Parents rebel against birthdays gone wild New group takes aim at oneupsmanship of elaborate kid parties http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16753305/
My kids don't even get parties with friends every year. They get them for their 1st, 5th, 10th, 16th & 18th birthdays. With 4 kids, and 3 of them having birthdays within 2 weeks of each other, we'd go broke if we had big parties every year. Sometimes I'll invite a few of their close friends over for cake & ice cream on their birthdays, but normally we just have family celebrations. On the years mentioned above I do the big parties and usually invite friends and extended family, or, when they're older we do some kind of activity with friends. To each his own, but that is just how I've been doing it with my kids and so far they've never complained.
My kids birthdays are 2 days apart and we don't do the parties either. We also do a family outting together. We were just talking last night about their birthdays coming up this summer and my oldest said he doesn't want one. He enjoys doing the outting for the day with us.
i can't see the going way out just to impress the kid's parents. My youngest, two of his favorite parties were so simple. One, when he was 7 and we lived in a duplex apartment, we invited his friends over for a water party, water ballons, hose spraying, etc and the kids all had a blast. His second was his 16th when we surprised him at his Youth Group Meeting at church with pizza and cake for everyone. No one knew about it ahead of time so they would not have to think they had to bring gifts except the leader and they all had a great time. Simple is sometimes so much better and more memorable.
My oldest opted out of the party this year too for a family trip. We were already planning to go on a small trip...we just stayed an extra day and planned fun activities. I think we saved money in the long run. First year we haven't done the "big" birthday party since just a family gathering for the first birthday. I have definitely seen the light on the advantages of doing it this way! And we all got to have fun!
We have always done the family dinner party. OTOH the City Cousins have a major, no cost is too much, shin-dig. Guess which one is more fun? I had never experienced the MANDATORY for ALL FAMILY MEMBERS B-Day events, for Adults too. Makes my head spin! :roll:
"I was born a poor black child..." Steve Martin - The Jerk I was(still am) and olny child and lived in the "country". (way back when "country" meant mostly cows and corn fields). I didn't have parties. Add that to my husband who comes from a big family and whose Mom and Dad had parties for everything and you get an adult who doesn't know what to do when her own kids come along. Now his Mom has a party/family gathering/bash type thing for any month where a grandchild's birthday falls. It's always a blast. (she has 10 grandchildren) ------- When DH and I were dating, the first time my birthday came up, his Mom and Dad literally chased me through the house holding a flaming cake trying to sing Happy Birthday to me. I was soooo .... shy?... shocked? ... embarrassed?... I don't know I it was, but I'll never forget it. They did that for ME! If you don't have birthday parties, do! If you do have birthday parties, make them good ones. Cheap and easy is just as good as (or better than) pricey and over the top. And I want GSlick to throw me my next birthday party! :lol:
we just had a birthday party for my daughter's 19th yesterday. was very simple. cake, candles, and family.
What ever happen to ice cream and cake? I didnt even get a stretch limo for when I got married, but some friends did splurge for one when I got divorced. twitch
When I was younger my B-Day was MY day... now that I'm older my Birthday lasts about a week! :lol: :lol: :lol: BTW--- it's coming up!!!! In 6 months!!!! :mrgreen:
Well birthdays are big things for us. We at least get a cake, still (me and my siblings) As for our kids (my kids, nieces & nephews) it's usually family and there is quite a few of us. Cakes, all except this year's were store :-(, are usually made by me, then either hot dogs and burgers or something simple like bbq chicken legs, chips & dip... Oh and Ice cream of course! Parties are at home and simple activities like slip'n'slide or pin the tail on the donkey. Now this year was again an exception for my oldest... we went to Adventures Landing because... well I was huge and preggo and frankly would have paid through the nose to not have people trampling through my house and then having the clean up afterwards. Next year we'll be going back to normal. I come from a big family and a simple "just family" birthday party for us is a big tado.
My soon-to-be ex has a huge family. When we were first married, it seems they got together at the in-laws every month for somebody's something. I never quite got used to it, even after all these years. My Little One gets to pick, within reason, what to do for her birthday. Her Daddy & I take her out for dinner on her birthday and do a small cake & family presents that night. If she has a party (usually does), it's small. This year was an exception, as we knew we were separating & were talking with her about it soon after her birthday celebration. Frogger
WHAT???:cry: I'm so sorry to hear that Frogger! Take care of yourself! Man, isn't the little one like glued to the hip of daddy??
Thanks, RC. Yes, the Little One is glued to Daddy's hip. The sun rises and sets on her Daddy....from day 1. That's ok tho. Regardless of us and our situation, in the past he has been a very good father. We're adjusting. The Little One is a little ticked with her Daddy right now, but we're trying to explain the situation & get her to give up the holding-my-breath-until-we're-all-back-together mentality. Going "home" to an empty apartment is the hardest part so far. On the bright side, the time Little One and I have together now is quality and she is top priority (like she was always supposed to be). Frogger
Thanks, girlie! I'd PM ya, but can't get it to happen from work since the website change over :cry: . IF I remember, I'll PM ya when I get home tonite! Frogger
