Nico’s Birthday Party

Today was Nico’s birthday party, at Chuck E. Cheese.  Brandon and I haven’t been to one since we were kids, and in some ways, it hasn’t changed at all..  The fake pop songs are takeoffs of 80’s tunes now, some were clearly Tears for Fears rips (I guess we’re in the sweet spot for parental demographics in there!)  Maybe it’s the way the place assaults an older person’s senses, but overall it seemed to be brighter, louder, and altogether more overwhelming than we remembered.  It was nearly panic-inducing in us, I can’t imagine what it must have been like for Brian, with heightened sensitivities to all of these things.  But, it was for Nico, so we were in it for the long haul, no matter what.  🙂

Brian liked getting a cup of coins to play games with, and we tried a number of games before pizza time.  Then, there was the traditional animatronic band, with pizza and cake, and a special visit from Chuck E. himself.  Brian dealt with all this wackiness like a champ.  There were no meltdowns, but it was pretty much impossible to talk to him, with the sensory overload assaulting him from all sides.  Nico got to go in the Ticket Blaster, which I think was probably a little scary for the kids..!  Brian was worried about him, but was glad when Nico made it out safe and sound.  🙂  I think Brian’s favorite thing was the spinning hot cocoa ride.  He rode it at least 3 times.  He finished up by playing a car racing game with Brandon.  Kendall took it all in stride, and though she had no interest in sitting still, she did okay as long as we held her and kept her moving.  Eventually, we’d all had about as much as we could take, so Brian cashed in his tickets and we called it a day.  I think Brandon and I are scarred enough from the experience that we’ll probably send our regrets the next time we’re invited there, for anybody but Nico!