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Original poster

To be foaming about kids’ Christmas party?

169 replies

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 15:40

I took my four year old nephew to a Christmas party yesterday at the golf club. It was really well done. They’d hired a soft play section, had Santa, balloons, drawing, a little buffet. Really good.

But then they had the party games and I’m still a bit annoyed about it (and yes, I know they’re children). First up was pass the parcel. I sat behind DN when he joined the ‘big kids’ circle (there was a separate one for the babies) and off we went. The same girl, about six or seven, kept getting the parcel handed to her and just sitting with it and staring straight ahead. She was next to a small boy of maybe three who wasn’t old enough to understand to take it. It only moved when the other older kids started shouting at her to pass it. She won three times.

Then we play corners and obviously the kids who are in whichever corner is called go out of the game. Some kids who kept going out kept just rejoining, and of course one of them won.

Pass the parcel again and this time all the babies and older children in one big circle with two parcels circulating. Im next to DN again and a woman to our left has maybe a one year old on her knee. The cheating girl is to her left. Once again the cheating girl just sits with the parcel and the woman with the baby is too talking to a friend behind her that the girl sits with the parcel and wins another two times. Meanwhile, on the other side of the circle a boy of six or seven just sits with the other parcel until the music stops. The other kids complain he’s cheating to the organiser, who just ignores them.

Finally the music stops on my DN just as he’s going to hand over the parcel, but he still had hold of it. The five year old next to him is with her DM. The girl was ignoring him, the music stopped, and the woman took it from him and said ‘that’s yours, DD’. I didn’t say anything but wish I had. I felt so sorry for him.

I don’t blame the kids, they’re kids, but surely if you’re either taking a child or organising a children’s party you should be making sure your kids aren’t cheating and the cheaters aren’t continuously winning? I know it’s only a game and a kids’ one at that but the blatant rewards for cheating wound me right up.

OP posts:
YIP · 15/12/2024 17:48

Whichever adult was stopping the music needs fired. You’d expect them to be watching so that’s their fault as they should have said ‘keep it moving kids’ then stop it when another kid had it instead of the ‘cheat’ 😂

I used to find the more ‘spirited’ kids (aka badly behaved) are just left to their own devices and the parents turn a blind eye and chat with friends etc…. They aren’t arsed so it’s no wonder their kids are monkeys because they have no boundaries.

Imjustlikeyou2 · 15/12/2024 17:48

YANBU, but everyone will blame you because that’s what mumsnet does best. It’s in good nature to play the game according to the rules… otherwise it’s just a shit frustrating experience for the kids who are playing as they should, but I suppose it is a good lesson that lots of people in society are selfish arse wipes even when they’re adults.

lastchristmasforreal · 15/12/2024 17:46

Jellycatspyjamas · 15/12/2024 15:53

Honestly you’ve a long road ahead if this makes you foam at the mouth. They’re kids, all learning about games and winning and fairness, and all hopped up on sugar and Christmas “magic”.

Nursery teacher here. You do know children are not children forever, and need to be taught very early age how to be a decent human being?

parcelpassingtime · 15/12/2024 17:42

Ah yes, I can see why you were foaming or possibly fuming about this op.

Having a few dc and many years of parties to organise, I always made sure that each child had a layer to open (and put a chocolate coin inside each layer). You really have to keep an eye on proceedings. I can understand your reluctance, it really is down to the organiser to say who should open the parcel and co-ordinate the music accordingly. Last round left to chance. I used to shout out the name of the child just to be clear who should be opening it. Sometimes when caught between two children and one had already opened it, I would say something like "ah Katie, let's let Fred open this one, he hasn't opened one yet" that kind of thing. It's a bit sad that 'adults' are behaving in this way. Always had a glass of wine on standby for the end of the party. Much needed.

NovemberMorn · 15/12/2024 17:41

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:15

😂😂 We played monopoly on holiday once which ended in my mother turning a table over and going to bed because my sister and I went into an alliance not to charge each other rent. In hindsight I see her point.

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😅😂
This is the best thread I have read since I joined here.
I can identify with the rage felt at cheating kids, injustice to your own kids, adults who look the other way when their own kids are not being fair (wait till it happens on the play park when one kid hogs the swing and the mother argues they don't need to take turns)....and our monopoly board actually ended up ripped in two the game became so heated.😬

Pandasnacks · 15/12/2024 17:37

So did DN say pass the parcel was his favourite bit after the party or before? Was he very upset about the lack or rules and regulations?

Toomanyemails · 15/12/2024 17:36

The adult doing the music should really have been watching and making sure it was fair, and/or you have an extra adult making sure no kids are cheating, and/or you have a rule that no one can win more than once.

Bjorkdidit · 15/12/2024 17:35

CatamaranViper · 15/12/2024 17:21

Incredibly normal in the North East. Usually
"Eee man, a was propa foamin!"

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And here's me, only here for the predictable derailment due to a spelling mistake/autocorrect thinking it was a typo for fuming.

Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:35

Delphiniumandlupins · 15/12/2024 17:32

Well you should have left your DN sitting in the circle and run round the outside, so you could supervise the parcel-passing, but it's easy to be wise afterwards.

The person in charge of the music was an idiot. If there's a prize in each layer of wrapping, you watch where the parcel is stopping to make sure everyone/as many as possible get something. Only the final prize needs to be left to chance.

There was no way I was going to start telling other people’s children what to do.

OP posts:
Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:32

Mumistiredzzzz · 15/12/2024 17:27

But you wanted others to?

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Wanted others to what? Say something to the mother? Erm, no. I wanted them to concentrate on the game, if they were playing on behalf of the kids, or tell their own kid to pass the parcel when they were blatantly cheating and holding onto it.

OP posts:
Delphiniumandlupins · 15/12/2024 17:32

Well you should have left your DN sitting in the circle and run round the outside, so you could supervise the parcel-passing, but it's easy to be wise afterwards.

The person in charge of the music was an idiot. If there's a prize in each layer of wrapping, you watch where the parcel is stopping to make sure everyone/as many as possible get something. Only the final prize needs to be left to chance.

Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:31

Mumistiredzzzz · 15/12/2024 17:26

Honestly get over it. You weren't willing to discipline other peoples children and the organisers weren't, for obvious reasons. In fact, you didn't even stick up for your own nephew so not quite sure what you're expecting of othera.

To discipline their own kids! If DN had been sitting vacantly holding onto a parcel I’d have told him off for cheating.

I was expecting the organisers to watch the game, not discipline the kids.

OP posts:
vitahelp · 15/12/2024 17:29

Yeah I’d not be happy either, the cheating girl sounds like a total brat

Mumistiredzzzz · 15/12/2024 17:27

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:21

Followed by ‘I didn’t say anything but wish I had.’ That said, was I going to start an argument in a kids’ pass the parcel circle?

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But you wanted others to?

Mumistiredzzzz · 15/12/2024 17:26

Honestly get over it. You weren't willing to discipline other peoples children and the organisers weren't, for obvious reasons. In fact, you didn't even stick up for your own nephew so not quite sure what you're expecting of othera.

desperatedaysareover · 15/12/2024 17:24

LockForMultiball · 15/12/2024 16:04

I guess things just came to a head for OP.

10/10

AmethystMist · 15/12/2024 17:23

I'm going to disagree that its not the child's fault. 6 is definitely old enough to know better! Yes someone should have said something. I've had to tell my daughter to pass the parcel not hold it before, not a big deal

aloris · 15/12/2024 17:23

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:15

😂😂 We played monopoly on holiday once which ended in my mother turning a table over and going to bed because my sister and I went into an alliance not to charge each other rent. In hindsight I see her point.

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This is genuinely very funny.

Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:21

SereneFish · 15/12/2024 17:16

Who said anything about the child? You address the mother who you say took the present:

The girl was ignoring him, the music stopped, and the woman took it from him and said ‘that’s yours, DD’.

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Followed by ‘I didn’t say anything but wish I had.’ That said, was I going to start an argument in a kids’ pass the parcel circle?

OP posts:
CatamaranViper · 15/12/2024 17:21

LawrenceSMarlowforPresident · 15/12/2024 16:44

FFS Foaming is just another way of saying fuming.

It is? I've never heard anyone say this. "Foaming at the mouth," yes. But that isn't quite the same thing.

Anyway@O6bftdffI don't blame you for being annoyed. It sounds as though the adults weren't really helping the children play the games properly.

Incredibly normal in the North East. Usually
"Eee man, a was propa foamin!"

SereneFish · 15/12/2024 17:16

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:13

The child was not paying attention. They weren’t the cheaters.

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Who said anything about the child? You address the mother who you say took the present:

The girl was ignoring him, the music stopped, and the woman took it from him and said ‘that’s yours, DD’.

Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:15

Dollybantree · 15/12/2024 17:09

Sounds like Christmas Day at our house. Murder was nearly committed during a game of Cluedo last year!

It’s now banned.

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😂😂 We played monopoly on holiday once which ended in my mother turning a table over and going to bed because my sister and I went into an alliance not to charge each other rent. In hindsight I see her point.

OP posts:
Original poster
O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 17:13

SereneFish · 15/12/2024 17:11

You just sat there and stared while the mother took your nephew's present. What lesson did that teach him?

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The child was not paying attention. They weren’t the cheaters.

OP posts:
Livelovebehappy · 15/12/2024 17:13

Not the kids fault, but again lazy parenting at fault. The organisers should be organising the games to run smoothly, and parents should be parenting.

SereneFish · 15/12/2024 17:11

O6bftdff · 15/12/2024 15:56

As I say, I don’t blame the kids, I blame the adults with them just vacantly staring around instead of parenting their kids.

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You just sat there and stared while the mother took your nephew's present. What lesson did that teach him?

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