What's the worst kids party you've been to

[T181]

Please give me some examples of the worst kids party you've been to?? Im hosting one on Sunday for 25 children and actually am so worried about it I need some real life stories to calm my nerves

Thank you for the reassurance. 🥰

Aaand... this is why you always need to invite random elderly ladies to kids' parties. They will be more than happy to make tea for everybody all afternoon long. With luck they will also be a whizz at making lists of who gave what present, and will also be on hand to mop up spilled juice.

Dd's classmate had a party in the park next to their school. There is also a field there, that's it. On the surface of it sounded great, little tea party and a cheap party for the host. The problem was that the kids were all 8 and bored stiff after half an hour. They started disappearing into the field and down the ravine, two of the children had accidents crossing the stream (alone I might add because the parents had checked out).

Ice skating party where none of the kids could skate except for the birthday girl. The mother asked my DH to help out as he can skate well and he had to pay £16 entry plus boot hire to try to entertain 7yr olds who were cold and miserable watching birthday girl skate.

A party where all guests had to pay for their own food, there was no entertainment, and the cake ran out before half the guests had any.

Most confusing and weird party I’ve ever been to. Extended family, work friends and random school kids, sat around a table in a restaurant function room with nothing to do. Took us all a good hour to find out they weren’t going to be bringing out a party spread. We had to go the bar in the end and order our own meals, at about £10x4. Other guests who were strangers to us were just as confused. About 10 mins after we’d finished eating, and before some other guests had worked out there was no party food, mum & dad stood up, gathered their kids, thanked everyone for the presents, and fucked off home.

Never went to another “party” of theres.

Did we go to the same party? Haha

Am evidently a freak.

I remember a fancy dress party when I was 6 - Alice in Wonderland theme, I went as the cook who shakes pepper on the baby when he sneezes.

I had a fab party dress with a sort of tabard that went over the top, black velvet dress with a high waist, and this ribbon embroidered top part in loads of colours it was THE fanciest thing I owned and I cried when I grew out of it!

I remember my 8th, swimming pool party, my sister pooed in her costume and a classmate had a massive paddy about not getting to go on the floats (because she couldn't get on them, not because she wasn't allowed). There was also drama because someone else who hadn't RSPV'd turned up with their younger sister!

I remember the butterfly cake, the maypole cake (big cake in the middle with a maypole, cupcakes all around it attached by ribbons, all nicely iced) the wild cat island cake from Swallows and Amazons, it had matchmakers chopped up for logs.. and the dinghys with the right flags on them.. all made by mother, sometimes with help from the teenager next door.

I remember the time my mother thought green food colouring in the cheese sandwich spread would be a whizzo idea and no one at it cos it was the colour of snot (she froze them. I had green cheese sandwiches for lunch for weeks after that).

I remember a lot, about most of them, mine, my sisters, friends - I am 42. I remember my 12th when my dad decided on his return from Aus (well from friends in Liverpool where he'd stayed the previous night after getting back) to come home for my party and got the car wedged in the multistorey carpark and rang Mother to rescue him and she left us, a bunch of 11/12 year olds with the 17 year old boy next door who was fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit... omg. I don't think he EVER recovered from the trauma!

These memories DO stay, the efforts ARE worth it, and you certainly never forget the parent who is evidently hating it and thinking its a waste of time!

The worst one my daughter went to when she was about 6. It was held in a detatched annexe chalet in the grounds of a nursing home. The birthday child’s parents owned the nursing home.The annex was a right at the other end of the grounds, which were huge.

So anyway I arrive with my child and there’s no adult to be seen, so I obviously until the birthday child’s parents rock up. More and more cars pull up with kids being dropped off. Parents telling me their kids have allergies or their asthma inhalers in their kids pocket etc!

i’m telling all the parents that I’m not the parents nor have I any connection to running the party but the kids were constantly dropped off and parents driving away after seeing the birthday banners etc for the party.

An hour into the party, still no parents or adults other than me. Then an entertainer rocks up and asks me where to set up and that he’d prefer cash.
I make an executive decision and tell him to set up outside and round up 45 plus kids.
Aftet the show they were all complaining they were hungry and thirsty and so I uncovered the food on the table for the buffet.
I was manically pouring drinks and dealing with a child who had fallen over.
As the party was due to finish the child’s mum turned up and received thanks from parents and she acted as though she’d been there the entire time.
Good job you stayed. Looks like it all went well the mum said to me as she disappeared laden with her daughter and her gifts.
i honestly have never been so stressed, knackered and taken for a ride in my entire life.

