Third Birthday Parties: Keeping up with the Joneses

[ailbhe]

In January there was one at a venue with softplay facilities (I was too ill to go). Last week there was one in someone's home with a local lagoon pool with wave machine hired for the second half (we attended the home bit but were too ill to go to the pool). Today there's one at a softplay venue with a Fimbles theme. Last week;s party had a real proper book in every party bag, and a very fancy multicoloured colouring pencil, and games with prizes, and smoked salmon sandwiches.

We were planning to have Linnea's in our own home, with plain sponge cake. However, one of the guests is allergic to cats, so we can't do that. Another guest is allergic to nuts. We're currently thinking of a picnic in the park, with a cake made by the woman at the Farmer's Market who also provides for the Workhouse Coffee Shop, but what if it rains?

The main problem is that although I have no objection to parties in venues, I don't like that they are becoming the baseline. These children are three years old. Most of them will play for hours with cardboard boxes or our out-of-tune piano. It seems very weird to organise activities for them, like pass the parcel which in general the parents have to play for the children, or lucky dips for exciting take-home party bags, or whatever.

Birthday parties happen in someone's home, in my universe, with the height of excitement being that there are junky fizzy drinks like Coke or, probably, Fanta, and cocktail sausages on sticks, and bowls of suspiciously orange crisps. The cat allergy makes this impossible - a 14-month-old can't just take antihistamines like an adult could. So there's a public park, which poses a toilet problem and a weather problem.

It has just occurred to me that I might be able to hire the local Bridge Hall. That might be perfect. I'll get back to you.

Comments

[k425.livejournal.com]

YoungBloke is 3 and we have a core of friends' whose parties we are invited to. Thus far, we have only attended one held at home. With no games. Loads of running around, and jelly and ice cream, and suspicious crisps, and little Marmite sandwiches.

All the others we've been to have been in venues. The local sports centre, which has a bouncy castle and soft-play area, is favourite, followed by the room over one of the local pubs. The catering tends to be home-made.

We have parties at home, with no games (because please, a three-year-old isn't really up to it, whatever the parents think), plenty of balloons (v popular with the autistic child), and traditional party food. Which will have to be gluten-free next year but that's a hurdle I can jump, I think. I do do party bags, with silly little things in.

More than one of my friends has said she's actually quite envious that we can have a little party at home. Because they're at home more than me, with a lot of trips to different play groups, they feel an obligation to invite the children of the parents they know, which means having a large venue. I have t3h social f34r when it comes to big does, so it'll be at home for as long as possible!

*embarrassed*

[k425.livejournal.com]

Don't ask me where that apostrophe in the first line came from.

Re: *embarrassed*

[ailbhe]

This is why I love you.

[ailbhe]

We were going to have it at home until the cat-allergy thing reared its ugly head. The local hall is a reasonable compromise, I think, and does mean we can multiply the guest list by about ten.

[merryhouse.livejournal.com]

games: quite right. We invited three sets of friends with similar-aged children over for tea for Christopher's 3rd birthday, and at the last minute invited the 3-month-younger twins across the road too. All 6 children played individually with the toys that were around the lounge, while the adults chatted, drank beer, nursed the babies or agonised about the cake (no, actually, that was the night before). At one point I said "right, now let's play Ring-a-ring-of-roses" because that was a nice easy one. Christopher enthusiastically took hold of my hand - and that was it. (His Tumble Tots training coming out there, I think.) The others completely ignored me ;-) So I sang it once with Christopher and then let them get on with enjoying themselves.