Have You Put Out Your Flamingos Yet?

My neighbor and friend Marion has been telling us about "Flamingo Friday" since she moved here from Baltimore.  Being the big fan of themed-parties that I am, I waited and waited for the parties to get started and finally decided to take matters into my own hands.  I hunted through our local party store for classic pink lawn flamingos and stuck them in her yard to encourage her to get Flamingo Fridays started with our neighborhood.  It worked.  Marion and her family handed out literally hundreds of very pink flyers explaining the party (she gave some to us too and my kids had a blast knocking on doors and explaining the party to everyone), and now we are approaching our 4th Flamingo Friday this week.  Here's how to get Flamingo Friday started in your neighborhood:

Flamingo Friday is designed to help you host the most inexpensive, least time-consuming party this summer.  It's also designed to help you get invited to a party close enough to walk to each week.  It's a win-win.  First you need to get a pair of pink flamingos.  I found ours ("Ozzy and Harriet") at the local party store for about $5 each.  Each Wednesday, someone in the neighborhood displays the flamingos prominently in their yard to serve as an "invitation" to everyone that they are the hosts on Friday.  On Friday evening, the hosts put out 2 drinks- a cocktail for the adults and a non-alcoholic drink for the kids.  All this can be done in the front yard or driveway.  The point is that you don't have to spend hours cleaning your house for this event.  During the party, if someone needs to use the restroom, they can simply walk back home.  That's it.  No snacks even.  Marion's point on that one is that if she puts out chips at her party, I might want to put out chips and dip and then YOU might feel like you should up the ante a bit and have cocktail weenies.  This is a no-fuss, no-frills way to have a simple summer gathering and get to know your neighbors.  You know me- I love it and I've spent way too much time looking for flamingo wear for my family (I am particularly proud that I found a flamingo shirt for my husband too- yay for Ebay!).  So today is the day to get your flamingos out and let everyone know you're hosting the party on Friday.  Just tell them you got the idea from Marion =) And by the way, if you check out the photo of Marion and me, you might start to wonder if a love of crazy themed parties might just be a redhead thing.  And do note my sequined flamingo sweater- it arrived just in time for the Flamingo Friday party we had in our front yard- I couldn't have wished for a better themed sweater!

Comments

[Lisa]

great idea!!

[Kelly Lyons]

Fun idea- great sweater!! Is your husband going to model his flamingo shirt, too?

[Shelli]

What a fun idea! Must find some flamingos.

[Cindy Pratte & Clay Miller]

One week after we moved into the neighborhood, we found ourselves attending the neighborhhod's inaugural Flamingo Friday party-- we were blown away by this new breed of neighbor who actually wants to get to know the folks living next door and down the street. We were also taken back to our childhood summers where kids played ghost in the graveyard and ran around catching creepy crawlies and fireflys (in mason jars!) while the adults drank gin and tonics on the porch and truly enjoyed eachother's company. Since then we have been to numerous FF parties and have loved every single one, but the real beneficiaries are the children in the neighborhood whose lifelong sense of community connectedness and appreciation for plain 'old fashion' childhood fun is certain to be shaped by these warm summer memories made possible by Angela's Flamingo Friday movement. We hope the Flamingo Friday tradition trives here in Rolling Hills Reno, NV and spreads far and wide so that others can join in on the fun.