Parenting in a Pandemic: A Quarantine Birthday

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Little Man Turns 6!

As soon as the proverbial sh!t hit the fan this March, I started thinking about what we would do for Marshall’s birthday this June. I knew this pandemic wasn’t going away before his birthday, so I started to lay the groundwork to prepare him early for no traditional birthday party.

Normally, we don’t buy our kids any presents. We throw them a party and they get presents from friends and family. We pay for the food and party supplies. This year, we hit up Amazon early because we knew there were shipping delays and a shortage of things, and ordered a bunch of presents for our Marsh-Man. We chose things that would help him and his sister stay occupied this summer, both inside and outside.

So, we got him a 2-pack of jump ropes – the good ones with the beads so they swing easier. We got him a 4-pack of water guns so we can have family water gun fights. He got a paddle ball type game so he can hit the water ball back and forth outside this summer. He also got the game Rat-a-Tat-Cat (HUGE hit), and a Gravity Marble Maze. The grandparents sent him the classic Marbles game, nerf guns and tactical gear, walkie talkies, and a math dice game. Travis’ sister and her family sent a super fun game called Go Nuts for Donuts. And my parents got him a ukulele and binoculars. To say he made out like a bandit is an understatement.

Quarantine Birthday Dinner

Now, that’s a lot of presents, so we tried to stretch the fun out over a couple of days to make the whole week seem special. We let him open one the day before his birthday which he LOVED. Then the morning of he got to pick another one. Later that afternoon, my parents came over for a special dinner and he got to open some more! Oh, and of course there were balloons all day long!

About that special dinner. Boy does this kid have good taste. He wanted CRAB! And of course, Panera macaroni and cheese. Our neighbors happened to mention this amazing container of crab meat they got from a local restaurant, Franco’s. It did not disappoint. The lumps of crab meat were as big as a quarter! And buying already picked crab meat meant that we could actually eat the meat instead of picking it for someone else. We also picked up 2 pounds of shrimp when we placed our order. SO. GOOD. My parents picked up the Panera mac-n-cheese, along with a salad, sandwiches, and a baguette (family meal deal), and some local corn. Nana made the cake. All of these meals were curbside pickup, which meant the only interaction was taking a bag of food.

To say this was be best party might not be fair, but both kids did say “This is the best quarantine birthday!” So apparently, we did something right. We made sure to make the day all about him, and he was so happy.

Have Your Kids Celebrated a Quarantine Birthday?

And that’s not all folks! We had a socially distant cupcake and singing party on Saturday morning so we could at least see some friends and neighbors and they could wish him a happy birthday in person. We set up a table at the end of the driveway with cupcakes and sanitizer. My aunt picked up birthday hats and photo props and played photographer during the “party.” It was hot. The cupcakes melted a bit, but little man felt the love from our neighbors and family. And this was DEFINITELY a birthday he will remember. Plus, we will take all those photos my aunt took and make a scrapbook for him on Snapfish!

What have you done to make special events like birthdays special during the quarantine? Share your ideas. Because we might need them if there is a second wave in the fall when our big girl turns 8!