People have birthdays in Brazil. A crazy phenomenon I know! But I never realized just how different we celebrate! Miss B just turned 6. SIX!!! I'll save you the sob story on how time flies and I'm really not okay with it..
Our typical traditions stayed the same of course.. breakfast in bed? Check.
A lunch out with mom? Check. And YES! We even have a McDonald's here (naturally her food of choice) - and dare I say that I like it more here?! I don't know why, but everything seems fresher, less processed.. maybe I'm over analyzing this one.. Either way she was happy and it was a GREAT afternoon! :)
Birthday party? Check. But this one is where the differences come into play! At your traditional Brazilian birthday party, the average family spends THOUSANDS. Yes, THOUSANDS!!! It's like a mini wedding reception, but for kids!
Option #1: Rent people to come and play with the kids so the parents can hang out and not have to worry about a thing. You also need to rent a performer (magicians or clowns, or better yet, a magician dressed as a clown - yes they have them!). Purchase enough food for the kids, their parents, siblings, and possibly neighbors and cousins too because EVERYONE comes and stays the entire time!
Option #2: Rent out a facility. There are mini indoor play parks with roller coasters and arcade games that are only for parties. It comes all inclusive with about a dozen or so people, to again, play with the kids so the parents can relax and hang out together. Again, purchase enough food to feed approximately 100+ people, and a VERY big cake!
Option #3: REBEL. This was the option we chose as I do not have a birthday trust fund in place just yet... I went the creative "American housewife" route and chose a theme (it was a mix between "rainbow" and "baking") and went to town! The kids (18 + my 4 for a total of 22) were dropped off and received one of three different hand stamps to put them in a group. After everyone arrived and settled their nerves (for 99% of them this was their 1st ever "drop off" party! The kids were nervous, as were many of the parents.. it's a strange concept here to not have extra help to run the party for you.), we split them into three groups. I took one group to decorate aprons that they would get to take home, Hottie Hubster took another group to make their own pizzas, while the last group had "free play" in our ridiculously well stocked play room with Amazing V. After everyone was finished, we rotated groups! It went off without a hitch! Then we got them all together to eat their pizzas, and decorate their own cupcakes. It was a perfect evening! The other catch? Quite a few of the kids didn't speak a lick of English, so I had to give directions in both English and Portuguese, and you know what?! It totally worked! I have officially just held my very first bilingual birthday party - now THAT is something to celebrate!!! :)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS B!!!
Our typical traditions stayed the same of course.. breakfast in bed? Check.
Option #1: Rent people to come and play with the kids so the parents can hang out and not have to worry about a thing. You also need to rent a performer (magicians or clowns, or better yet, a magician dressed as a clown - yes they have them!). Purchase enough food for the kids, their parents, siblings, and possibly neighbors and cousins too because EVERYONE comes and stays the entire time!
Option #2: Rent out a facility. There are mini indoor play parks with roller coasters and arcade games that are only for parties. It comes all inclusive with about a dozen or so people, to again, play with the kids so the parents can relax and hang out together. Again, purchase enough food to feed approximately 100+ people, and a VERY big cake!
Option #3: REBEL. This was the option we chose as I do not have a birthday trust fund in place just yet... I went the creative "American housewife" route and chose a theme (it was a mix between "rainbow" and "baking") and went to town! The kids (18 + my 4 for a total of 22) were dropped off and received one of three different hand stamps to put them in a group. After everyone arrived and settled their nerves (for 99% of them this was their 1st ever "drop off" party! The kids were nervous, as were many of the parents.. it's a strange concept here to not have extra help to run the party for you.), we split them into three groups. I took one group to decorate aprons that they would get to take home, Hottie Hubster took another group to make their own pizzas, while the last group had "free play" in our ridiculously well stocked play room with Amazing V. After everyone was finished, we rotated groups! It went off without a hitch! Then we got them all together to eat their pizzas, and decorate their own cupcakes. It was a perfect evening! The other catch? Quite a few of the kids didn't speak a lick of English, so I had to give directions in both English and Portuguese, and you know what?! It totally worked! I have officially just held my very first bilingual birthday party - now THAT is something to celebrate!!! :)
Looks like everyone (especially Bailey!) had a great time! Hooray for option #3!
ReplyDeleteWaiting with great anticipation for the option chosen for future parties! :0)
Makes me sad too that our kids grow up way too fast. I think option 3 was a wise and fun choice. Great job on creativity. :)
ReplyDeleteErin, That sounds like so much fun! You are so creative! And for the record... I would have chose option #3 too:)
ReplyDeleteThank you! :) It was such a fun evening and I think it turned out just perfect! I'm glad I chose to kick against the bricks a little ;)
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