I have only read ONE page and seriously!!!# Alchohol at a children's party! Shame on you parents !!!! Get a grip and behave like adult parents! No alchohol at a children's party!
Children just love dressing up as spidermen and princesses and eat pizza and cake! A bit of music and some party games and they deserve that you stay with them!! I do not allow parents to leave. But I cater for them with coffee and biscuits.
I just cant believe the parents on here and the parties they have been to. I feel for the children.

Class party in playgym, dc aged 6...bully who made dc life hell all through school (shit management of issue in school but that's another thread) got all his mates to hunt and chase dc round big playgym and pin him down for bily to hit him. I thought the shouting was playing then realised it wasn't... And dc was still really polite at end of party and thanked birthday child for inviting them.

God I fucking hate that child, siblings and parents, they made dc life hell and knew it and didn't give a fuck. Dog rough and thought they were above everyone.

Oh, just remembered another one, parents of birthday boy had bought a huge old house with a ballroom tacked onto the back of it, they decided to hold the kids party in there, had set everything up including disco, all looked fantastic, then the 25 or so 7 year olds started jumping up and down when the dj told them to, the floor just went through and quite a few of the kids were screaming and panicking, luckily a small drop, and only one kid was scratched badly by the wood as he was right on the edge so was scratched by the wood that had rotted and broken, just needed antiseptic but no stitches or anything, all others were unscathed but a bit shaken, the next day all the kids thought it was cool as the birthday boy told them they survived an earthquake! I guess the moral of this story is don’t stress as kids find the most bizarre things “cool”, I’m sure you’ve got this op and the floor won’t collapse! Have fun and relax.

My friend went to one where the child had arranged it without telling her mum. So all the kids had to bring money to pay in, mum spent her whole time on the phone. Obviously no cake etc. I think they had to pay for McD’s or something and some parents who stayed had to help transport the other children.

After a few days the mum texted and apologised when she realised what happened.

I still think it must be a made up story, but it happened.

The one that got struck by lightning.

ManateeFair, you should have told them the one about the party at the wedding at Cana!! Maybe then they would get out the best wine!!

That's so sad! Hope your dc is away from them now.

You mean they just hand round a wrapped present and when the music stops they pick a sweet out of a tub? For an amount of goes determined by the adult? Surely, unwrapping the layers is the best part?! You get the anticipation of not knowing if it's the last layer or not!

You mean they just hand round a wrapped present and when the music stops they pick a sweet out of a tub? For an amount of goes determined by the adult? Surely, unwrapping the layers is the best part?! You get the anticipation of not knowing if it's the last layer or not!

This isn't a thing is it? Surely not 😆
I agree, unwrapping a layer is the fun part.

Honestly, all of them. It's just hell 😂

Hot tip for pass the parcel, instead of wrapping a layer for each child to open just have a tub of mixed sweets (moam, Haribo mini bags, lollies etc) so they can just help themselves to one when it is their turn. I've wasted too much time wrapping before!

You could save even more time by just lining them up, using your phone to pick a winner (or just nominating the birthday child), giving everyone else a sweet and sending them on their way. No need for all that sitting and music and passing a parcel around. Much more efficient.

This did make me laugh!! 😆

Some of these are so sad.

I remember my mum telling me about her birthday party when she was about 5 or 6. She grew up in Belgium, her birthday was late May and they had an unexpected heatwave. No-one turned up. My mum remembered the disappointment all those years later 😢

I grew up in the 70s/80s when party invitations were given out by the class teacher. I wasn’t a popular kid and hardly ever got one. I remember the humiliation of sitting there while the names were read out.

The one where the ‘entertainer’ made the kids have a pony race with the parents as the ponies.

The one where my hair caught fire when I was holding the incredibly detailed cake my mum had spent an hour making!

The one where the kids worked out how to turn the bouncy castle pump in and off, deflated it and then inflated it whilst they sat on the turrets. Cue lots of small children plummeting to the ground whilst hapless adults tried to catch.

The one where there was a piniata but no stick so they used a four foot long metal rod.

So many more. My kids loved every one!

Only if they’re Japanese. 😂🤦🏻‍♀️

That is brilliant!!!

I think providing booze for adults at a kids birthday party is pretty weird, to be honest.

Really, how hard is it to not drink alcohol for a few hours in the daytime when having responsibility for a load of young children?