Here’s How You Can Still Rock Your Birthday Party in Quarantine

There are several very exciting events that happen annually, including the holiday season–with a few drunken relatives, over-repeated questions about your love life, and the unavoidable weight gain–when school lets out for summer–with kids going haywire and parents questioning why they even had children as they return home from school for three months–and most importantly of all, your birthday.

While everything else is currently being tiptoed around due to this miserable Coronavirus outbreak, your birthday deserves to be an exception. It’s important to stay quarantined, however, this doesn’t mean your birthday has to be a complete and total dud. Those who have to celebrate during this time have come up with an abundance of creativity to celebrate, and while everyone has their own version of a quarantined birthday, there are a few key components for still making it a day all about you, regardless of the status of the rest of the world.

 

Group Video Chats

Assuming you’re anywhere between the ages of 12-50, the odds of you understanding and appreciating the technology that enables you to view and chit chat with friends and family without leaving the comfort of your own home are pretty high, which makes group video chats a perfect substitute for real life birthday parties. Flora, a graduate from Bryant University, used her computer to celebrate recently. “I dressed up and took photos, had a Zoom call with my whole family, [and] did other Zoom calls with friends,” she says. “It was really cute, and I had a great day!”

 

A Theme

Remember that one time you went to an awesome non-themed party? That one where nobody dressed up, drank basic drinks, and got an average number of Instagram likes? Me neither. It’s your birthday and you’re stuck at home which, let’s be honest, is b-o-r-i-n-g. So how do you make literally any party way more fun? Add a theme, duh! Have everyone you’re quarantined with–and your friends from the group video chat you’re definitely doing–dress up like it’s the colorful 80s, when times weren’t quite so rough. Host a paint and sip, or order decorations off of Amazon and decorate like it’s a luau, complete with umbrellas for your homemade piña coladas, and top it all off with that grass skirt you bought a few years ago for whatever ridiculous reason. Feel like keeping up with current trends? Have a safari-themed party, with everyone doing their best take on the Tiger King or Carole Baskin. If you really want it to be all about you, have your group dress up as you, because why not?

 

Games

While this might take a little more work, it has loads of fun potential. Sure, you have to plan out exactly which games you’ll play and send out the rules via email or massive group text, but it will be worth it. For example, you can host virtual costume contests, create virtual scavenger hunts (go find your favorite shack shirt, for example), have a cake bake-off so everyone can enjoy a slice, break out your new Switches, or simply do drinking games that you would play if you were all in person (King’s Cup, anyone?). If you’re really into the theme idea, make all of your games relevant to whichever you choose!

 

An Elaborate Dinner

Naturally, your birthday typically means that all of your friends will join you at your favorite restaurant for a nice birthday dinner. This year, however, will be different. That said, it should not only be respected, but assumed that your roommates or family (basically whoever you’re quarantined with) will help you put together the same meal you’d like to order if you were capable of going to your favorite restaurant. Would you order shrimp fettuccini alfredo with a Caesar salad and some kind of appetizer? Nicely ask your quarantine crew to pitch in and help make your favorite meal a reality. While this might be a little more complicated, your friends will understand that it’s your day, and you’ll have an extravagant dinner if you want to.

 

Cake

No matter what else the day brings, it has to include your absolute favorite cake, topped with candles for you to blow out. That’s just, like, the number one rule of birthdays, and Xandie, a graduate from Northeastern University, gets it. “I baked myself a cake and dressed up and took pics,” she says. Basically a really chill birthday due to the quarantine.” See? Birthday cake is so crucial.

 

Your virtual party can be as elaborate or as minimal as you want it to be–the most important thing is that you’re happy with it! Genevieve, a student at the University of Tasmania, says, “[We] celebrated a friend’s birthday by getting dressed up, [having] a glass of wine and playing music. [It] was a bit weird at first, but [it] put a smile on the birthday girl’s face.” Whatever the age, and no matter the situation, you should make the most of it. The current status of the world presents a few obstacles, but with these tips, you’ll get through it just fine. It is your day, afterall, so enjoy it!

• birthday
• Coronavirus
• COVID-19
• quarantine activities