How To Be Happy At Indoor Playground - Not!
As an August baby, we always had little family parties out at my house. But, together with sons born in November and March, we are always left to reserve an indoor place for their parties, if we chose to have them that season. While those with children with summer birthdays may seem lucky to have so many options at their disposal, it may also often feel overwhelming.
While in Climbing Vines Cafe and Play we may be biased because we host indoor parties, I wished to share with all the 5 most common reasons we hear from past celebration clients to reserve indoor summer birthdays with us. To these, the stress-free nature of the indoor summer party is a no-brainer, and they are not looking back! Following their first indoor summer party, they continue hosting with us year after year.
The most common cause for a client to book a summer indoor celebration with us is so they don't have to stalk the weather prediction for upgrades in the weeks leading up to the celebration. And if you've ever had to cancel or postpone your child's birthday because of weather, you realize how heartbreaking that can be.
We receive dozens of calls every summer a couple of days before someone's outdoor party is supposed to take place to find out if we've got an open slot for them within our indoor party place because of weather woes. We can normally pull this off if the spot remains open, but hosts will unfortunately need to starve and let all of their guests know of the change in venue and likely shift in time, and change all of their catering requests to accommodate their new party plan.
While of course rain is probably the biggest obstacle you may face, intense heat, unseasonably cool weather, and end can also pose issues to your food, decorations, along with your guests' possessions. You'll probably end up investing in a kayak or some other weather barrier simply to ease your mind a bit, which can be costly and take lots of precious time to set up and take down. I won't even tell the narrative of the time my Dad set up a tent for a party in a windstorm and wound up with a insurance coverage for 4 damaged automobiles when it blew away (weights and anchors and all!) ...
Besides the obvious weather worries it's possible to avoid with an indoor celebration, there can also just be something so simple and lovely about an indoor summer party. Guests won't need to worry about bringing towels and sunscreen and towels and swimsuits and changes of clothes and bug spray... you get the picture.
Sometimes it's nice to have a brief break in the outdoors, sip coffee in an air borne cafe, also have a real conversation with other adults while the kids play, rather than chasing children around attempting to receive their fur on them keeping them away from your in-ground pool. I am not sure about you, but I can never quite relax at an outdoor summer birthday celebration with a 2 and a 4 year old. While they sure do have a fantastic time running around, we usually leave in a daze or with a tantrum, unsure whether we had time to talk or check in with everybody.
While I absolutely love a good barbecue or summertime grilling extravaganza, I find it so refreshing when we could take a rest from the same-old backyard bash and spend a couple of hours in a relaxing, cool, and most importantly-- included! -- atmosphere.
It's also freeing as a guest to have the remainder of the day to do as we want as a family and not need to be concerned about getting the kids to a bath right after the celebration or stopping home to cool off and change clothing.
I guarantee that in the event you book an indoor celebration for your child, guests (particularly family) might appear a little confused at first (why not just take advantage of the summer weather while we could, right?) But after hosting countless indoor parties I can tell you for sure that on the day-of, you and your visitors will realize how nice it is to kick back in an air-conditioned private party for a couple hours.
3) EATING IN PEACE
Speaking of how relaxing a indoor, air-conditioned celebration can be, how can we discuss food for a moment?
At the moment, my sweet 4 year old boy is terrified of bees, and the quickest way to send him into a tailspin would be for him to sit down to eat a cupcake or his meal and also have bees swarming around. Therefore, for our loved ones, the meals factor alone could be sufficient to warrant an indoor celebration.
Eating in peace without needing to find colour or a seat or a place away from pests is just one of those things you don't realize can be so glorious until you attend your fourth or fourth outside summer gathering and THEN get a break from them. One of the most common things we hear is how nice it is to sit and eat and watch the kiddos play with no any other venue-related cares or worries. This is going to be particularly important if you're going to be needing older family members attend who will struggle with being mobile in the grass or mud and locating seating at outdoor parties.
Don't worry, we have you covered there, literally!
4) DECOR OPTIONS GALORE
While celebration aesthetic might not be a determining factor for each and every household, it sure is significantly easier to make a themed extravaganza that lights a child's face up when the party's inside. The decorations demanded tend to be less because the place is smaller and contained contained, and you won't need to be concerned about balloons and streamers blowing all about or procuring table covers down.
Because we do host cellular events outside at Climbing Vines Cafe and Play, I can also speak from experience when I say the time it takes to install (and take down!) Decorations for an outside party compared to an indoor celebration usually ends up being double. Finding good places to hang banner, requiring two people to hold and secure everything, and locating weights or other restraints for everything can be a genuine hassle on party day.
And you'll have enough to worry about this afternoon, right?
Also, if your pinterest planks are filled with adorable figurines, a candy bar, or anything which may be impacted by wind (or bring bees!) You will probably have to restrategize to get an outdoor soiree.
And of course decor typically can only be utilized once if used outdoors, but repurposed again and again if used for an indoor event. Our guests who host indoor occasions, especially those who spent significant money into decor or labored hard to create their own, are very happy to find they can usually create a large chunk of the cash back by reselling their supplies on something such as Facebook Marketplace.
5) YOU MAY ACTUALLY SAVE MONEY
Speaking of money, probably the greatest misconception I hear from customers is they want to sponsor a party at their home to save the rental fee of an indoor playground equipment space. I generally laugh at this because it makes great sense, that is, if you've never hosted an outdoor party.
With all of the"extras" like tents, chair rentals, additional decorations, weather reinforcements, clean-up provides, games and activities for the children (that you won't have to supply at a play area!) , pool toys, etc.... It is very likely that you will wind up spending MUCH more hosting a party at your house or an outside venue than you'd inside.
I am not sure how other indoor spaces handle their supplies, but we only charge guests to get additional drinks and supplies and such on the day of the party if they wind up needing themand we also allow parties to bring in their OWN meals, dessert, and decor should they choose!
Money aside, spending countless hours cleaning prior to, during, and following the celebration may also take a toll. Wouldn't it be wonderful to walk into a sparkling clean space and leave with your guests once the party's over, not having to worry about the clean-up, trash removal, tent teardown, etc?
It's possible to just go home and unwind with your loved ones (yes, possibly outside!)
Along with the time spent cleaning before and after the celebration, would not it ALSO be wonderful to not need to play"host" throughout the event? Even for customers that make their own food and decoration, our committed party assistants set up everything, refill and mend food and drinks as necessary, clear dishes, cut and serve the cake, and then package up all the leftovers in the end of the celebration!
In the end, it is your child's special day and you want to spend those precious hours making memories and seeing along with your guests-- not running about chasing your decorations or refilling the fruit bowl innumerable times.
So save everybody (and especially your own family!) Plenty of anxiety, time, and worry by booking your event with us this summer. We'd be honored to provide you with an easy, breezy experience which will leave your whole guest list feeling refreshed, thankful, and full of love after spending a relaxing (yet fun-filled!) day together.
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