News and photos

Issue No 35:
14 February 2006

Welcome to our thirty-fifth PartyChitChat. Just to let you know our news first:

• We have updated The Search For The Truth and One Of The Girls. If you have already purchased one of these kits and would like to be sent the updated version, please let us know via info@merrimysteries.com.
• We have created a new small standard version of The Luck Of The Irish for Saint Patrick's Day for 10 to 16 guests.

In this issue, we have articles about:

• Our photo competition winners
• Decoration competition winner.

Happy Valentines Day!

Our photo competition winners

We had some wonderful entries this month. We would like to thank everyone who entered. The 3 winners are:

• Eva Nadeau (USA) for a photo from her school's Death On The Mound party
• Maarit Vaga (USA) for a group photo from her daughter's Who Stole The Cookies? party
• Barbara Dawson (USA) for a group photo from her Murder On The Prairie party.

We are commencing a new competition with a closing date of 1 April 2006 (see photos.htm for details).

Our decoration competition winner

The winner is Wendy Varish (USA) for photos of her staff The Balmy Bahamas Cruise party.

We are commencing a new competition with a closing date of 1 April 2006 (see decor.htm for details).

Wendy sent in this feedback:

"We just held our staff Christmas Party and used the Balmy Bahamas Cruise Murder Mystery that I had purchased online. We had a great time—everyone really played up their characters. We rented the entire upstairs room at a local restaurant and decorated with lots of fun beach stuff (which was perfect for the middle of a Wisconsin winter!)

I am enclosing a few of the pictures of our decorations.

Enjoy! (we sure did!)

Wendy L.C. Varish, DC, DACO, CCSP
Howards Grove Chiropractic"

Eva sent in this feedback about the "Death On The Mound" party:

"I just wanted to thank you for an evening of terrific fun - The pictures I am sending you are of my 5th 60 plus 5th and 6th grade students at College Hill Middle School Magnet Academy in Texarkana, Arkansas performing in "Death on the Mound."

We had a blast - We had over three hundred parents, grandparents, and staff members in attendance on December 3, 2005.

We transformed our cafeteria in a baseball stadium, with locker room and all - We served chilli dogs, nachos, and apple pie - on each table we had baseball tablecloths with a hat and a glove filled with peanuts, popcorn, crackerjacks, chips, and beef jerkey.

It was an incredible evening of fun and the students were outstanding as I am sure you can tell by the pictures attached - Hope you enjoy

Eva Nadeau
CHMS, GT Instructor
Texarkana, Arkansas"

Maarit sent in this feedback:

"I just sent the last of my characters back between the pages of her book. The Queen of Hearts put up quite a struggle but at least she didn't steal the cookies, though I had my doubts about her....

"Who Stole the Cookies" was an enormously entertaining play enjoyed by sixteen young guests between the ages of 7-11. The party was in honor of our daughter Lydia's 10th. birthday and she insisted on playing the Queen of Hearts.

I modified the characters slightly by adding the White Rabbit as a character to better suit one of our guests' personality and our Sherlock Holmes was just fresh from the Outback, having solved a rather nasty crime Down Under. The Queen's siblings added their help by playing both maid and butler for the Literary-guests. Unfortunately, Cinderella was prevented from attending the party due to an uncharacteristic temper-tantrum but Maid Matilda (5) stepped in to "read" the lines with some help from her literate friends.

I can safely say that each guest fulfilled their required reading assignments for the week after this party, but oddly enough, I heard no complaints about it.

Thank you MerriMysteries for an unforgettable birthday party!!

Yours literally,
Mrs. Bookworm (Maarit Vaga, purchaser of "Who Stole the Cookies")
Albion, NY USA"

Barbara sent in this feedback:

"I hosted "Murder on the Prairie". Attached is the photo of the entire cast. We had more fun and everyone got into their characters more than what I could have ever imagined. It's a night that they will be talking about for a long time.

Barbara Dawson"