A Look at the Cooks: July 2011

Whew! My password to the blog still works, so I guess it hasn't totally given up on being updated. So what is the grace period on posting pictures of your daughter's 7th birthday bash? 2 months? 3 months? It's okay as long as her 8th birthday hasn't come and gone? Who knows?

When I asked Brenna where she wanted to have her 7th birthday party, I knew what the answer would be - Chuck E Cheese. Just hearing those 3 syllables was enough to send my stress level sky high. Wasn't there somewhere else she'd like to have it? A nice park? A quiet library? No, it was CEC or bust.

The big day finally arrived, and I braced myself for an hour of mayhem and headache inducing noise. But much to my surprise, it went very smoothly. We had an awesome party coordinator who took care of everything. Brenna went off and played with her friends and didn't demand that I be glued to her side every moment of the party. And we didn't lose one single kid to a ball pit or some other arcade game mishap. Am I clamoring to go back to see Chuck E Cheese on a regular basis? No. But if in a few years when Austin is over his fear of the big furry gray mouse, my gut reaction when he demands a party there will not be "Oh heck no!"

So, what does it take to party at Chuck E Cheese?
First, you need a birthday girl in a darling sundress.