Gunstock Ranch Birthday Party

One of my kids recently went to a birthday party at Gunstock Ranch.

We drive past the ranch whenever we go to Laie, and I had no idea it was such a popular spot for birthday parties!

At the party there were so many activities - pony rides, petting zoo, a playground, horseshoe, cornhole, roping a pretend calf, and making S'mores!

Gunstock Ranch does not charge by number of guests, and they allow outside food (no alcohol) and vendors (approval needed).  They even offer kama`aina and military discounts!

Gunstock Ranch
56-250 Kamehameha Hwy

Kahuku, HI 96731

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Birthday Party at the Movies

My son, Cade, loves dinosaurs so when we found out Disney and Pixar would be releasing The Good Dinosaur on his birthday, it was like the birthday party gods had given us a gift.

When you throw a birthday party at the movies, you have a lot of different options.  Luckily, at the Mililani Consolidated Theatres there is a party room that you can rent which was perfect for us. 

It's a bit of a gamble as there is no guarantee the theatre will be showing a children's movie the weekend of your party.  You also don't find out the showtime of the movie until the Tuesday before.  For this reason, I decided to include coloring and activity sheets in the goodie bags in case there was a long wait. 

Turns out there wasn't!  We had set up for the party the night before and arrived at the theatre in the morning.  Fifteen minutes later they were escorting us to our seats and passing out the kids' popcorn meals we ordered with the party package.  They called the birthday boy to the front of the theatre and we sang Happy Birthday.  They then let Cade give the projection room orders to start the show!  So much fun! 

After the movie, we went back to the party room where we had lunch and cupcakes.  The kids had lots of space to play.  When you rent the room you are responsible for putting the tables and chairs back, but that's it! 

We loved having a birthday party at the movies!  The staff was excellent and made our party a huge success! 

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Birthday Parties at the Living Art Marine Center

About 3 months ago I started brainstorming where I would have my son's 4th birthday party.  When I queried him, he shouted Chuck E. Cheese!  I considered it, but thought no way.  Too chaotic.  Plus, Cade always seems to get sick (no matter how diligent we are with the hand wipes) after partying with Mr. Cheese.  I thought about holding the party at our house complete with bounce house as entertainment.  Then I remembered how about a third of the kids caught hand, foot and mouth after a friend's bounce house party.  We would be leaving for a Disneyland trip within 5 days of Cade's party and I wasn't going to take any chances (knock on wood).

For many years, I had heard about the Living Art Marine Center, but never visited.  Their reviews on Yelp were mixed, but their party packages fit my needs perfectly.  I chose the Shirts and Shrimp package ($195) which includes making your own Opae Ula pet shrimp home and printing a t-shirt as well as touch and feel sea animals.  I liked how the party would be hosted by a party facilitator, activity based, and that the kids could take home the t-shirts and aquariums instead of a goody bag.  I also really liked that the price included up to 10 children and that the adults were free.  

The Living Art Marine Center is located near the airport and parking is free.  We started the party with pizza from Big Kahuna's in the center's indoor lunch room, which can seat about 30 guests comfortably.  After cupcakes, the children had about an hour for the scheduled activities.  Bill, our facilitator, was great at keeping the children engaged and asking them questions.  I loved how interactive and educational this party was for the kids.  

Class is in session!

The kids had fun customizing their own shrimp aquariums.  

With proper care, the shrimp can live up to 20 years!

The kids were also able to design and print their own shirts.  They could choose from sharks, dolphins, and shells.

This was a very educational birthday party.  The children learned about all kinds of sea life.

We opted for an add on so the birthday boy could feed the eels!

The children wash their hands before touching the sea animals.

Lauren held a strawberry crab.  

The kids enjoyed touching the sea animals the most.

Not only were the parents impressed with all the activities, the kids had a great time.  My 8 year old niece declared it the best party ever.  If you're looking for an affordable, fun and interactive party, the Living Art Marine Center is an excellent choice!


Living Art Marine Center
3239 Ualena Street #100
Honolulu, HI 96819
808-841-8080

Thank you to the Living Art Marine Center for extending a media discount for the party package.  All opinions are my own.

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Chuck E. Cheese's - Honolulu

After seeing a coupon in the MidWeek for a 1 large, 1 topping pizza and 100 tokens at Chuck E. Cheese's for just $25, we decided to take the boys to the Honolulu location.

We ordered a Pepperoni Pizza, which was really good (we love Chuck E. Cheese's Pizzas!).

We also ordered some Breadsticks. They looked a little burnt, but they didn't taste burnt at all.  They were very cheesy and delicious.

We went to Chuck E. Cheese's on a Friday, and it turned out to be a not-so-good day to visit since there were several classes from a couple of different schools visiting for field trips, so you can imagine how many kids were there!

But fortunately the Honolulu location is a lot larger than the Pearl City location - there are a lot more games and rides, and the playground area is a lot larger too.

We love that every single ride or game just costs 1 token!

The boys had a blast and we really enjoyed the lunch deal!

Chuck E. Cheese's: 1199 Dillingham Boulevard  Honolulu, HI 96817; 851-7400

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Tiki Island - Marine Corps Base Hawaii

We recently celebrated DS3's 1st birthday at Tiki Island, which is located on Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

For birthday parties, there are two party packages available to choose from.  Each package includes use of a tent and unlimited play on the bumper boats and miniature golf courses during a 3-hour block. One of the package includes food and drink, but if you prefer, you can customize your own menu just as I did (outside food is not allowed with the exception of celebratory cake and ice cream). 

The Miniature Golf Courses:

The Bumper Boats:

The food was catered from Samuel Adam's Sports Grill, which is right next to Tiki Island, and everything was delicious.

Crab and Artichoke Dip

Spring Rolls

Fruit Platter

Regular and Garlic Fries

Lunch consisted of White Rice (not pictured), Tossed Green Salad with Ranch Dressing (not pictured), and the following:

Teriyaki Beef

Beer Battered Cod

Garlic Chicken

Char Siu Chow Mein

My personal favorites were the Spring Rolls, Garlic Chicken, Cod, and Chow Mein.

Dessert was cupcakes from The Patisserie (ordered through Samuel Adam's):

Carrot Cake

Dobash (even though I ordered Dobash, and the box said Dobash, it was frosted and stuffed with Chantilly icing, so I'm not sure if that's how the Dobash cupcakes are supposed to be or if it was an error - either way I didn't mind, since I prefer Chantilly and the only reason why I ordered Dobash is because @nanigurl said Dobash would be a hit with the kids).

Red Velvet (this happened to be the biggest hit).

Everything at DS3's Tiki Island Birthday party was GREAT!  The food was delicious, the service was wonderful, and everyone simply had a BLAST!

For more information on Tiki Island party packages, click here.

Tiki Island - Marine Corps Base Hawaii: 808-254-1601

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