Party funnies!

I just had to share this anecdote from today, before the weight of Princess Peppa's 7th party day finally squishes me into sleepy land.  That sentence makes little sense as I am so extra tired its a miracle I can even type.

It was Princess Peppa's 7th birthday today.  So the day went something like; brace yourself, the anecdote needs context first; this....

Wake up with over-excited newly-turned-7-year-old one inch from face trying to wake me up at 7am.  To be fair we got off lightly there.  It's been 5.30am in previous years. 

Spend next hour enjoying present opening. 

Spend subsequent hour in panic after checking party bags and realising that, despite being an accountant, I can't add up and am 5 bags short if all those that didn't RSVP appear at the party later.  

Send hubby on an emergency shopping trip for extra stickers, sweets and treats.  

Get both children dressed, with beautifully brushed hair.  Realise mother in law has arrived and I am still in dressing gown (why am I always last to get chance to get ready?!)

Amazing (HUGE) Wooden Toys!

My daughters are incredibly lucky to have both sets of Grandparents.

They are even more lucky to have both sets that both spoil them rotten! I have a rubbish memory, so couldn't tell you exactly how spoilt, or not, I was personally, but I am fairly certain I wouldn't come close to my two girls in the 'being spoilt' contest.

My girls are now 4 years and 6 years old respectively.  The youngest turned 4 this weekend.  She received all manner of gifts, from us, from her family and from her friends.  By far the two biggest gifts, and I mean biggest quite literally, were the 8 foot trampoline that it took my husband and I four hours; in the garden, until 11pm at night, in the dark; to construct.  It was worth it for the look on her face when she aw it!

We thought that the 'construction' involved for this birthday was finished.  Not so.  I should have known better.

My mum (and dad; though I don't think he has much say in the matter) have a lovely tendency to buy large single gifts rather than a selection of smaller toys.  The slide and see-saw/bouncy/roundabout combo that are both gracing our garden both came from them.

This time they outdid themselves.  They bought my younger a village shop.

A village shop that takes over half of the room!

You should have seen the look on my husbands face as more and more of it was constructed yesterday afternoon by my husband and dad together (amazingly they didn't punch each other). 

As it happens, we've been able to move an entire IKEA storage unit out into the loft, as the contents are now all in the village shop.  It does provide some fabulous storage.  It took us all most of the afternoon to rearrange the room to accommodate it though.  My mum left us to it, giggling as she went.

But the thing I like most about it, is that it's wooden, not plastic.  So much better, don't you think?

How can you navigate a children's party with your principles intact?

Party games at children's parties have become something of a pet hate of mine.  Parties have become a battle ground anyway.  A battle of mums to provide the very best; in location, entertainment, music, party bags, games and cake. 

Growing up in the 80s parties were much less fraught with 'keeping up the Jones'.  They were very traditional affairs.  The expectation was limited to a game of pass the parcel, a single balloon with a piece of cake in a party bag, and a dance around to music in your mates lounge.

With a heaving trade in parties at a variety of locations you find yourself trooping off to bowling alleys, ski villages, soft play centres and steam railway centres.  That's to name just a selection of party venues I've taken one or the other of my girls to over the last couple of years.

But where ever you are there usually comes a point where there will be a party game.

When was it, and who was it, that decided that all the children who lost the party game would get treats?  Who decided this?  Since when did we celebrate those that lost more than the one that won?  Along with the usual "it's not the winning, it's the taking part that counts" speech, we are teaching our children to not care about winning?


With the Olympics coming to the UK I'm not sure this is the right message we should be giving.

Soft play centres are the worst offenders in my experience.  A game of pass the parcel deteriorates, as the children that take a layer off the parcel early in the game all receive a sweet, wrapped in the layer of paper they've pulled off.  Those children become uninterested in the game and disappear off to play.  There's no excitement about who is going to get to open the last layer.  It's such a shame.  My abiding memory of the game, the excitement as the parcel approached, and knowing it was nearly the last layer, but not being 100% certain.  Now, since everyone gets a prize, and often all of equal size, it really doesn't matter if you get the last layer, or indeed any layer, as even those that don't get to unwrap usually get to pick a sweet out of a box afterwards.

We've had a few parties at home for our girls and initially we caved to the pressure and wrapped mini presents within the layers, enough for all children, with a slightly bigger one in the final layer.

But I am tempted to rebel.  I am tempted to go back to traditional, nothing in the layers until the end, pass the parcel.  I am tempted to teach our children that they don't always win.  Surely we should teach our children to be competitive and want to win?
 
It was our daughter's 6th birthday this week. What did we choose to do to celebrate?  We went to the cinema with 9 of her friends.  At £1 a ticket, with a little extra for popcorn snack boxes and a party bag each with a little stationary set, balloon and party cake, it didn't break the bank and there was no need for games.  That's one way to side step the issue!  Maybe the rebellion starts next time?!