Those of you who have had children, and particularly boys, will remember what boy's birthday parties can be like, especially in your own home. To invite 10 - 12 boys around, supply them with food and drink and then encourage them to play games is a recipe for disaster that usually ends with all the boys in a heap on the floor in some reconstruction of a previous Power Ranger's battle.

It was with trepidation therefore that we considered what to do for Ben's 6th Birthday in January.

The answer was quite simple, make use of the local facilities, in this case the Tithe Barn in Horstead, provide an Entertainer, in this case Fun Force, provide your own food and drink and invite as many as you want.

In the event we combined his birthday party with that of his friend Holly and invited their whole class together with Ben's and Holly's relatives, in total 41 children.

That it all went very well was a tribute to Ben's and Holly's mums for their organisational skill, the entertainer for his excellent work, the venue itself and not least the behaviour of the 41 children.

We hear many complaints about how badly behaved children are nowadays but all these children were well behaved and enthusiastic. A compliment to their parents and teachers.

Of course we still have the problem of what to do next year!

M D