Birthday Party

Ethan's birthday was mid-July and we had a party at Sensapolis, my favorite indoor play area! Seriously, this place is so cool. We went ahead and got year passes for Ethan and I so it isn't as expensive each time. The day we went it was almost empty (it happened to be one of the last games of the World Cup) so the kids had the run of the place. Even Jennifer, me, and my mom had some fun in the Jungle ball pit! My favorite part was when Ava and I had a little bonding moment. I brought the girls (Emily and Ava) Shaun the Sheep toys. Ava had them both so I took the larger one to free it from its packaging. She. pitched. a. fit. I didn't back down though. I held her back while she screamed and opened the box. Then I handed her the liberated Shaun. She looked at me, red eyes, looked at Shaun, then handed me the smaller one to open. Classic!

The boys were amusing too. They had tons of fun running around, but I had to go tell them to change areas every once in awhile so that every kid had a chance to do what they liked. And when they decided they wanted to eat (which was 30 minutes sooner than when the food was coming) they really wanted to eat. Lesson learned, don't wait longer than 5:30 to have the food. Cake? Not so much. Really? No, none of them really wanted the YUMMY strawberry torte that Sensapolis made especially for us that Ethan specifically picked out even though I tried so hard to talk him into chocolate which seemed more like a little boy kind of cake. breathe. Oh well. We enjoyed it for breakfast several times!

Gift time - always a hoot. I have decided that the next birthday we will do the gift giving German style. That means, you open the gift as each child arrives. It gives the kids one on one time to enjoy the gift instead of tearing through the pile like mad men. Not that tearing through the pile isn't entertaining... ... ... read: messy. But next time, presents up front, one on one time with each guest.

Sensapolis Review: The party package was great! It included food and beverage for EVERY guest (even parents) for only a few euros more than the normal entry fee! And each kid got to choose their meal! That was cool. I thought we'd have to buy one big pizza or something, but no, each kid got to choose. You cannot bring in your own food, so go ahead and order one of their cakes. We have tried the chocolate cake and the strawberry torte and both were yummy. When we had Haven's party there a few years ago we got one of the themed "stalls." (It's actually made to look like stables, so yeah, it's a stall.) We didn't do that with Ethan this year but enjoyed the party just as much. So, if you want to pay the extra it is fun, but not necessary. One warning if you do your party there, it does not come with party favors. The website says it does, but it's not like what we think of favors. So if you want to give away goodie bags, bring them yourself. I recommend Sensapolis if your kid is between 5 and 11 and not afraid to run around and climb and stuff without you following them around. I know there are less expensive places to have a party, but for me, it's worth it!