No More Kids' Parties!

Lounge By CakesByJen2 Updated 21 Jan 2013 , 7:23am by Annabakescakes

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CakesByJen2 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 12:42am
post #1 of 14

OK, just need to vent.  I swear I am never hosting a kids birthday party again!  It's my son's 10th birthday and he hasn't had a real party in a few years so I agreed to let him have a laser-tag party with his friends.  Now, anyone who has ever booked a birthday party knows how expensive these things can be... We booked the cheapest package possible, which included 2 games of laser tag and pizza for 8 kids.  We ended up with a total of 11 on our guestlist, which would have meant and additional $50 for the extra 3 kids.

 

First off, the usual issue of people not RSVP'ing, even though they KNOW you are paying a lot of money bases on the number of kids.  Fortunately, I anticipated this and the place did not require advanced payment for the extras, so I had only paid the base package of 8.  We ended up having 3 no shows, and not one of them bothered to let us know they weren't coming, despite them having my e-mail address & both phone numbers, and seeing two of them last night and again this morning, yet not a word.  That's irritating, but I've come to expect it so I don't let it get to me too much.

 

Then, what really ticked me off was this one kid, who as soon as he got there started quizzing me about what food we were having, and informing he didn't like any of it.  Then he kept asking about what were doing and complaining because we were ONLY playing 2 games of laser tag and having pizza & cake, and I wasn't giving them tokens for video games.  This went on over & over.  Then, a couple of the other kids kept running off & disappearing and trying to sneak downstairs where the game room was, and making me a nervous wreck trying to keep up with them.  Oh,  and none of them ate the cake!

 

I  would kill my son if he went to a party and complained about the food and/or activities!  And I certainly wouldn't just dump him & run if he wasn't mature and responsible enough to stay with the party and not run off!  What ever happend to appreciating what you are given??

13 replies
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Annabakescakes Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 1:27am
post #2 of 14

AI completely agree, the only thing you can do is use it as a learning experience for.the whole family. Talk to him about how the kids and parents.acted, and how it inconvenienced you and how it made you feel. Point out what a compassionate person would've done, and how you had expected them to behave.

For my daughters party last year we had 4 rsvps one saying she couldn't spend the night. Night of the party we had 14 girls party, and 12 spent the night!!! It was a nightmare. Fighting, screaming, jumping, temper tantrums...they destroyed my daughter's room to the point I can't comprehend. One kept running off OUT THE DOOR!Because she was hurt she wasn't allowed to stay the night (she had soccer in the a.m.)

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Annabakescakes Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 1:32am
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AOh, and my tall thin 8 year old girl (50 lbs soaking wet) actually puched another girl in the face! And this one spoiled little twit brought a bra they were all trying on and another walked out of my daughter's bedroom completely topless in front of my dh who leapt across the room from her, and was scared the other girls would mention at home and we'd have an investigation from the police of FBI...

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CakesByJen2 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 1:55am
post #4 of 14

Okay Anna, you win, your experience was way worse, LOL!

 

This is not my first round of birthday parties, I have a 17 year-old daughter, and she had a party every year from age 1 to 9, then again at 13 (which was a slumber party of around 10 girls).  All her parties went very well, except for her 6th when she had just started a new school and only 2 kids came (and no RSVP's of course).  My son's other 3 parties went well (except again for the RSVP issue).  This was the first time I ran into a kid attending being downright rude and unappreciative, or parents just leaving the kids even though the kids were not mature & responsible enough to behave appropriately.

 

I told my son IF, and that's a big, big IF, he ever has another party it will have to be somplace where it is easy to keep up with the kids, and I will not bother making a cake.  I've never had that experience, either, that none of the kids (other than my son) ate the cake.  And it was a good cake, I swear! 

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cazza1 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 2:37am
post #5 of 14

I say give up whilst you are ahead, or should that read still have a head.  They only get worse as they get older!!!!

