My son’s fifth birthday is approaching fast. We were more than surprised when he showed very little sadness about the realistic possibility that our family of four might be his only “guests.” We stressed and fretted over how we would break the news to him. When we finally did, he replied, “Will I still get cake and presents?” We reassured him that he would still have presents, decorations, cake, and a lot of fun. He literally shrugged, smiled, said “O.K!” and then ran off to his room to play. The promise of the same birthday routine, even without the guests, seemed to seal the deal for him. Whew.

When I sat down to begin planning his party: I flipped open my laptop to type in “Amazon” when I stopped myself. I realized there is no reason not to support local businesses in this situation. For a party that meets his minimal, four-year-old standards, I realized I only needed four things: 1) presents 2) cake 3) decorations 4) activities. With plenty of curbside pickup and delivery options through local stores, it seemed like a no-brainer. I decided that I can, and will, support small business by shopping for the cake, presents, and decorations locally.

Presents

The present that my son wants the very most is a huge set of “Magna-Tiles.” Of course they are available through Amazon, but I was pleased to find them (for the same price!) at a local toy store in N.W. Portland called Thinker Toys. I was also excited to find several other awesome items like an electronic hedgehog that you can build, kid-friendly bows and foam arrows, and a “butterfly live garden” with a cup of 5 caterpillars! With this set, and its materials, you are given everything you need to watch caterpillars turn to butterflies over a three-week time period. My son caught a glimpse of it while I was researching and about burst with excitement. It looks like I will have plenty to shop for on this website. Presents, check!

Cake

It looks like I have plenty of options for local bakeries here in Portland. There are too many, really. Award-winning bakeries, vegan bakeries, etc. So, for this choice: I had to search for something that was not too fancy or sophisticated with ingredients (because he likes a basic cake) and something that would provide cute, kid-centered decorations on the cake. After narrowing it down, I chose Piece of Cake Bakery in Sellwood.Their basic chocolate cake “Chantilly: the ultimate chocolate cake” has been voted “best birthday cake in the city” at one point in time. They also offer amazing decoration variations. As soon as I saw a Niffler cake in their gallery (“Niffler” is a character from “Harry Potter” series, and the “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” movie), I knew this bakery was the winner. Cake, check!

Decorations

I can say with confidence that we already know where we are getting our party supplies; and it is a beautiful, local, small business. The store is called Party Surprise. They have two locations: East Portland and Gresham. We stumbled into this place by accident one day. As we were leaving our local Jamba Juice, we noticed an adorable store with beautiful decorations in the window. When we walked in, all our mouths dropped in astonishment. Huge, gliding character balloons were everywhere. Massive amounts of whimsical decorations overloaded the place. We were in shock that we didn’t know the place existed before. Until then, we had always gone to Party City. My daughter and I whispered to each other at that very moment that this would be our party supply place forever, ha-ha. We spent what seemed like hours in there, perusing the goods. Even better than the atmosphere and supplies was the employees. The owner gave my kiddos lollipops and encouraged them to look at, and touch, several of her enticing toys. Great experience. With the pandemic, their hours and locations are limited, but we will certainly be shopping there for our party decorations. Decorations, check!

Activities

While planning the activities, I realized we have an opportunity to support small businesses for this party category too. Some of our activities require things we don’t have just lying around the house. My son is thrilled for us to do the silly “donut string game.” If you are not familiar with this game, the idea for it is hilarious. You tie donuts to strings, and then hang them from something. The participants are then required to eat the donut while it’s tied to the string. The goal is to eat the whole donut without any of it dropping to the ground. The hard part is that the participants’ hands must be tied behind their backs. Our favorite local donut shop is called Heavenly Donuts in Portland. We eat there way too often, so I am sure they are open during this unconventional time of a pandemic. We will definitely buy our donuts from there for this game. 

The other game he is excited to do is a “prize walk.” This is a simple game that is like musical chairs. Put the number of guests on numbered cards on the floor in a circle (in our teeny, tiny party, there will only be four!). Start some music, have the guests walk on the numbers. When the music stops, a number is called. Whoever is standing on the number that is called wins a prize. I am excited to shop for these cute prizes. I figure I will get some sweets or candy, wrap them, and put them in the “adult prize” section for me and my hubby. For the kids prize section, I will pick some toys out from an adorable, local store, MudPuddles Toys and Books. I have never heard of it before today: but it only took me a second to fall in love with their products when I looked online at their catalog. “Days of the week” bath fizzies for $5.99? Sold. So many cute, simple, engaging products. A great selection of puzzles and books as well. A few presents may be added to my son’s pile from this store too. Games, check!

Embracing Local Nature

Aside from games, we will also do a nature scavenger hunt at my son’s favorite park on his birthday: Nadaka Nature Park. Although the playgrounds are currently closed in Portland, we are still able to legally use trails for walking adventures. This park has 12 acres of land, including a beautiful trail that is filled with sights, sounds, and is rich in history. Every time we come to this park, my daughter tries her hardest to spook her little brother by saying in a matter-of-fact tone, “You know: legend has it that you can still smell campfire smoke and hear campers singing summer camp songs in these woods…” His eyes grow as big as saucers, and my husband and I erupt into laughter every time. She says this statement because there is an information board that relays the park history to its visitors. The board really does say that “if you listen carefully, you can hear the songs and smell the campfire smoke,” ha-ha. The park was used for summer camps through a Camp Fire program for many years, beginning the summer of 1956. Here is a picture of my kiddos posing by the “spooky” info board.

Lately, we have had fun bringing little scavenger hunt boards (I scored them from the Target dollar section!). They have items like “yellow leaf,” “log,” “ant,” and many other items that are easy to find outside. It would be easy to make your own if you can’t find them at beloved Target. Just yesterday, we sat quietly and watched a huge bunny for about ten minutes. On his birthday, we will probably take our walk at Nadaka in the early evening to wind down from the birthday festivities. 

I am thrilled that even during this pandemic, we will still be able to celebrate my son’s birthday. Our small family of four will embrace and support local goods while being wrapped up in beautiful, Oregon nature. And the best part is that he is thrilled about all our plans. Grateful for Portland, its environment, and its amazing selection of small businesses. We are all doing a wonderful job modifying our lives to this “new normal.” Best of luck to you all in the adaptation of your upcoming events. I encourage you to shop at local, small businesses when you are able.