Backyard Party in August - Too Hot?

[Anonymous]

My son turns 4 in August. He really wants to have a backyard party, we have a great yard for it, and I would love to as well. My problem is,it's HOT here in August! Will everyone be ridiculously uncomfortable? I'm not worried too much about the kids, but I think the parents might be pretty miserable.

Right now I'm inclined to do it -
We'd probably have it in the late afternoon, play outside for a bit (maybe do a sprinkler thing), grill some burgers and dogs, and could bring everyone inside for cake if it's really hot. We could do the whole thing inside if need be (i.e. rain) but that definitely would be less than ideal.

Am I crazy though? Should I give up our plan of a fun family BBQ and just go find a bounce place or the equivalent to have it at?

[Anonymous]

I think your plan sounds great. Check with a few friends on the latest time they could do anf plan for early evening. Get a shade tent and lots of cool beverages for the adults and a sprinkler and water table for the kids.

[Anonymous]

As long as you have some shade, sprinklers or something for the kids to cool off in, and plenty of water on hand to keep everyone hydrated, I think you'll be fine.

[Anonymous]

Definitely set up a canopy/shade tent (these are easy to put up and cheap), but otherwise you should be fine. The weather is so unpredictable anyway -- it was 90+ degrees at the beginning of June.

[Anonymous]

I would do it, just have sprinklers and baby pools. As a parent, if I get hot, I just stand under the sprinkler for a minute to cool off.

[Anonymous]

Is it sunny or shady? Makes a big difference.

[Anonymous]

If there's shade, and an outlet where you can plug in a couple of fans, it'd be okay.

My kid passes out in the heat though, so being outside in the sun in August is a no-go for us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son turns 4 in August. He really wants to have a backyard party, we have a great yard for it, and I would love to as well. My problem is,it's HOT here in August! Will everyone be ridiculously uncomfortable? I'm not worried too much about the kids, but I think the parents might be pretty miserable.

Right now I'm inclined to do it -
We'd probably have it in the late afternoon, play outside for a bit (maybe do a sprinkler thing), grill some burgers and dogs, and could bring everyone inside for cake if it's really hot. We could do the whole thing inside if need be (i.e. rain) but that definitely would be less than ideal.

Am I crazy though? Should I give up our plan of a fun family BBQ and just go find a bounce place or the equivalent to have it at?

In DC we tend to get our thunderstorms sometime between 4 and 6. So consider that.

[Anonymous]

By afternoon, the yard is completely shaded. I probably wouldn't be giving it a second thought, but we did a similar party last year and some of the parents seemed pretty unhappy (but the kids had a blast) and it wasn't even on one of the hottest days. People were welcome to go into the house (and some with infants did) but the party was held outside.

My husband thinks we should probably rent out a place based on our experience last year, but I'd really like to have another big family party instead of moving it to a kiddie place.

We'll have a mix of close friends/family and some family's from my son's school. It's the later I'm worried about (my close friends and family I think would be fine).

[Anonymous]

My vote is the backyard. Those parties are way more fun than a a bounce house.

[Anonymous]

Do you belong to a pool? Have it there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As long as you have some shade, sprinklers or something for the kids to cool off in, and plenty of water on hand to keep everyone hydrated, I think you'll be fine.

+1

[Anonymous]

I'd come with my 4 year old to your party! I'm so tired of the Little Gym/My Gym/bounce place parties.

[Anonymous]

It's often cooler in the morning so that's another possibility.

[Anonymous]

We've done ours in the morning and that's worked out very well.