600,000 guests, organizing a child's
birthday party can be one of the most
challenging tasks any parent will face.
There are the invitations; the families
who do not RSVP or else "think"
they're coming but "we're just not
sure"; the goodie bags; the snacks; the
entertainment; the cleanup;
the thank-you notes.
Understandably, some
parents prefer celebrating
out of the house. But with
many play places charging
upwards of $10 a child for a
few hours of fun — or more
than $200 for a typical guest
list — a number of parents
are opting for parties at
home.
Or maybe, like Debbie
Wrotslaysky of Southfield,
they just like having children
over for the big day.
Several months ago
Wrotslaysky, who teaches at
Wayne State University, had
a sleep-over birthday party
for her daughter, Michal, 7.
It was so much fun she
decided soon after to have
another sleep-over for her
11-year-old daughter,
Ariella.
Wrotslaysky says her girls
always enjoy having a movie
and popcorn at such gather-
ings, or activities such as
manicures, making the
birthday cake or, for younger
girls, decorating cupcakes.
The family also likes to
include an outing, such as
miniature golf, bowling or
ice skating.
Two pieces of advice: try
to limit the party to about
five guests, and no matter
how much they beg, don't let
them set their own bedtime.
"Absolutely not," Wrotslaysky says
to the idea of girls up all hours of the
night. "And the parents [of your
guests] do not want it."
Like Wrotslaysky, Ilana Borzak says
food activities are a great parry idea.
Her family has had "decorate your
own ice-cream sundae, your own
cookie, your own cupcake, and the
best one was make your own pizza.
"For that, we had dough and we

spread it out then put sauce on it,
then cheese, and any toppings you
want, like sun-dried tomatoes,
onions, olives, pineapple, mush-
rooms, fake meat and green pepper."
Among liana's other favorite birth-
day parties at home:

........

Shira Borzak shows her swimming
skills at the family Olympics.

• Scavenger hunts, either in the
house or around the neighborhood.
"We got things like Q-tips, rubber
bands and old copies of The Jewish

News."

• "When my sister Shira turned
7, it was the year of the Summer
Olympics, so we had sprinklers out-
side, relay races, sidewalk chalk
contests and obstacle races. The
goodie bag was a trophy with some
candy in it."

N' 146

c.)

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4/9
1999

Detroit Jewish News

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