In England there are no graduation celebrations. At least not for anyone below college age. I don’t recall anyone making a big deal of graduation until college graduation. Traditions may have changed somewhat in England, but back when I was a kid the only people who graduated were those getting a bachelor’s or master’s degree.
These days graduation is a given at preschool, kindergarten, 5th grade, 8th grade, 12th grade, college, and grad school. Some may say that graduation doesn’t mean anything until college, but you know what… I take the view that when you celebrate a graduation you are celebrating not only the person completing preschool or 5th grade, but you are also commending them on all the work they have done that school year. Every little accomplishment doesn’t need a big ceremony, of course. But I do believe in commemorating the big milestones, like preschool graduations.
This past Friday we celebrated my Tween-now-Teen’s graduation from 8th grade. A week before she reminded me that we took her older sister to Dave & Buster’s. I’d forgotten. But, these kids NEVER forget, do they?
We couldn’t go to D&B’s on the day of her actual 8th Grade Transition as her older sister had finals to study for and her younger brother had a doctor’s appointment. Friday was the perfect day to go. We were all available, and my parents were able to join us.
A fun time was had by all. Here’s what we did:
- Before we left, we scurried around the house to find all the Dave and Buster’s cards. We found 3. I’m sure we have others. Of the 3, one had points loaded on it from a recent email promotion. Woohoo!
- We arrived and were shown a table. The adults got seated and we persuaded the kids to sit down and order first. The kids wanted to play games PRONTO!
- We ordered drinks and nachos to tide us over until the main courses arrived.
- We ordered from the Eat & Play Combo Menu — our server Melissa at the Arundel Mills Mall (MD) location recommended this option. Thanks, Melissa! For $23.99 we each were able to get a $20 Dave and Buster’s game card AND to choose from a list of 8 entrees. My son had the Build-Your-Own Soft Tacos. My daughters each ordered BBQ chicken. My parents had the Fried Shrimp Platter. I had the Dave’s Double Cheeseburger. And my husband had the Blackened Chicken Pasta. We all loved our meals.
- With the 3 cards we already had, the Eat & Play Combo was good for the kids. They each had 2 cards a piece. My husband used the 7th card. My Tween-now-Teen added about $5 to one of her cards.
My 8th grader AKA the Tween-now-Teen had a blast. She retrieved 3 stuffed animals from the Claw Machine. Got 100s of tickets from a Spin-the-Wheel game. Traded her tickets in for a Bubble Gum iTouch stand. She had a great time. She still had some credits on her card. We’ll be sure to stow the card in a safe place for the next time we head to Dave & Buster’s!
Want to learn more?
- Visit DaveandBusters.com.
- Find a location near you.
- Follow @DaveandBusters on Twitter.
- Like Dave and Busters on Facebook.
I was not compensated for this post. We had such a good time that I wanted to share our experience with my readers. The views expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.
