What Do You Expect From a Party Host?

Hello,

It's been a while.  I've been very busy with parties, expanding the type of work I do, settling children into school and generally enjoying life.

My daughter started nursery at school in September, and has been making many new friends.  I hope that some of them will be a good influence on her, and calm her down!  (She's very active and excited about everything and everyone.)  As a result of her new nursery setting, she has been invited to many parties recently, and for me, it has be VERY interesting to see how different party plans work.

Most have been fantastic!  I've loved being a parent at parties and watching how party hosts interact with the children and the adults there. I've also picked up a few ideas which I hope to implement at future parties, and considered how I would change/adapt if I was hosting that party.  I'm not here to moan about other party plans, each to their own etc.  (By the way, for my 4yr old daughter, I used the Gym Academy in Portishead, it was BRILLIANT!)

However, today my daughter went to a party that has this description on the website. 

 "We have dedicated party hosts to help you plan and personalise your party to make it a truely memorable event."

Perfect!

But this is my problem.  My idea of a party host is someone who is there to work for the children. Someone to smile, interact, make them feel special, and provide fun.  He/She should talk with the child's parents, be on hand all the time to make sure that what they ask for is done.  The party host today didn't do this. Their duties consisted of handing out tomato ketchup, putting pots of ice-cream in front of the children, giving them spoons and standing in a corner looking bored. The parents chatted with the children, encouraged them to eat their food, filled up their cups, refilled their cups and guided them with what to do.

Excuse me if I sound critical, but that doesn't sound like a 'dedicated party host... making it a truly memorable event.'

So, in true fashion, I've tried to work out how this could have happened.

1)  The host has this role as a weekend job and doesn't want to be there.

2)  The host has not received training in how to host a child's party.

3)  The host is young, and was intimidated by the parents there.

4) There is no set policy on how to interact or how to make a party memorable.

5)  The host is young, has no experience and has been thrown into the deep end.

I like to think that it is the 2nd option, which could be easily sorted with a little training. 

What is different about PartyEase

Communication.  What does your child want from his/her party?  What do YOU want from the party?   

Interaction.  From the moment I walk through the door, even during set up, my focus is on the children, making them feel comfortable and confident with me.  Children are the most important part of the party, they need to feel special.

Fun. -A party needs to be fun.

Inclusive. I have found that younger children don't always want to join in with all the party games.  And that's fine, every child is an individual, growing in maturity at different rates.  I make sure I have extra activities that the children can do independently, rather than sit on the side feeling left out.

Personal.  Every party is different.   All my parties are tailored towards the birthday child.  

Experience.  I don't want to give away my age, but I have nearly 20 years experience of working with children aged between 2 and 11. I know how to adapt to different situations, I know how to engage with children, and I still enjoy it!

Me. I do this job because I LOVE it. If I didn't, I'd do something else, but there's something about 20 children having fun, laughing, being loud and then going away saying that it was 'The Best Party Ever!' that really appeals to me.

Why not check out my website, and see if PartyEase Portishead is for you?

Or check out my 5* reviews on Facebook.  

One last note, I have used the above venue for my son's birthday in the past.  He and his friends thoroughly enjoyed it, and the host then was great too.  Maybe today's host just wasn't having a good day.  It's just that it made me think - what is it that I do that's different?  That is why I've not named the venue, or made any real hints to where it could be.   Those of you who were at the party with me today, know that our children didn't see things with adult eyes, and still had a good time.

A Perfectly Piggy Party!

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hosting a party for a 3yr old girl who loves Peppa Pig.  As requested by L's mother, and also taking into account the young age of the children attending, the party became more craft and activity focussed.

As those who follow my blog may know, I tend to follow themes loosely rather than going for an all out theme.  This is due to costs, availability of resources and an understanding that not all guests like the same thing.  Many parents choose to use decorations to emphasise a theme, which is great as it brightens up the venue and gives the party child their focus. 

Obviously this is done in consultation with the client, who can request certain activities or games to their child or their vision of the party.  My role is to facilitate this, keep the children entertained and make sure the children enjoy themselves.  I also hope to take the pressure away from the parents.  This was reflected at the party yesterday when the client told me she had never been so relaxed before hosting a party. (Her sister also told me she'd never seen her this relaxed before a party too!)

The activities:

1) Welcome activity.  The children decorated the tablecloth with the crayons and stickers I supplied.

2) Make pig face biscuits.



3) Make pig masks using paper plates.

4) Decorate their party bags.










5) A box of Rainbow Rice (with hidden pigs) to play with.

