The Magic Bus

At the end of last month, M turned five. It's a big day in a little boy's life. He started having birthday parties a couple years ago, and after last year where I felt defenseless trying to herd and entertain half a dozen four year olds, I decided this year we were going to go somewhere and have someone take care of the party for us.

I thought up several different places that a little boy could be entertained without his mom developing a nervous tick over her left eye. No dice. I even took him to Build-a-Bear to explain how much fun he'd have. Nothing doing. He wanted a party at home.

I refused until I remembered the Tumblebus.
The Tumblebus comes to his and T's school every Monday, and for a pretty reasonable fee, they get to go exercise and play and tumble to themed programs -- Your Toy Story. Your Blues Clues. Your Christmas in July. And, as luck would have it, Mr. Mik makes housecalls.

Here's how the day went: The kids came, and we did a Treasure Hunt. This is a brilliant idea I ripped off from someone else's party where you get a bunch of stuff from the dollar store or the Party Favors aisle at a party store, and tape different colored pieces of paper to them, and then "hide" them around the house. "Hide" being in places like on bookshelves and on dining room chairs. Each kid has a different color and goes and finds all the treasure with that color on it. Then we went and made "frames," which is just sticking foamy stickers onto foamy frames. And that's when IT pulled up.

I forgot to mention we hadn't told M Mr. Mik was coming, and he'd planned a party that involved things like showing everyone his dry-erase board and letting them have a turn on the treadmill -- things dear to his five-year-old heart. But when Mr. Mik pulled up, he got very flexible with his plans.

So the kids all herded out to the bus for an hour, and we parents hung out inside eating local cheese and talking. By the time M got his birthday medal and Mr. Mik said his goodbyes, the pizza was here, they ate it, had some Power Rangers cake, whacked a pinata, and headed home.

M konked out early in the afternoon, just like a happy party boy should.