Celebrate : Party at the Park

We threw a great bash for Kristina and her family to wish them a hearty farewell a few weeks ago. I decided to rent a local park shelter for the occasion.  It turned out to be a huge hit and we received many compliments. I put together a basic checklist of things that made the party a success.  I will reference this list next time I throw a party at a park and I hope it will help you too!

Choose a time and day for your party. Ask the person it is honoring what is good for them. If they have young children be sure to choose a time around their nap schedules.

Choosing a park. There are some important features to consider when choosing a park.
City. I knew I would be furnishing many items for the party so I choose a park in the city I lived in. My city was within 40 minutes for most of the guests. This choice helped me to make sure the party was a success. A stressed out host is palpable at a party. Make it easy on yourself. You will also most likely save money if you rent a shelter in the city in which you reside.
Restrooms. Choose a park with restrooms. It’s a relief for everyone. Your guests will be able to stay longer and enjoy themselves.
Shelter. It is nice to have a shelter with some tables.
Shade. Parks with nice old trees that provide shade are well worth it. The weather is unpredictable and this builds some natural relief into your plan.
Playground. This will provide entertainment for the children.
Grass field. Fields are a nice place to play and allow people to stretch out their legs.
Privacy. Notice if there are baseball fields or other sports fields that may cause the area you are renting to be crowded at the time of the party.  When you obtain your permit ask the parks and recreation person about parks and shelters they recommend and why. Also be sure to ask them about other happenings at the park that day.
Why a park? This allowed me to be slightly removed from worry. I was not worried about enough space and messes. It takes some of the responsibility off of the host and it makes everyone more responsible for themselves. Our house could have held that many people, but it would have been tight and I would have been more stressed. I didn’t have to clean my house before or after. It helped me to focus on Kristina not on other worries. This gave everyone the space to relax.
Obtain your permit and bring it with you to the party.

Send out an evite. I decided a general menu in my mind. I brought the main dish and asked others to bring sides. I asked them to RSVP with what they will bring so others had a better idea on how to help. I had a list of ideas for people to work off of. Here it is to give you an idea.
I brought New York City Fare.
Coney Dogs (I cooked them in a crock-pot and brought the crock-pot to serve them in. They stayed warm the whole time.)
NY Subs (I ordered them from Subway and had them keep the veggies on a side platter. This kept the subs for getting soggy and then everyone could add their own fixings.   I requested a variety of breads and cheeses. I avoided american and pepper jack cheese. American melts too fast and pepper jack was not a good choice for me with so many children at the party.)
Brooklyn Style Pizza. I ordered pizza to the park as well.

I asked everyone to bring something to share and I suggested:
Drinks:
A cooler of water bottles
A cooler of kids drinks
A cooler of soda
A cooler of beer (if you do this be sure your permit for the park covers alcohol)

Salads:
Cole Slaw
Potato Salad
Green Salad
Frog Eye Salad
Fruit Salad

Sides:
Chips and Dip
Fruit

Desserts:
Cup Cakes
Cookies
Brownies

Be sure your guests know the date, time, location and the general theme and happenings of the party.

I also asked the guests to bring:
Picnic blankets and Camping Chairs. I reminded them of this a few days before the party. This was a HUGE part of the success of the party. There was not going to be enough places for every one to sit. This allowed for everyone to stretch out. We were not all crammed around the shelter. Even if there are enough seats I recommend this. It was a GREAT addition to the party.

Extra items to bring to the party.

Table Clothes. I just bought disposable plastic table clothes. Sometimes those tables are sticky and nasty. I also suggest tape or clips to hold them down and help the kids not pull on them. The table clothes took us 30 minutes to set up, but it was well worth it! It also looked nice and clean and inviting.

Mason Jars with Water and Flowers. I bought a few boxes of large mason jars and a few flower arrangements at Costco and I arranged them at my house before the party. I cut the flowers short to fit in the jars. I filled them with water and arranged them the morning of the party. This took a good hour. I placed the jars back in the box once they were arranged and ready.  This is not necessary, but pretty. Atmosphere and aesthetics are important to me.

Plates, Napkins, Silverware. I just took the top off of the box of silverware and used that as a way to set it out. It worked fine. Consider this when purchasing your plastic ware.

Wet Wipes. This is a little thing that is awesome to have.

Bug Spray. Bring a bottle to share for everyone. It’s worth it just in case.

Sun Screen. Bring a bottle of 50 to share. You don’t want your guests to be uncomfortable or burned.

The Park permit.

Directions to the park. I emailed them to the guests the day of as well. I know with GPS’s on every phone it’s not necessary, but sometimes old-fashioned directions and hints are helpful. Leave your cell phone number too just in case anyone gets lost.

Entertainment. We hired an awesome children’s singer and entertainer for the party,Jeff Kagan. The kids loved it. This is not necessary, but it was nice. Another idea would be a band. Or keep it simple. If there is a field suggest people bring baseballs and gloves, or frisbees or a volleyball or any ideas you have that suit your guests, your park and your theme. I had my son bring his glove and baseball and a few other kids did too and they all had a blast.

I asked a girl friend to come early and help me set up. This was a great help. We put the table cloths on, the flowers, set out the bug spray and sun block. We designated a place for the drinks on an out-of-the-way space in the shelter. We designated four tables for food; one for subs, hot dogs and fixings, one for pizza, one for desserts and, one for sides and salads. Even though this took up 4 of our 8 tables it made it easy to get to the food. We also set out our blankets and chairs ahead to suggest areas for people to do the same.

I am by no means the party master. This is just one party plan, it maybe just a springboard, a place to start in helping you think of things for your party. It will also help me remember what worked at the last party I threw at a park.  Celebrate Life!