….Kids’ Birthday Parties Are Out of Hand
1. The money spent on birthday parties is insane. It’s not uncommon for parents to drop $500 on a party and all the “necessary” entertainment such as clowns and activities.
2. Loot bags are literally loot bags, stuffed with all kinds of items that could be considered gifts as opposed to thank you trinkets.
3. The money spent on presents keeps going up. The idea of spending $10 on a modest gift is a non-starter given everyone else is spending $30, $40 or $50 on a gift. Of course, the child receiving the gift will often turf the gift to play with the box that it came in.
4. It’s no longer enough to put on a birthday party that features traditional games such as pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs or egg races. Now, you’ve got to go to some kind of adventure or activity centre that has all kinds of things to do. It’s not a cheap thing to do, and most children are overwhelmed rather than overjoyed.
May 22nd, 2008 at 5:48 pm
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August 13th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
I totally agree. I know from experience that children are
easily impressed at ages 5 and 6 and under. It’s parents
who compete with one another and can ruin an otherwise
fun time for kids. I gave simple theme parties with
lots of fun games and I still have parents and kids remember
those parties and it’s been almost 7 years ago. I worked
independantly for a local park district, so my overhead
was low, and was allowed to do almost anything I wanted.
Each party was customized as far as theme, color choice,
and flavor of cake or cupcakes and they could invite their
whole class. Simple games like treasure hunt, musical games
pinata and a few active games. Even a word/drawing game
during refreshment time! Once the parents actually saw what
a great time the kids had still playing traditional games
and having a great time together, they were so pleased!
I have some art ability so I made most of the table decorations.