How do you celebrate a birthday or other milestones in quarantine? Just get creative

COVID-19 has changed everything, but one thing it hasn’t done is stopped people from marking milestones — albeit in unconventional ways.

Instead of a childhood superhero or princess visiting in real life, characters are giving shout outs through the computer. Friends, neighbors and even first responders are joining together to throw birthday parades. And some are taking to Zoom or Facebook to bring people together for a celebration.

Dr. Danette Beitra, a pediatric psychologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital near South Miami, said having to explain to a child, especially a younger one, that he or she can not have a party this year might be difficult.

But parents should keep in mind that it’s OK for their child to be sad or disappointed.

“The most important thing is to listen to the child and acknowledge their feelings,” she said. “Then try to focus on what you can do to make the day special.”

What’s special about a birthday for children is that “they are the star,” she said. While celebrating won’t be done the same as it has in previous years, Beitra suggests letting the child come up with fun ways to celebrate as a family.

But what if you want to host surprise birthday party or celebrate a special day?

You have to get creative like these South Floridians:

Quarantine Birthday Parades

Gina Coen knew she didn’t want her son’s 6-year-old birthday to be just “another day in quarantine.” Inspired by a video she saw online, she logged on to her neighborhood community’s Facebook page and said she wanted to host a surprise birthday parade.

Neighbors loved the idea. She then called the Broward Sheriff’s Office and asked if an off-duty cruiser could pass by. BSO said yes but then they went “above and beyond,” she said.

Cruisers, emergency vehicles and a fire truck joined a parade line of more than a dozen cars last Thursday to wish Victor Tezanos a happy 6th birthday in front of the family’s home in Cooper City. They even gave him a firefighter hat.

“He obviously loved it,” Coen said.

It took about two days to plan the parade. She also made a “Sonic the Hedgehog” cake and let him dress up like Spider-Man. But, he did miss hugging his grandmother, who was in the first car that drove-up.

Hours earlier, another surprise birthday parade was happening in South Florida. This one was to celebrate Jupiter resident Gavin Torre’s 13th birthday.

“I was just trying to figure out ways to still make him feel special and still feel like it was his birthday and not just another day,” his mom Kelly Torre said.

She just didn’t expect how many families would pass by to wish her son a happy birthday. It even reached the ear of a TV reporter from WPTV, a local TV station in West Palm Beach, who showed up to interview him.

Her son thought the reporter was the surprise. Then cars filled with his friends started driving by. They were shouting, waving, and holding signs. One car was playing Happy Birthday.

“They started to shout “We love you Gavin, Happy birthday Gavin,” Torre said. “It was so amazing...he started saying it was the best birthday he ever had.”

Zoom, Facebook Live, Facetime and virtual celebrations

Alysse Jaquez can’t get enough of the movie Frozen. She often wears her blue Elsa dress and has been asking for months for her favorite character to make an appearance at her 4th birthday party.

Her mother Lisa, who owns Pembroke Pines Enchanted Fairytale Parties, a company that specializes in providing characters for events, said she began brainstorming ways of not letting her little girl down after concerns over COVID-19 put a stop to gatherings.

“It broke my heart,” she said. But Jaquez, with the help of other party rental companies from across the globe, came up with an alternative that still brings some magic to children.

Jaquez said she has some entertainers that are making visits through Zoom and doing similar things that they’d do in person including reading a story and singing songs. The child even gets a special shout out. People can also pay for a recorded video from a character.

“Our mission really hasn’t changed,” she said. “We just want to spread happiness and cheer.”

Jaquez said she held a virtual Frozen party Wednesday to test out the concept and the nine families who signed up loved it.

“My daughter sat for the entire hour, which I didn’t think she would do,” she said.

How else are people celebrating?

▪ Parents to be Omaar Yemini and Stephanie Márquez held a gender reveal party on their balcony in downtown Miami and invited friends to their virtual festivities via Facebook and Instagram.

▪ Teachers, administrators and staff from Highland City Elementary in Lakeland decorated their cars with balloons and signs for a quarantine parade through the neighborhood of students to say hello while keeping CDC recommended social distancing regulations.

▪ Broward Sheriff deputies and Fire Rescue personnel visited Broward Health North, stood outside and gave a round of applause to healthcare workers.

▪ Local DJ Free Willy (aka William Berestka) played music out on his 24th floor balcony at SLS Brickell. It eventually became a balcony dance party in the neighborhood. A Key Biscayne resident also held a concert on their balcony.

▪ Virtual happy hours are officially a thing. People are using Zoom, Facetime, Facebook Live and Skype.

▪ A New Jersey family converted their garage into “Club Quarantine” to celebrate their son’s 21st birthday. His father was the bouncer and his mother was the bartender.

▪ Michigan couple Dan Stuglik and Amy Simonson replaced their 160 person guest list with cardboard cutouts of people so they could still be married in their church without breaking CDC guidelines. A New York couple was married on the sidewalk, with the officiant speaking from a fifth-floor window.