McDonald’s McCelebrations for Z’s 4th Birthday, Part 2

If you are considering McDonald’s McCelebrations for your little one’s birthday party, read on to know our experience about having one. I recently posted the first part about the party inclusions as well as the requests I had. You can read it here. Let me tell you how the day of event went on this post.

McDonald’s McCelebrations parties usually run for 1.5 hours. Depending on the number of guests and the policy of the specific store, the party hours can be extended up to 2 hours. With this in mind, I sent out a message to all our guests a couple of days earlier requesting them to be on time so we can maximize the allotted time slot. The party was set at 4PM. I was happy that we had a good weather as it had been raining everyday earlier in the week.

On The Day Party Preparations

Given Z’s growing aversion to small party places and bad sound system, he didn’t like to enter the party area at first. And we didn’t even had any music turned on during this time!

The shift manager worked on the sound system and started playing nursery rhymes at low volume which got the curiosity of the little boy until he voluntarily entered the party area. The volume was eventually increased at a comfortable level and we were all set.

They also had pink balloons hanging from the ceiling as part of the decor. The crew took down the pink balloons from the ceiling when they saw that Z is a boy. They also apologized as they assumed that the celebrant was a girl. LOL! I asked if they will change it to blue but it looks like they ran out of balloons. It was okay with me since the place already had a lot of balloons all over. Besides, I only had a handful of kids included in the guest list.

Main Event – McDonald’s McCelebrations Birthday Bash for Z

The program started off with a prayer led by my Mom then games for both kids and adults. Though I think the adults had more fun! LOL!

Then the food was served. And when everyone was almost finished eating, Grimace made his appearance.

The Mommy blew the cake for the little boy.

Of course, birthday wishes won’t be amiss. Mama Nana and Ninang RB gave their well wishes for the little boy.

The little boy distributed his loot bags to his buddies 🙂

Here’s a few more photos from the party:

This Momma’s Feedback

All in all, party planning with McDonald’s was easy and the party itself was a headache-less event. I actually had fun. Here are some great points:

1. Plus points for allowing customized themes and additional decors.
2. The crew was easy to talk to and they were all very helpful. Even when I was still inquiring about their packages, they have answered all the questions that I’ve had. They also patiently discussed with me the options I have – i.e. food packages.
3. I love their sound system. The quality of the sound was not painful to the ears. And they don’t put on any of their brand jingles, too. They played a few dance music, nursery rhymes and birthday songs.
4. The party host was great. Her name is Eunice and she knows how to get reactions from the crowd. She didn’t need to shout or exaggerate to get attention. Also, the games she had were easy and fun. I was even able to get some ideas for games this Christmas. Hahaha!
5. I love the party area of McDonald’s El Pueblo. The place was bright and spacious.
6. I definitely loved their game prizes, too. None of those small items that could be hazardous for small kids.

A few suggestions:

1. While I was happy that Grimace made his appearance, I was a bit disappointed that he lacked energy during his dance performance. It would be nice if mascots are a little bit more energetic to keep up with the party vibe. And it looked like Grimace needed a lot of “surgery” as he had areas that needed stitching and his padding kept dropping off. But I do appreciate the effort of him showing up despite his “condition”. Hahaha!
2. It would be nice if the crew danced with Grimace during his performance. You know, just to add some good vibes to it.
3. I didn’t know when the program ended. It seemed that the program ended after Z gave away his loot bags. But I wasn’t too sure. Maybe some birthday wishes for the celebrant and a thank you message from the crew will be a good idea to indicate the end of the program.
4. It would be nice if the store had a few birthday candles for emergencies. 🙂
5. I hope McDonald’s eventually come up with an online party reservations. It was not really easy trying to visit stores to inquire for party schedules. I was lucky enough that the venue I chose was relatively near my place and just a couple of blocks away from my work place so it was easy going to it.

Thank You

I just had to really emphasize this. McDonald’s El Pueblo crew made the party planning and the party itself so easy for me. And I would like to thank them. Shift Managers Steff (left photo) and Sheryl (not in photo) for being patient in answering all my queries and providing me the options and suggestions. To Eunice, the party host (middle photo), for giving life to the party without exaggeration. It was fun! I was not able to get the name of the one who escorted Grimace and assisted with the candle blowing and distribution of giveaways.

So there. I highly recommend McDonald’s El Pueblo if you are planning to book a McDonald’s McCelebrations party. Apart from having ample parking space, the crew are very helpful and accommodating. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. It was definitely a hassle-free party. 🙂