"You're a glutton for punishment. I wouldn't have a bunch of ten-year-old boys in my house for a party again for anything. The last time that crowd was over here it took a week to repair the damage."



Such were the opinions expressed by the mothers of my ten-year-old son's friends, when I said that my Dick wanted to give a party.

The general opinion seemed to be that the boys could get along very nicely without parties until they reached an age when a general wrestling match was not of such paramount importance in their scheme of things. But how are these youngsters ever going to acquire any of the social graces if they have no chance to practice during their formative years?

With this thought in mind we were more than happy to allow Dick to entertain as many of his friends at a party as he wished, and thereby learn as much about being a host as he could.

Dick telephoned his invitations, "I'm having a few of the fellows over Friday night from seven to nine for an evening of fun. I'd like to have you come over." The boys accepted. An evening party; what a lark! Next Dick and I went over the plans for the evening. As we have no amusement room the games could not be too wild and still they must be wild enough to satisfy the most active. And husky ten-year-olds are plenty active. Some of the games that I would have chosen Dick vetoed as "sissy." Occasionally we suggested a milder version of Dick's idea but eventually we worked out an evening's program.

We had two hours of entertainment for which to plan. Refreshments, of course, would take a while. Dick thought fifteen minutes would be long enough for eating and I thought a half hour. We compromised on twenty minutes, and because our refreshments were light that was about the correct time. That left one hour and forty minutes for games. From past experience with boys' parties (we're blessed with a family of sons) we have learned that the time consumed by the average game is seven minutes. Of course some games take longer and others only a few minutes but seven minutes is a good average. Soon we had a list of fifteen suitable games. Then we went over each game and gathered together any necessary "props" that might be needed so as to avoid any delay between games.

Proper time management during the game is very important. Too long time in one game can lessen the excitement of young one's heart. Never make the game too long nor to short. Let all the party boys enjoy the party fully.