The Games:

1) Music Muddy Puddles (like Musical Islands)

2) Peppa Pig Treasure Hunt

3) Pass the Parcel

The Story:

10 Green Bottles by Abigail Voss.  (Available here on Amazon.)  (This is a great story by a Portishead Author, and is fab for joining in and learning numbers.)


The 14 children were kept happily occupied, with supportive parents who enjoyed joining in. 

Their party tea was packed in individual coloured paper lunch bags with Peppa Pig detail on them.  I particularly liked the idea of putting individual jellies into plastic shot glasses.  (I'm going to borrow that one for my children's next party!)  

We sang Happy Birthday to L, and she blew out the candles on her beautiful chocolate Peppa Pig cake. 

Packing up was quick and efficient.  (I bring my own bin bags, and was massively helped by the other adults.)

This was a fun party to do.  Craft parties can provide a calm but busy atmosphere, and make sure that everyone has something extra to take home too.

It was a fun afternoon for all.


(Craft Parties are priced the same as regular parties, see my website for package prices.)

Loving Local Links

I've only lived in Portishead for 11 years.  I'm not a 'Posset' and I doubt I ever will be.  

However, Portishead is home.  It has beautiful views, friendly people and businesses who are supportive and wish to make links with others.  It feels great to see companies retweet my tweets (@PartyEaseP if you're interested.)

Yesterday I met with Clare from So-Sublime Stationery.  Clare and her sister share a passion for stationery, and I saw the light in Clare's eyes as she described her favourite childhood shop in Park Street, and rolls of stickers where you could pick up just a few for 5 or 10p. It reminded me of a shop where I grew up and how I used to do the same thing.  So Sublime Stationery has grown from that passion into a business where you can buy personalised notebooks for numerous occasions, and accessories to go with them.

I am now delighted to be able to announce that PartyEase Portishead has teamed up with So Sublime to offer beautiful personalised notebooks and bookmarks as an alternative to traditional party bags.  These beautiful A7 sized notebooks will come in a gift bag, with each child's name printed on the front.  The paper is of fantastic quality and the package is a gift that most boys and girls would love. 

Due to the bespoke nature of the product,  (Imagine 30 notebooks, with a different name printed on each one) I have added a new package, called PREMIUM PLUS. This will give you all the joy of a PartyEase Party, but with the added extra of having this fabulous gift, for just £175.  

There are many items for all ages on their website.  Please take a look and keep it local!

On top of this, at the moment, this is an exclusive, as these products are not yet available on the so sublime website.  (I believe they are being added this week...)

I would also like to recommend Heaven Cakes for birthday cakes.

This may be a bit of a personal recommendation.  I have know Sam for years, through our connection running North Weston Brownies, and have heard from the beginning the passion for baking, the finding of suitable premises, the cold mornings selling on Portishead Market, the opening...  Not only do they do the best pancakes with maple syrup ever, but their celebration cakes are fantastic!  I speak from personal experience, as Heaven on the Hill has made cakes for my husband's 40th birthday, a special occaision for my daughter, my dad and my uncle's 80th birthday cake and my parent's golden wedding anniversary cake. When I have made decorated cakes, Sam and Vicky have always been friendly and open with advice to help me achieve what I plan to, and knowing that I can buy decorating supplies from them too has been really convenient. Remember, that if you buy a bespoke cake, you need to pay appropriately for the HOURS that go in to creating it, and make sure you order in plenty of time.

Lastly, for Birthday presents, why not look at Flutterbies?

Hidden just off Portishead High Street, this is a fantastic shop full of quality toys (think Melissa and Doug toys) for all budgets.  My children love the wooden toys, the pick and mix sweets and the pocket money/stocking fillers there.  There is a great selection of books, many available at 2 for £5 - perfect to have in case of emergency...  Lisa who owns the shop is ready with suggestions and advice too.  An added bonus is that as Christmas approaches, you may wish to buy a bigger, more expensive toy for your son/daughter.  You are able to reserve the item and then pay in instalments, making the season easier to budget for.  (It also has the added bonus of being next door to Shanicatti Shakes who serve fantastic ice cream sundaes, milkshakes and smoothies (as well as sandwiches, tea and coffee...)

There are many great places in Portishead which are great for party items and children's gifts.  I haven't even started on the labyrinth which is Morgan and Westley...   I no longer search for items there, I just ask them if they have what I'm looking for, from coloured card to beetle drive cards (don't ask!). So far, I haven't managed to catch them out with anything paper and pen-wise they don't stock.  I'll keep trying... They have everything!!!

I'd love to know what your favourite shops are in Portishead.  Please leave a comment to let me know, and let's keep it local.