Des Moines Families

PARTIES THAT WORKED: Pump It Up

If you're looking for a low-maintenace, super-fun party for the 2-and-up set, look no further than Pump It Up.

They will do just about everything from the invitations (not glamorous, but they get the job done) to clean up.

We had our son's 3-year-old birthday there just a few weeks ago, and he and his bouncy friends had such a great time... as did the adults, who are also encouraged to play on the huge inflatables that fill two warehouse-sized rooms in the Urbandale building.

Pluses are the all-inclusive packages and the very organized staff, which makes "hosting" a piece of cake. Minuses are the no-alcohol rule (I know, it makes sense) and the fact that you have to order their pizza (which isn't bad, but it isn't awesome).

We added a little extra pizzaz to the party by having caricature artist Tim Read of 5 Fingers Creative on hand to sketch the kids during the pizza and present portion of the party, which smartly follows the bouncing portion.

He was awesome, and the sketches, which we framed for each of the guests, made a perfect alternative to the party-favor bag.

Tim also did our invitation, which set the tone for the entire event. Check it out:

PARTIES THAT WORKED: Backyard Adventures

Submitted by Bridget

We just had my oldest daughter’s 4th birthday party at Backyard Adventures, and I couldn’t be happier!  It was a great experience for kids and grownups alike! The kids had a blast playing on all of the swing sets that they have set up. The swing sets are great for preschooler, as sometimes I think it can be hard for them to climb on the inflatables at some of the other party places.

We had been to Backyard Adventures for a party in November for one of her classmate’s birthdays, and all the kids had a great time (and I had been impressed with how easy it seemed to pull off), so I called a few weeks later to reserve the date and time for our March 8th party. I wanted to ensure that I got the date and time that I wanted, so as to not interfere with nap time (wishful thinking) and to avoid having to serve a meal (preschoolers don’t really want to sit still to eat a meal when they could be swinging or chasing their buddies up the rock wall). By calling so far in advance (before Christmas), I got my pick of times. I chose 3:30 to 5:30, which worked out just perfect for us. 

It was our first attempt at having a real “friend” party for her, as her previous parties had been mostly family and close family friends. We invited 30 of her closest friends and ended up with about 25 kids, which worked out just fine. Most of the parents stuck around (thank you!), which made supervision pretty easy. The party room was a bit cozy (but nothing compared to the party room coziness I experienced this past weekend at Jumpin’ Jacks), but that was about my only complaint. All we had to do was bring in the cake and some snacks and juice boxes for the kiddos. They had paper products (we did bring our own to match our theme though), water cooler and a fridge for us to use. We forgot birthday candles and we even managed to find a few in the drawer. We didn’t even have to clean up!

It was a great party for us and a great way for the kids to burn off some energy after a LONG winter!   

PARTIES THAT WORKED: Lord of the Rings, Birthdays by Mandy

Submitted by Tami

I had my son's 5 yr party done by Birthdays By Mandy this past August. What a treat it was. Our family members are huge 'Lord of the Rings' fans, so Mandy came dressed as Gladriel, the Elf Queen. 

After she painted each child's face, we played several games that Mandy explained thoroughly to the kids.  They had so much fun, as each game was titled to relate to the theme of the party. 

Mandy is patient and kind, holding the kids' attention and speaking to them like the little human beings that they are. My older daughter already wants Mandy to do her 10th birthday next May. 

I felt the price I paid was well worth it, and I'd gladly recommend Mandy to anyone who is looking for something fun and different for a child's party.

PARTIES THAT WORKED: Two at the Zoo

My son is a nut for all animals, so the Blank Park Zoo was a given for our son's second birthday party. I'm a little Type A, so I was all over the party planners at the Blank Park Zoo, and they were very friendly to me... always returned my phone calls and emails, always answered my questions and accomodated all of our special needs.

The best part about a zoo party is that all of your guests get passes to the zoo following your party. And the party times are available at just the right hours for little ones. Companies that understand naptimes are my favorite.

We took the party one step further than the usual and made it a costume party. Our Curious George invitations invited all of the kids to come dressed as their favorite animals. Adorable... we had a chicken, a leopard, even a spider. We dressed up, too. I was pregnant, so I went as an elephant. Our son was Curious George, so his dad went as The Man with the Yellow Hat.

We opted for the animal show, as well. A zookeeper actually visits your party and brings three tiny animals with her. She gives a tiny presentation and lets all the kids touch the animals (this part comes after they eat cookies!)... she also passes around a dispenser of hand sanitizer after. :)

I couldn't have been happier with this party and the planners. They had pop for the adullts, high-chairs for the little ones and enough gift-bags for twice as many guests. Truly a blast and a wonderful staff. 

PARTIES THAT WORKED: One "Suite" Party, Wells Fargo Arena

For my son's first birthday, we wanted a family-only party, but we wanted to do it up right. It being March Madness time, we settled on a basketball theme, but were struggling for a unique venue. When we saw that the boys state basketball tournament was scheduled on his birthday, we thought, why not rent a suite at Wells Fargo Arena? It was the best idea we've ever had!

The staff at the Arena was on-point and so flexible. They let us bring in balloons and other decorations and even put a sign outside the suite. They checked on us constantly to make sure the food, drinks and cupcakes were satisfactory.

Fun pluses to this party: We played a DVD of my son's first year on the closed-circut TVs in the suite and had his 21 guests sign an autograph basketball, which we keep in our son's room (out of reach, of course!). We had mini basketball cupcakes, made by the arena's catering service and basketball plates, forks, etc. We brought in black and orange ballons, as well.