Much ado about nothing! WOOT!

[FarmerChick]

WOW those are great kid party ideas. Being an older mom (now turning 48 with my one and only 3 year old daughter) I don't know kid parties...HA HA HA

Many friends suggested like a Chucky Cheese party or a bowling alley party and such to keep the mess out of the home but honestly I ain't into that. I never did that as a kid and I am not sure, but wouldn't that be expensive??? I know I ain't paying an arm and a leg for a b-day party --LOL

I love the kid party information. I will definitely be doing the cookie treat idea and I will also do the "activity" part and have them take it home as their goodie bag.

Great ideas and they were needed! THANKS!!!----I can't believe how you can get dollared to death with kids....and for school...ugh---we need tissues, we need paper towels, we need wipes, we need construction paper, we need goldfish treats, and on and on and on...LOL---good thing we have a discount grocery store, I get tons of things there sooo cheap I can afford to look very giving..HA HA

(I love the jungle theme party idea....big game hunting..HA HA)

 

[the simple life]

I agree, I don' t like those parties away from home, they ARE expensive.
It gets to be too much and then the next thing you know kids are all expecting more and more for their parties. Sometimes I feel like its the parents that are trying to outdo eachother. Its weird but it happens.
The only time I do any kind of party away from home is when the child is older, like tween or teen and wants to just go somewhere with a few friends.
My son has done archery or paintball, where you just find a field anyway and hung with his friends and then we have just had them back for cake.

 

[Colored Egg Farmer]

wow I haven't posted here in quite a while

 

[ticks]

so who is going to start a thootp thread

It ain't gonna happen. Not by me.

 

[ticks]

wow I haven't posted here in quite a while

Me either.

 

[FarmerChick]

I agree simple life----outside parties when older is so different then when the kids are little. Also the parents are kinda inconvenienced. I went to a Chucky Cheese party for a friend of Nicole's when he turned 3 and I had to stay there.....not that I minded, but if I could have dropped her off at their house, left for a few hours and came back, I could have gotten some stuff done..LOL...plus this party was at night. Night my butt is tired..HA HA----Plus this place was far off in Hickory so it wasn't close to the house.

What I figure now is KISS.....Keep It Simple Stupid..HA HA Her party in April will be at the house with a theme like you mentioned. That is all a birthday party should be, all I had..LOL--well we never had a theme party. Mom had a cake and we ran around for a few hours and played and then it was over.

 

[pioneergirl]

Oh boy, look what I started! LOL...no, the wedding wasn't elaborate at all, it was at a park, outside, and the only decorations were the unity candle (with the mother's candles) and 2 bouquets in front of the gazebo they stood under. No flowers/ribbons on the chairs, nothing. She had to pay for her wedding, and without passing judgement it was because her father said he would pay for either college or wedding, not both.

ANYWAY......It was very simple, and as I told her, less is more. Our family (my in-laws) is big enough that everyone can pitch in to cook/help at little to no cost. It was really nice!

As for kids' parties...hhmmmm.....I can't say I've had elaborate theme parties. My son has had a Spiderman or Army cake, but thats it for the 'theme'. We've played games, run around in the yard, opened gifts and gone home. My 2 nieces on the other hand have had Hawaiian Luous (sp), pinata pool parties, princess, etc. Maybe its different with boys and girls...no idea, lol. I don't think the kids really care....games, cake, running wild....what better fun is there? Everything in their life is so structured, why bother with 'structured fun?" LOL JMO

 

[FarmerChick]

Why bother with structured fun?
GREAT POINT
if the fun is too structured then it is not spontaneous and that takes some of the fun out of it..LOL

I have too much structure in my life, less would be better..LOL----so lets all be free spirits and lose the structure.. HA HA

 

[pioneergirl]

*runs out to mow the grass.........NAKED*

 

[the simple life]

I am all for unstructured fun and believe me I have done this over the years, many times.
All of my children have had birthday parties with friends and all that, so you can imagine how many parties I have thrown with my size family.
I am guesstimating here if you go until they are 10, around....50 or so.
Unfortunately, I have found that with my younger kids, the friends they invite from school seem somewhat out of control.
Not like back in the good ol days when my older kids were small. ha ha
I mean, they will run around and play with the other kids, then the next thing you know they are sneaking into my older kids rooms and going through their stuff, climbing over furniture, being mean to my pets etc.
The parents and I don't mean every parent in the world, but alot of the ones I am coming across these days just allow their kids to do whatever they feel like when they are at someone else's house.
I'll be telling a kid not to do something(the kid keeps on doing it) and the parent will be standing right there and not say anything.
Some of the kids weren't even playing with the other kids, they were trying to go in my house and turn the tv on and stuff like that.
I found two kids in my closet with a hammer, banging on the walls.
One of their parents didn't show back up to pick up her child until three hours after the party ended and I couldn't get hold of her.
When she showed up, she said oh is the party over yet?
Yeah, lady its almost bedtime here.
I finally got to the point where I let the kids run around and play, then I do the structured activity as a way to bring all the kids together and end the party.
I don't consider kids making a craft project anymore structured than making them play musical chairs, or potato sack races or any other games played at parties.
I mean what we are referring to as structured really isn't all that structured, sending the kids on a scavenger hunt, breaking open a pinata etc. isn't all that structured.
Everyone loved going on the "safari" and looking for animals. It gave the parents that stayed a chance to talk as well.

Even when I have them make their own favors, all I have to do is set up some folding tables and put out all the stuff and they make whatever it is,its a good way to calm everyone down before sending them home.
Its a good way to end a party nicely when you can't take it anymore too(haha)

I hand them whatever they made and send them on their way.
By the way, it won't be long until the kids get to the age where they are actually begging you for structured activities or their "party will be so "lame".
I mean you can't just have friends over to hang around and play games when you are "like 8 ya know."
Then its bowling, sleepovers with movie rentals, giving each other makeovers, playing dress up , paintball wars, ..........


The next birthday I have here I am going to have a barnyard theme and tell all the kids they are farmers for the day,
then I am going to have them:
clean the chicken coops
clean and fill all the feeders and waterers
rake out the chicken run
collect eggs
whitewash the coops
dust the chickens