By new Smarty blogger Stephanie Wallace
Since becoming a mother the days just seem to fly by. Before I know it we have gone from anticipating the ball drop on New Years to hanging Christmas lights in December and I often wonder where the year went. Throughout the year we celebrate many things but one of my favorite things to celebrate are the birthdays of loved ones. My children’s birthdays are especially important because it gives me the chance to reflect on how much they have developed over the past year and reminisce on the moment they came into the world and I became their mother. What better way to celebrate such an important life moment than with a party?!
This year my kind, charismatic, animal loving daughter tuned four years old. For the past three years we have celebrated with a birthday party that included friends, balloons, candle filled cakes and lots of stress. Like any party you want everything to be perfect but now that I have three little ones it has become increasingly harder to plan perfect parties. To be honest it’s hard for me to plan breakfast most days let alone a special event! So this year I decided to call in reinforcements to execute a fabulous fourth birthday celebration!
My daughter and I sat down one day and brainstormed ideas and after several themes that included Trolls, rainbows and Mauna we decided that she really wanted to do something with animals. Instantly I thought of Discovery Place Nature for our event. We love visiting all of the Discovery Places but the Nature Center is definitely our favorite.
Their website is super informative and gave me a great place to start. After speaking with the Event Coordinator at the museum we had the Date, Time and Theme for the party all set. We choose the Go Wild party with the Animal Parade theme. I was informed that the party would last 1.5 hours, include lemonade/water, paper ware and museum admission for 35 people. Most importantly I would have someone to help set up, lead the party and clean up afterwards. OMG. Could this place be a dream? I think I squealed after I hung up the phone.
In the weeks prior to the party I decided on food and favors for the guests. That’s it. That is all I had to do! When we arrived to Discovery Place Nature I was greeted by my party helper Briana. She showed me to the party room which was so much bigger than I anticipated. It was decorated with tables, banners and live animals! She then helped me set out the food and favors and gave me a run down of what to expect.
First, we were able to visit with five different animals. This was such a cool activity because the old children were able to showcase their animal knowledge by answering Brianna’s question while the young kids were in an educated awe. My personal favorite was Texas Pete, a tortoise from (you guessed it) Texas. We learned interesting facts about each one then the children and parents were able to touch them. And let me just tell you… snake skin is surprisingly smooth. Next the kiddos donned butterfly, owl or bat wings and we all toured the Center stopping to check out each section. The parade was such cute idea and really made the tour special. My kids loved the bug room and the butterfly sanctuary never disappoints. After our tour and playing in the hands on area for a bit we returned to the room to eat lunch and sing to the birthday girl.
It was the perfect day. From the scheduling, to the activities provided and all the help from Briana it was the most stress free party I have ever hosted. Most importantly my daughter enjoyed herself and will remember this party for years to come. She loved the bunny and has not stopped talking about it! We are so happy we chose to celebrate with Discovery Place Nature and highly recommend you Go Wild with them for your next event!
