OK, I’ve organised the venue and paid the deposit for DD’s birthday party. Having a birthday in one of the hottest months of the year means DD has had parties in a boiling-hot backyard, or a quiet afternoon tea inside the house with relatives, or (best of all) a small party for friends at a local indoor play centre. It’s hard to work out what the temperature and UV reading will be in advance. Over 30 degrees Celsius is too much for a party in the backyard.
DD has been telling me for months that she wants to go to Monkey Mania to have her 5th birthday. I’m a slack mum – I only got around to booking the place today. Fortunately that day was free and we had a choice of times. I went for 2.30 pm. Gives us enough time to go to church in the morning, have a light lunch and then go out to the play centre. Also means we don’t have to provide a full meal. The drawback is that the food provided there is fine for every other kid except DD. She got hives last time, most likely from the chocolate crackles, possibly exacerbated by the artificial colourings in one other food. Anyway, I’ll take something for her. The kids love having the chance to climb up stairs, use the big slippery dip, throw balls around and make a heckuva lot of noise. (I went partially deaf the first time I went to one of those parties.) Best of all, going there in a fairy costume is perfectly reasonable.
