The fun part of a first birthday party is the kid having their own cake, as mentioned above. The rest is an adult get-together, and having the kid sit on mom or dad's lap while they open the presents for the kid. BTDT. The second birthday is when they start getting an idea of what to do, but still much the same. By the third birthday, it's game on. I enjoy the birthday parties as a chance to have a get-together, and make the kid the center of the day. They need that once in a while, especially since we have 4 of them! If you were in central Ohio, I have a hookup for bounce houses! 3 of our kids have birthday's in the warmer months, and we get a bounce house for at least one of them. We've always just had the parties here, but have friends that have done everything from McDonald's, bowling alley, churches, parks, pretty much any activity that kids like, birthday parties have been done there.