Madison Michalko hadn’t planned to have her wedding inside a children’s museum. “But we just knew the moment we walked in that it was perfect,” she remembers.

“It was unique,” she says. “It felt historical, but it felt modern, and it felt rustic. It was everything we were trying to find in one and they had just done such a beautiful job restoring the building.”

The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, which is home to Museum Lab, already had a long history of hosting fantastic children’s birthday parties. Madison and her then-fiancé realized: It was also an amazing place for other kinds of family celebrations.

The experience of hosting a wedding at the museum was wonderful, she says, and it has inspired the couple to return to Museum Lab for their baby shower and now for their baby’s first birthday.

Whether you’re planning a family birthday party, a baby shower, wedding or something else, you might be looking for ways to make the celebration feel extra-special. What kinds of experiences could make the day truly memorable? And how will you keep kids busy so that the grownups can really enjoy your party?

The Children’s Museum has the answers.

CREATIVE EXPERTS PLAN CREATIVE PARTIES

In a place that’s all about innovation and creative thinking, even the parties have that spirit. Madison found that the planning team at the Children’s Museum was eager to help make the day as unique and special as possible.

“We were a pandemic wedding. We were supposed to get married in 2020, but we postponed a full year. So we had a lot of time to just really make it our own. It was very DIY,” she says. The couple wanted to make sure the day captured both their personalities and “that whenever we looked back on it,” everyone would say “that was just so them.”

Photos courtesy of Madison Michalko.

The team at the Children’s Museum was completely on board. They embraced the couple’s decorating ideas and were open to doing things creatively.

“It was a lot of us saying, ‘Hey, is this OK? And they were like, ‘I don’t see why not!’ Or ‘Hey, can we string up lights on this thing?’ And they were like, ‘Yeah, as long as it’s safe!”

Although some aspects of their wedding were traditional, “we did our ceremony in the round on the first floor,” Madison says.

“We were in a complete circle around that tile, with the mosaic in the middle. It was just so powerful, that feeling of literally being surrounded by your loved ones. I think that was the best part. We met in the middle to an upbeat song, and it was just really magical.”

Photo courtesy of Madison Michalko.

MORE PARTIES, MORE JOY

The magical memories were still echoing as Madison’s extended family thought about where to celebrate the impending birth of the couple’s first child.

“My amazing sister planned our baby shower, and it was a surprise to us. We didn’t know the theme or the location or anything like that, until we got the invitation,” Madison says. “She wanted to have this full-circle moment. She knew how much the Museum Lab meant to us and how beautiful and fun the space is.”

The joyful theme: Camp Michalko. Guests were dressed to go camping, a tent was set up in the middle of the room and there were plenty of s’mores for everyone.

Madison’s face lights up when she describes the day: “It was just curated to perfection. It was so sweet and so — again — so us. It was really casual, and I wanted it to be not just about me. It was about my husband and I.”

Photo courtesy of Madison Michalko.

Perhaps the best part: The baby shower was in the Learning Lab space, where there was plenty for everyone to do — including, of course, the kids.

Little ones could run around and explore a range of activities, including “this really cool interactive exhibit,” Madison says.

A bonus: Guests of a party at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh or Museum Lab get free admission to both spaces for the entire day.

The baby shower was wonderfully memorable and for Madison and her family, the memories won’t end there. This month, her daughter turns one year old. Guess where her first birthday party will be happening?

“I reached out and Museum Lab was available, and it was actually the same person who helped my sister plan our baby shower,” Madison says. “I love the idea — it kind of tickles me — that that will bring us all together again.”