Would you/your child be happy with a cupcake but no party bag?

[CookieCrumbles23]

4th birthday party, I was thinking of just giving a Christmas themed cupcake at the end in a little box. I’ve always done party bags and I know the kids look forward to them (although parents do not lol), but I’m trying to make things simpler.

Have you been to a party where this is done? Did it go down well? I’m ordering from a local cake maker and her cupcakes are delicious. My boy will have his own cupcake to blow out a candle and the kids will leave with theirs.

This, as a Xmas period baby I was forever made to feel like an inconvenience for my birthday being in the festive period. Wrapping gifts in Xmas paper or an Xmas themed cake over time can become problematic, sending the message that you don’t really care

I hate to tell the cake baggers, but those bits of cake coming home seldom have a great ending. Dc, stuffed from party, can’t face it so the bag gets mushed gripped their little mitt as you buckle them in. Party food and excitement mean that five minutes of driving sends them into a slumber, at which time the bag plonks onto the car floor. If it doesn’t get forgotten there until another Dc gets in and accidentally pulps it underfoot, it gets taken inside and put out of reach - of everyone except daddy who has usually scarfed it down by the time Dc remembers it. Cue tears and the inevitable badly-judged comment by DH that “it was pretty rubbish cake anyway.” It’s always a mushy, messy, tear-filled outcome.

I think it’s subjective. He wants as much Christmas themed things as possible. He had the choice of superhero’s (he loves) and Christmas, his choice which may change as he gets older.

My son would have been disappointed at 4 if he didn't get a party bag. If you put the cupcake inside a bag with a balloon and a sticker he would have been fine with it though. Also a sweetie come instead of a party bag probably would have been acceptable.

When mine were young they all got their party bag at the start- empty.

then as they won prizes- they put them in the bags. Went home with bags full.

meant everyone “won” quite a few prizes as well, and there were lots of games to earn the prizes.

My son's birthday is at Easter, I give small Easter eggs.
I think people like different.
My daughter's is in summer, I give Cadbury's share bar of chocolate and a bag of crisps.

Cheaper, better received and not plastic tat!

I even do myself up one 😜

Thanks all. Some really good suggestions. Although I’m starting to think my son is the only
person in the world who loves his birthday to be Christmas themed lol.

This!

I think this would be lovely. My DS would love it and, at 4 years old would they notice? Suppose it depends how many parties they have been to before.

My thoughts exactly. I think a lot of the kids coming have siblings, so they’ve already been exposed to party bags in some way. My son loves rummaging through his siblings party bags, but I’ve explained the cupcake idea and he seems quite excited for it. I think I’ll do the
cupcakes and a book. The parents would likely comment (discreetly) about the plastic tat, the amount of sweets in a cone, the absence of any party favour, so I’ll just go for an inbetween solution. I’ll update in a couple of weeks and let you all know if I’m the most hated Mum in nursery 😂

I would be more than happy but I think 4 year olds would be disappointed unfortunately.
You can make lower waste party bags, one or two nice things in them and no plastic tat

Jumping in here - why is it always sweets and not chocolate in party bags? Do more kids like sweets than chocolate? I'm doing party bags in January but ds just doesn't like sweets!

Op, book and a cupcake sounds great. We've always liked the mini crafts, books, stickers etc. Consumables that aren't wasteful. I'm doing curly straws in ours.

Ah brill, if he actively likes it then ignore me! Maybe keep an eye out for that changing as he gets older as it's something some of us have felt quite strongly over the years. My personal bug bear was always birthday presents in Christmas paper - it felt like being born when I was was just a bit inconvenient for other people.

We once attended a party where they just had a cake to take home.
Also more recently a party where the kids got an advent calander. It was near Xmas

Mine wouldn't. He's probably autistic though.

He spends most of any party asking whether there will be party bags as I try to manage his expectations that there might not be one.

There has always been one but I don't know what he would do if there wasn't one. Probably cry.

He's a bit of a rare case though.

They do like the party bags, but you don’t have to fill them with plastic tat. I put cake or cupcake in the bag with stickers, temporary tattoos, sunflower seed packets and/or mini packet of sweets.

I've been to a fair few parties where they give out sweetie cones and kids are happy? Could you do that maybe....perhaps xmassy styled ones?
I think if kids have cakes, biscuits as part of the party food maybe giving those at the end too might seem abit samey to that....

Most kids love tat and I think most of them be disappointed if they didn't get one.

Agree with this, I've never been to a party without a party bag so I don't know how people would react, but it would be a bit odd, it's just part of the ritual. DCs are always happy with receiving them and I'm happy if they're happy so I'm not too critical of the contents.

I've been to a couple that do this and the kids have been delighted! They're big fans of cake, and it looks extra special in the little box. Are they the kind with a little cardboard handle on top? If so, maybe a cute little keyring could be attached if you think they'll miss not having something to keep?

I'd be thrilled with this as a parent. No bag of tat to stress over? Perfect 👍🏻

The biggest hit at that age was a small bubble mix and wand plus cake

That's a really lovely idea and would make it extra special.

Mine wouldn’t have cared at that age. I’d have been thrilled to bits with cake. When I was a kid there weren’t party bags. You got a slice of cake in a paper napkin and possibly a balloon. I’ve just watched that programme in Netflix about consumerism and waste and it’s reminded me how truly awful plastic tat is.

Well I’d like it as DD 4.5 wouldn’t eat the cupcake (like most of her friends tbh) which would mean I’d get to scoff it on the way home. DD however would rather have plastic tat or a bag of sweets.