The new Shepard policy of no birthday parties in the house rolled onward with Stella and 11 friends yesterday at the always-popular Bounce-U.
Five years ago Marni missed her first birthday party due to a high fever that sent her to the hospital. Yesterday, Stella's birthday bash was nearly cancelled because Stella was still hanging onto a week-long fever.
We kept Stella home from school (again) in hopes that rest (and Motrin) would allow her to rally for the big event.
It was going to happen with or without her.
Luckily, by 2:30 Stella was rested, fever-free, and raring to go.
After viewing the mandatory safety video, the girls were led into bounce room 1 and the party got started.
I've never been to Bounce-U before, and I have to say that it's pretty cool. The girls ran from one bounce-castle to the next with Lisa and I following (and joining) along.
After 40 minutes in room 1, we were moved to the even more awesome room 2 which included an amazing climbing tower.
After another 40 minutes, the sweaty dozen were herded into the party room for pizza, soda and cake.
The final tally... 5 bandages dispensed. 1 ice pack applied. 1 nose bleed attended to.
Five years ago a construction project started just inches away from our apartment, on property that once was a BP gas station. Actually, the construction project for a 12-story apartment building was so close to our home that part of our patio was taken over by the construction company.
All was going well until the smell came back, worse than ever.
We were able to keep the fumes at bay by closing all the windows and running the air conditioners 24/7. But, on April 26th, the smell got unbearable. Several people in the building called 311. Others wrote urgent emails to the co-op board to find out what was happening and what they could do to be safe from the fumes. We decided to evacuate and I rushed home from work.
Unfortunately, all the hotels in Park Slope were booked. Eventually I was able to find a Days Inn in nearby Sunset Park that had a room available for Thursday and Friday. Lisa and I hurriedly packed our stuff and headed out to pick up the kids at Beansprouts.
The kids were excited to be staying at a hotel, but mommy and daddy were a little less than thrilled with our accommodations. Parking was nonexistent. The front desk was enclosed in bulletproof glass. And, as we headed up to our room, a questionably insane woman in the elevator leaned over to Lisa and told her the rooms had bedbugs. Just what we needed.
The room was tiny. The blankets were disgusting. Lisa and I put up a brave front to keep the kids happy. And we went to bed.
Breakfast at Days Inn
We survived the first night. Stella and Marni were overjoyed to eat breakfast in the little hotel restaurant.
After breakfast I packed up the kids and drove back to the apartment. From there we went to school as usual.
Luckily, Friday was a very breezy day and the smell dissipated. We decided to forego the hotel room and stayed at home.
The following Wednesday the smell returned and Lisa booked a hotel room for three days at a nearby La Quinta Inn. So, again, we evacuated.
Breakfast at La Quinta
The La Quinta ended up being pretty acceptable. Larger room. Less scummy. And in our neighborhood.
We stayed there three nights and then headed to Albany for the weekend.
On Sunday night we checked into Hotel Le Bleu which is directly across the street from our apartment. We instantly fell in love with the snazzy accommodations. Big room. Great beds. Cool bathroom. And a nice restaurant on the roof of the building.
Ever since the first evacuation we had decided to look for a short-term sublet so we could escape the fumes for a month or two. Our luck changed for the better when we found out that a fellow PS 39 family had an empty apartment in their brownstone that we could move into.
And so, on Monday, we moved a bunch of our stuff into our new, temporary home in Park Slope.
Now we have a little bit of stability while we wait for the foundation work to be completed at the construction site.
The girls are happy. Lisa is coping. I am relieved.
In a couple of months we will look back at this challenge and chuckle. Maybe.
But, for now, the important thing is that we are okay.
PS... There were no bedbugs.
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It took 6 years, but I finally got Marni's birthday party out of the house... and into a bowling alley.
Previous parties have been wonderful, but have left the apartment in a shambles.
This year Lisa relented and, after checking out several venues, we settled on Maple Lanes... a nearby Brooklyn bowling alley.
On Saturday, April 21st, the tiny bowlers spread across three lanes and bowled their little hearts out for an hour before retiring to the private party room for lunch and cake.
As the cheery party guests headed home, the Shepard and Hoffman families jumped into their cars and headed for part 2 of the birthday festivities... Coney Island.
The 4 cousins whipped through the 40 dollars of ride tickets in record time. Once that was done we moved over to Nathan's for an early dinner of hot dogs and fries.
The next day Marni got her new bicycle from Nana and Papa, and completed a scavenger hunt in the apartment to find all her presents from mommy and daddy.
And so ended the most tranquil and stress-free birthday in Shepard family history.
The party guests
Coney Island
Sitting with the loot
The new bike
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