snow Tubing was closed.  Scrambling to find another place, our brother and sister-in-law settled upon one of the most popular spots for children’s birthdays: Chuck E Cheese. 

Now I have been at a Chuck E Cheese in the past.  In fact, we had a college sisterhood event there for my sorority.  Unfortunately a Chuck E Cheese full of 100 20-something girls gossiping and a Chuck E Cheese full of 100 children screaming and running around (3) is not the same.  Not even close.

Mr. MedSchool and I ventured to the party location and sat outside in our car for 15 minutes.  Even though we were on time, we did not want to be the first ones there.  We entered the Chuck E Cheese and made a beeline for the back “Party” area where the family sat (4).  I quickly learned I could stand the “Party” area with the creepy animatronic mouse and incessant playing of children’s songs was easier to handle than the arcade area.  The arcade area was filled with kids running at top speed and screaming.  I was amazed at how parents just let kids run wild throughout the area.  Aren’t they afraid that, I don’t know, that someone will take their kids (5).

So after two hours of screaming, kicking, greasy pizza, creepy animatronics, and a loop of “She’ll be Comin’ ‘round the Mountain,” we realized that our life was still better than the person that has to dress up like Chuck E Cheese and dance and sing everyday.  So onward to our next birthday party.  Our nephew turns 5 next month and his party is rock climbing (6).

 1. Sadly, Mr. MedSchool and his friends do 3 out of 4 of these without being around any children

 2. Come on, it doesn’t snow here much

 3. It was like a swarm of flies, only with very high decibel level

 4. And my father-in-law was complaining about how there were so many TVs and none of them were playing the game.

 5. Note they do have a “stamp system,” and no child is suppose to leave without the adult with the same ink stamp on his or her arm.  However, there is this thing called water … which washes off stamps

 6. Yeah cause that’s not dangerous for adults … much less 5 year olds.