The Best Birthday Parties in the Triangle

Birthdays are important milestones for children and whatever is done to celebrate the event is often remembered into adulthood. How many family stories start with, “Do you remember the year that weâÂ?¦”? While birthdays can be fun, they can also cause a lot of stress for busy parents that want their child to have a memorable and unique day. The Triangle offers parents many creative and even educational ways to put on a great birthday party with a minimum of fuss. So relax, birthdays should be fun for parents too!

Mad Science – For young scientists and Harry Potter fans, a Mad Science show offers extraordinary, hands-on fun. Guests create a take home project, either a super bouncy ball or a cup of oozy slime. The Fire and Ice birthday offers experiments from disappearing fireballs to freezing quarters. The Up, Up and Away Birthday will have kids yelling for more as they blow beach balls with a leaf blower and make a hovercraft to ride. Each party has enough education to make a parent feel good and enough fun that kids do not even know that they are learning. If your child has been to previous Mad Science programs, business owner Jeff Leroy is flexible with themes and has done parties ranging from Magic to Dinosaurs. The Basic Party package is $138, additions such as a Cotton Candy machine, rocket car races, and goody bags are available. Contact Jeff Leroy at www.madsciencekidz.com or 919-858-8988. Parties are conveniently held at your home or site of your choice.

North Carolina Museum of Life and Science – The museum is one of the hot spots for kids in the Triangle. The museum features a science play area for little ones, a space exhibit, live animals and rotating exhibits indoors. Outside there is a playground for climbing and sand play, farm animals, a butterfly house, and train rides. Just touring the museum can take all day. The basic party package includes admission for guests, invitations, and a room for 1 hour with a host. Themed packages are also available for 90 minute programs about animals, bugs, magic, or dinosaurs. Basic packages are $150 for members and $175 for non-members, up to 20 guests. Themed parties cost $250 for members, $275 for non-members, up to 12 guests. Create goody bags for $7 per child. For more information see the website at www.ncmls.org or call 919-220-5429. Museum is located at 433 Murray Ave. in Durham.

Paint your own ceramic studios present children with an opportunity to let their artistic side show while creating a lasting memento of their birthday party. Party guests pick a bisque fired ceramic piece to paint and the studio finishes the firing process. There are at least two studios in the Triangle area that offer parties. Paint The Earth on West Franklin Street in Chapel Hill offers packages that start at $11 per child, but their coolest package is called the A to Z Party. The A to Z party is a treasure for the busy parent, a two hour party includes all the art materials, invitations, pizza and drinks, an ice cream treat, paper goods and party favors, and the all important clean-up for $22 per child with a minimum of 6 children. They can be found at www.painttheearth.com or call 919-968-0400. For folks closer to Raleigh, Paint Your Pot in Cary may be more convenient and slightly more economical. Birthday packages range from $9 to $13 per child. This studio is located at the corner of 55 and High House Rd. www.paintyourpot.com or call 919-363-9333.

The Scrap Exchange – This is a truly unique and creative party idea. The Scrap Exchange is a non-profit group that collects donated materials to be used for art projects in community events and education programs. Kids enjoy the freedom to create with a wide range of materials and learn a little about how to keep usable objects from becoming part of the waste stream. Fabric, foam and other scraps become artistic wonders as party guests spend 90 minutes in the Make-and-take room, guests fill a bag with materials they would like to take home. Samples and directions are available to help those looking for inspiration. Fees are $125 for up to 12 guests, $5 for each additional child. Parties also available at your home or site, call for prices. www.scrapexchange.org The Scrap Exchange is located on Foster St. in Durham, call-688-6960.

The Triangle Metro Zoo- A zoo party is close to every child’s heart! Little kids are especially thrilled by a trip through the petting zoo. The Triangle Metro Zoo is a small zoo tucked away in Wake Forest that tends to avoid the overcrowding of eager patrons that is common in larger zoos. The Deluxe Birthday Package includes a guided tour, a reserved spot in the petting area, goody bags, drink and cupcake for each child, a hands-on animal presentation, and a feed cone for each child. The fee for each child is $16.50 and $7.50 for additional parents. A basic package is available for less. Annual pass holders get a 10% discount. Get more information at www.trianglemetrozoo.com or call 919-562-8899.