Pickleball Possibility #001
CAMP DINK & DIVE
40TH BIRTHDAY WEEKEND - DESTINATION
Welcome to the FIRST edition of “Pickleball Possibilities.” This will be a semi-regular (weekly maybe but no promises) where I showcase a hypothetical or real-life Pickleball Party! The goal is to showcase a range of - well - possibilities to hopefully inspire you to plan your next event! The world is better with connection so why not be the one to create more of it! My goal is to get to 100 one day!
For our maiden voyage of Pickleball Possibility, I’ll be pulling from a REAL LIFE example. This example is a special one for me because it’s the event that led to the inspiration for Pickleball Party Planners — my 40th birthday party!! As of the date I’m writing this, we are T minus 12 days from the big event and the anticipation is ASTRONOMICAL.
Party Purpose: My 40th birthday!
Party Type: Multi-day Destination
Party Name: CAMP DINK & DIVE
Party Tag Line: “Ceci turns FORTY on the Courty”
Location: Airbnb in Pittsburg, Texas (2-2.5 hours drive from DFW)
Duration: 3 nights (Thursday afternoon to Sunday morning)
Number of Guests: 10
Make-Up of Guests: 5 couples
Theme: A Summer Camp for Adults! Think camp counselor energy. You’re the Camp Director and you’re hosting your campers to an active, kid-free weekend where friendly rivalries will be born and pickleball addictions will be sparked.
Food & Beverage: Each couple signs up for a meal to make or order for the group + BYOB
Joy Details:
Camp themed-invitations with a custom party logo which includes a “Welcome Campers" note, Packing List, Cabin (room) Assignements, Intros to all the Campers, and a high-level itinerary
Group Chat titled “Camp Dink & Dive” with a chat icon of the party logo
Custom shirts with the party logo and everyone’s chosen Pickleball names
Goofy prizes for an Award ceremony to close out the weekend
Budget: $$$
Itinerary:
Thursday: Arrivals, dinner, hot tub dip
Friday:
Morning: Camp Orientation and Pickleball 101
Afternoon: Swimming & Free Time
Evening: Round Robin & Fireside Chats
Saturday:
Morning: Tournament style play
Afternoon: Swimming & Free Time
Evening: Silly games
Sunday: Camp breakdown & departures
Check out some of the pre-party touches that have helped get the group excited for the big event!
This type of event could also work great for a close knit group of friends or extended families looking for an excuse to meet up! Just be sure that if you’re inviting newbies or beginners, you let them know what to bring and also plan enough time to get them familiar with the game on the first full day before jumping into more structured play!
Happy Pickling!!
Cecilia
*I know I used some em-dashes but this post is 100% NON-AI. Please do not mistake this disclaimer to mean that I feel I’m a better person for not using AI here (because I use it ALL the time and would be lost without ChatGPT). I just noticed that sometimes I find myself reading content and being distracted by the thought of how much of it was an LLM versus the person/organization/author and don’t want you to wonder the same! :)
