First Birthday Party Ideas? - Portland,OR

Hi M.-
We had our son's 1st b-day party at Baja Fresh on Scholls. They have a big party room and its free if you buy food from them. We had a lot of little kids but didn't want the chaos of a big pizza place- lets face it at 1 its more about the grown-ups anyway and everyone getting to see the birthday kid!
We brought in lots of toys and a play mat and the kids- I think there were about 10 kids and they played really well. We bought party packs for food and they took really good care of us. We brought the cake and some decorations. It worked well for us and I think the adults liked having something other than pizza.
Good luck- next years party will be even better!!

1 mom found this helpful

There are many neighborhood pizza restaurants around that could accomodate your party. How many other children will be present? Alcohol and kids parties are not a good mix. People who come and drink will have to get behind the wheel of a vehicle to get home, and it's not a smart move. Alcohol often loosens tongues and some language spoken can be inappropriate for the younger generation. This is a birthday party for your little girl and a celebration for you as parents for surviving the 1st year. Make it her party gggggand keep the alcohol and adult celebration to a minimum. Get a babysitter later, you and your husband join your friends for an evening of adult fun and celebrating. Congratulations to all of you!!! Many more wonderfilled and full years.

1 mom found this helpful

I remember my first sons 1st bithday. It was exhausting! I did the huge party thing and never did it again! Just have it where you know you'll have fun and let them do all the work. Your 1 year old won't remember it- just take lots of pictures.

What about Mississipi Pizza...or Papas Pizza (in Beaverton)

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If you have kids of various ages, I suggest Papas Pizza in Beaverton. The older kids won't get bored and they have beer for the adults.

Definitely keep it simple, though.

Happy Birthday to your little one.
D.

I know people have said it but PAPA's PIZZA!!!!!!!!!

We did that for our sons first.. it ROCKED! we got a whole room FREE and then on the invites I just put BYOP *buy your own pizza* we had 41 coming so it was too expensive for us to buy for everyone.. they all understood! we had 18 kids coming out of that 41 and they ALLLL had a ton of fun! The only thing that was sad was the decorations.. hehehe... I thought I had brought enough... but the room was so big that it looked silly... I ended up just making one table all decorated... then it worked out great. There is also a window to the play room which was great for the other parents... however I didn't let my little one go by himself.. I still won't now *he's almost 2* but he was content when he did get to play and then the other times the kids where in and out and all stopped to play with him. The other bonus is that there is only one machine that takes money *a chicken prize egg thing* so really not a lot of kids whining for more quarter!

Good luck!!!!

PS there is beer there!

First, I have to say that I don't think that alcohol is necessarily the way to entertain at a child's birthday party - is this gathering for your daughter or for the family? If for the family - then just have a party at your house and don't involve others with kids...not against drinking, just don't think it belongs at a kids party...Also, I am not sure if your friends have kids...will assume that at least some do...We had our son's first party at a community center - we were living in a different state at the time, but it was relatively inexpensive, we used the book If you Give a Pig a Pancake, made different shaped pancakes with different toppings, sang a bunch of animal songs and painted ceramic piggy banks (from Oriental Trading)...it was fun and easy - especially given we had a variety of ages. If a community center is not a choice, what about having two separate parties at your house - one just cake and ice cream (and beer) and one more kid friendly with a few activities for guests that aren't related. You can get a couple of blow up swimming pools and fill them with plastic balls for the kids to play in...A park works, although if it is coming soon...weather probably prevents that option!

I would just advise that when deciding on a place, think of what will work best for the adults, since it sounds like will be mostly older children or adults, with very few 1 year olds. Which means that the birthday girl will probably be happy with goldfish and a cupcake and because it's a big crowd and she is so young she will probably be happiest being held a lot. Therefore don't worry about activities -- just look for a big/private space that will provide food & drink that satisfies the adult crowd, and bring your own small array of snacks for the baby/babies, and maybe a few toys from home.

At one year old the party is definitely for the family, not for the child. (I am not saying do not have a party -- it is a huge milestone and you definitely want a candle and lots of photos!) In the coming years you will have lots of opportunities for Chuck E Cheese type parties that will be more meaningful for the child.

Have fun!

Happy Birthday to your little one! :) I am not sure what area you live in, but I have rented buildings from our local park and recreation department for a very reasonable rate. That might be one option for you. Blessings to you and yours! :)

Call around to pizza places - grabbing the yellowpages and looking all of them up is usually a good idea. If you will be having kiddos many places have birthday packages and will even decorate with a general bithday themed decore and clean up afterwards. When you call take everything into account. We did our sons party at a popular pizza place but didn't know it'd be karoke night. It was PACKED with people. The party went great, but was stressfull with so many people and our babies running around. Usually looking for a place with a room (most are free to rent), good pizza and prices, a possible party pack, and a non-event day will give you the place best suited for you! I don't ever recommend Chuck E. Cheese - their prices are horrendous and facilities aren't very clean.
Another idea is to ask your friends and family who will be coming what their fave place is and why. The next party we had went so much better because a friend knew of a pizza place with a great indoor playground.
Hope all goes well and if you need an easy decor solution check out the party packs available at www.birthdayexpress.com. We use them for every birthday. Best of luck!

Hi M.,
Congratulations on a one year old! There is Pietro's with games and beer or Flying Pie which also has some games and beer too. Between the two Flying Pie tends to be less noise. Something I did for my children was to buy a container and lock it for a time capsule to be opened at age 16. On the invitation, I asked the guests to write a note, state what they think the child will be when they grow up, and/or any pictures of themselves. Especially his great-aunts who may not be around. Just a thought. Take lots of pictures/video and have fun!

I had my son's first birthday party (and second party too) at Godfather's Pizza. You can reserve a party room for free, all you have to do is spend a certain amount of money, which is easily taken care of once you buy the pizza and pop. The room has a television in it (which stayed on a football game) and I believe they also sell beer.

Just wanted to let you know that Chuck E. Cheese does in fact serve beer...at least our local one does. We had my daughter's 2nd Bday there, and it was nice to be able to distract the kids (there were many ages there) while the adults could chat and have a beer.

Enjoy!
K.

Papa's pizza would be an option for a Pizza place. They have a seperate play room and have adult beverages. They have party packages or you can just reserve a space for the party.

You could try Alfie's pizza for the party. They have great party rooms that you can use for free and pizzas are all half price for groups. Have fun! Our second son is turning one in March, so we will need to figure something out, too.

Chuck E. Cheese does have beer on tap. Don't know if this helps =)

Papa's Pizza off of 158th in Beaverton is good. They have good pizza and a play area for the kids. They also have party packs I have used it time and again when I need room for about 20 people and a little 2 bedroom apartment isn't going to cut it.

S.

Kennedy School McMenamins would be a fun place! And good beer!

chuckie cheese has beer just to let u know. i have all my kids birthdays at godfathers pizza in canby. they have a couple games and most of the money the kids get to play ends up buying tattoos and stickers and the chicken game were they get an egg with something in it.