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cazza1 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 2:38am
post #6 of 14

That was unfair.  I might consider hosting parties again for my kids when they turn 60 or so.
 

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BakingIrene Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 4:10pm
post #7 of 14

Well.  If the parents don't understand the practical point of an RSVP then where do you think their kids have learned good party manners?

 

My two nieces were allowed as toddlers to run around for a while at home, after their evening bath and before they had to get into PJ's.  We aunties thought it was just fine...but we didn't know that the parents forgot one critical detail.  After a visit to the grandparents that caused some long-distance venting to me, I had to explain to my brother that there were things that were ONLY OK at home.  And that BOTH PARENTS would have to teach that to his kids.

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CakesByJen2 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 5:49pm
post #8 of 14
Quote:

Well.  If the parents don't understand the practical point of an RSVP then where do you think their kids have learned good party manners?

 

 

True, though I'm pretty sure the parents of the one kid who kept complaining about everything would have been mortified by his behavior.  It started making me paranoid wondering if MY son ever acted like that when I've dropped him off at parties.  So after we got home I started grilling him about how he had behaved at parties in the past, LOL!  Poor kid apologized to me before he went to bed for his friends' behavior, then today I started to say, "Now remember when you go to parties..." and he quickly said "I know , I know.  Don't complain about anything and don't run off".  He did have fun & did appreciate the cake, so that's the most important thing.  But I think we will stick with family parties from now on....

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CakesByJen2 Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 6:03pm
post #9 of 14

Here's a pic of my poor, unappreciated cake icon_sad.gif  I'm glad I didn't go all-out and did something small & simple.  My son is all into the Percy Jackson books, and his request was Percy's sword, which I made out of gumpaste.  I also added his watch, which magically transforms into a shield in the story, Zeus's lightening bolt that was stolen in the first book, and a trident since Percy is the son of Poseiden.  It was lemon, which  apparently most kids don't like even though all the kids in my extended family do....

 

 

 

 

 

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BakingIrene Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 6:12pm
post #10 of 14

Well you can be sure that the birthday guy appreciated it.

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-K8memphis Posted 20 Jan 2013 , 6:58pm
post #11 of 14
Quote:
Originally Posted by BakingIrene 

Well you can be sure that the birthday guy appreciated it.

 

 

yes and nice detail work on the sword and watch

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CakesByJen2 Posted 21 Jan 2013 , 4:37am
post #12 of 14
Quote:
Originally Posted by -K8memphis 

 

 

yes and nice detail work on the sword and watch

  Thanks!

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DragonFly2333 Posted 21 Jan 2013 , 5:46am
post #13 of 14

Best way to get responses is to leave info off the invite, like a time or place.  This way the invitee will call asking for the additional info and you can get your RSVP:)

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Annabakescakes Posted 21 Jan 2013 , 7:23am
post #14 of 14

AI am totally leaving the address off the invites! My daughter has her birthday next month, and I will just say "call for address when you RSVP, by such and such time. Sorry, last minute guests cannot be accommodated" and leave it at that. My boys' party last year had 4 kids, for twins, so I felt horrible for them. They rarely have a good turn out... They are noticing it now, since they are 12. Last year we did an army theme and I rented 2 paintballs and one didn't work, and we had an obstacle course where we sprayed them with squirt guns and set off fire crackers in a garbage can to simulate gun fire, white I shouted at them they were maggots, lol. The boys were cracking up, and it helped let of steam, but I was hoarse! The winner got $10, but he was so obnoxious. He kept saying "cha cha cha" during the singing of happy birthday, and we re-sang twice, with me asking nicely to stop it, the third time I stubbed the candles out and told him shut up or he was going home! I put new candles in, and we sang nicely for the video while he pouted in the kitchen.

He later kept all the boys up until 6 am, and I sent them all home without breakfast! And told the boy's uncle about melatonin, to help him sleep... Then I went back to bed!

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