THE THREE TYPES OF BIRTHDAY PARTIES

For the past few decades, moms threw parties the only way they knew how: a host will officiate some games (one of which is guess what? the “bring me” game!), then a magician will come in and do his thing, after which comes the cake blowing, the handing out of souvenirs and giveaways, and then bam! The party is done and everyone is happy.

I like to call this the “standard” format for a party. It’s definitely fun, colorful, loud, and raucous. It’s also the very definition of how a children’s party should be run, right?

Wrong.

Recently with the advent of event styling, I’ve noticed the increasing popularity of the “chill” party. This is what happens in such an event: all loud noises are minimized, children are kept busy with a variety of activities, while the adults get to enjoy the food, mingle, and catch up in peace. Sometimes, a string quartet plays in the background, further mellowing the mood.

Not a bad way to spend an afternoon huh!

But there’s also a third way of doing things, one that is most rare, hardest to execute, but (in my humble opinion), is the most impactful among guests, children and adults alike. I like to call this, the activity-based party.

10 seconds to go then…plates up! Are you ready?

Thank you to Starfish Media for providing these pictures!

While this title seems anticlimactic, it makes it up by having a name that describes the concept succinctly. An activity-based party is a party that is centered on…well, an activity. For the biggest impact, you should focus on just one “big” activity, based on a single theme or concept.

The effervescent Ava, master-facilitator of the games!

One example is:

What if you gave kids some fake, paper money, and had them “shop” among various booths for toys, snacks and candies, flowers, fruits, desserts, and craft supplies? The activity will teach the kids how to budget / allocate their resources, and the items they “buy” will already double-up as the souvenir / giveaway for the party itself.

This was the main idea behind Isabeli’s Sunday Market.

Here’s another idea:

What if you had all the kids dress up like little chefs, and have them participate in a cooking competition, ala MasterChef-style?

There would be a pantry stocked-full of the freshest ingredients, a large digital timer displayed overhead, and a panel of judges. The host will provide the instructions, and at the beginning of the match will say “May the odds be ever in your favour!“, Hunger-Games-style! (just kidding; the judge will probably say, let the games begin!)

This was the main idea behind Ava’s MasterChef Junior Party.

Here’s a beautiful highlights video of the whole event, made by none other than Lemon Three Films!

A PARTY LIKE NO OTHER

Thinking up an idea like this is quite easy, but making it into reality is another thing altogether.

Besides the styling, the hardest part here is securing a really, really good host / facilitator for the whole activity. Whoever will facilitate needs not only to be good with hosting and managing the kids, but more importantly also with devising the competition mechanics and preparing all the raw materials and prepped food items. So ideally it would have to be someone with both a hosting and culinary background.

This is where Cristine of The Kitchen Playground Manila comes in.

In order for you to get a sense of the scale of preparation that was needed, here’s a peek at the pantry:

My favorite scene in every MasterChef episode is that moment when Gordon Ramsay sends off the kids to the pantry to get supplies. My mouth waters every time I think about that pantry, stocked to the brim with everything you need to create the dish of your dreams. The possibilities!

This the exact scene I’m talking about:

Now, in order to appreciate the sheer amount of work and preparation that went into this event, here’s a list of the items that went into the pantry: [Read more…]

About a month ago, we celebrated the death anniversary of my maternal grandmother. Whenever I think of my ama, my mind often flashes back to this specific scene: my ama, sturdily climbing up the grand staircase of Makati Shangri-la Hotel, off to see me get engaged to my now husband. By then, she was already at Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and had already undergone a number of surgeries (none were effective).

For those unaware, pancreatic cancer is the Mike Tyson of all cancers: it’s hard to detect, spreads fast, and packs a mean punch that can knock you out, for good. Even if you win a round, it comes back at you roaring, until you lie down in defeat.

By this time my ama’s stomach caused her constant pain, not to mention the various aches in her body. But on that day, it was as if a miracle happened. My ama told me she felt no pain at all, and suddenly had the vigour to climb those steps, just to see her granddaughter formalize her betrothal. I like to think of it as God giving her a get-out-jail-free card, but only for a day.

I was the happiest girl in the room, and it definitely wasn’t because I looked great that day (although I did), or that the food tasted good (it did). It was also then that I realized that no one else would ever love me like that, in that way.

My ama passed away a few months after.

Life is short.

Whenever my parents ask me out to dinner and I’m knee-deep in the rat race of trying to earn money, I think of my ama climbing those steps. In the end, nothing really matters. That is, nothing really matters, except for God and family. People and relationships matter. Time matters. So I set my work aside with no second thoughts, and go off to see my mom and dad.

Here’s to my amazing grandmother, Bonifacia, for making me see what truly matters. I love you.

THE ICBB CULMINATING EXPERIENCE

My 2^nd daughter, Chloe, nicknamed Coco, had her Moving Up Day in ICBB a few weeks ago. Fittingly, ICBB chose Disney Pixar’s Coco as the theme. As has been for the past 4 years, Party Magic did all the styling and set design: [Read more…]