This weekend we celebrated my son’s 5th birthday with his friends and it was a real blast from the past!
No offense to places such as Chuck E Cheese, Bounce U or Screaming Parties, but I always like to something a little different from the parties we go to. We held his party at a great place I found called Tie Dye Town.
My son getting his tie-dye party on!
My kids birthdays are a huge deal. To me, there is no greater joy than seeing the excitement, happiness and love in my kidlets eyes when their big day comes and we’re celebrating! But as most parents know, sometimes planning your child’s birthday party can take over your entire life. We just had my son’s 5th birthday party over the weekend and it was a huge success! Although I look forward to all the planning for a fun and happy event, I always get stressed making sure every detail is ready for the big day.
My son’s Star Wars themed party included this cake, with all the main characters showing up for the festivities!
Today is my birthday and apparently it’s a biggie. As of 8:10 am eastern time this morning, as this post became “live,” I officially turned 40. The big four-0. Four decades of life. You wanna know what I have to say? Big deal! Unlike many of my friends, turning 40 isn’t some traumatic event or life-changing moment. To me, it is just another birthday, another year that I’ve “made it through.” I guess part of the reason I don’t feel it’s such a big deal is because in my head I don’t feel like I’m 40 or at least this is not how I think of someone who is 40.
For the past two weeks I’ve been stressed out over finding the perfect venue, booking talented entertainment, loading up on exotic decorations, choosing the menu and deciding what will go in each special guest’s gift bag. No, this isn’t for some big shindig for wealthy VIPs or gala event tied to my job. It’s all been over a birthday party for a bunch of five-year olds!
It seems to me that birthdays have become the new “event” for children. I’ve seen some parents go totally overboard, pulling out all the stops to throw “the best party ever” for their kid. Of course some parents compete with each other to see who can throw the “biggest” and “most elaborate” party for their kids – spending outrageous amounts of money for things like fireworks, elaborate cakes or the latest teeny-bobber to sing “Happy Birthday.” Frankly, it’s pretty ridiculous. If you’ve ever watched MTV’s “Super Sweet 16” or Wealth TV’s “Party Mamas” some of the parties featured on those shows make my wedding seem like a cheap backyard tea party!
Checking my appointment book is part of my morning ritual. I long ago gave up trying to remember everything I need to do without actually writing it down, so my book basically maps out my whole week. But looking it over this morning, I made a horrifying realization. Sure, I am busy this week… but I’m busy chauffeuring around my 4 year old son. Apparently he’s got quite the social life!
This week alone, my golden boy has a swimming lesson, soccer practice followed by season end pizza-party plus not one, but two birthday parties. And there are his Pre-K: activities: a KidClicks computer class one day, show-and-tell another, and Friday a walking field trip to a local restaurant for donuts & apple cider to mark Veteran’s Day. Oh, and he wanted me to schedule a playdate with his bestie-whew! Take a break, kid!
I don’t ever remember being this “busy” when I was his age. Sure, I played on a softball team, went to the occasional birthday party, played with my sister and the neighborhood kids, and of course had school, but I was rarely “scheduled.”
Is it just me, or do kids today have “activity overload”? Even planning a playdate has turned into a complicated ordeal. Most of my son’s classmates have their own activities– art class, karate or dance lessons, team sports or even a Lego class (I didn’t even know this existed until this weekend and apparently it is all the rage among my son’s pals, but do you need a class to learn how to play with Legos?). I spoke to one mom who said, that the first opening she had for a playdate with my son was in mid-December. Are you serious?!?!
Am I doing my son a disservice by not scheduling every moment of his day to maximize his enjoyment and happiness? Should I be less rigid and not schedule anything for him at all and just “go with the moment?”
I’m not sure what the answer is. Right now he seems happy and content with his social schedule – busy as it is. I know how cranky I get when I’m over-loaded and over-scheduled at work. Imagine that for a 4 year old. Total kidlet meltdown is not a pretty sight! Maybe our solution for now is that he, and I, dial it back a bit, scheduling a few key activities and keeping it open enough to allow for things “happen” rather than micromanaging every minute of every day!
What do you think? How much is too much for kids?