to think that party bags are a complete waste of time and money?

[insomniarules]

Why do we have to have them?

YABU and a bit dull and unimaginative - where's your sense of fun and celebration? Kids love them. You choose what to put in them, they can be ultra cheap or ultra posh.

Why do we have to have them? Well, why do we have to have parties? In fact why do we celebrate anything at all? Christmas crackers are kind of a waste too (cheap rubbish, a bang and a hat) but I love them. But I come from a family that doesn't take life too seriously.

YANBU I hate them, both giving and receiving, they're full of sweets that I don't particularly want my dcs to eat, plastic tat that I have to stealthily throw out and cake that sits on my kitchen worktop for a week before going in the bin.

They also turn both my and other children into rude expectant brats (most of these children are normally really quite lovely). The number of times I've had to tell my dcs they're rude for demanding a party bag and at my ds's last party the guests actually started a chant "We want party bags, we want party bags" , so rude!

I still do them as I don't want my children to feel bad on their birthdays when their friends expect them, but I do resent it. I kept them minimal this year, cake, sweets, balloon on stick, but then worried people would think I was being stingy. Even at that it cost at least £1.50 per child which at 20 children is no small amount to spend.

I love party bags. I like spending the time with dc making them, and they love it too. And the bonus is the kids are clear that the party has finished. They take the bag and leave the building.

Tell me more sugarhut

Reptiles sound like something my 8 year old and his friends would enjoy

Think of them as "and now fuck off home" bags. Your opinion may change.

My little sister when she was about 6, got a party bag that had a DVD in it, and not a crap one either, dread to think how much those party bags cost.

Why can't children under the age of 8 be given balloons??

JimbosJetSet I always include a balloon in the party bag

I LOVE doing party bags. Some of you are right misers!!

Now fuck off home bags - love it! I'll be calling them that in my head from now on, I think.

I don't mind making them up but I hate it when kids come up to me requesting their bag, especially pretty rudely "Can I have my party bag now?" I don't think it's something they should automatically expect and I always tell my DC not to actually ask for one - wait till they're given it. It's only polite.

I've been to a couple of parties (well, the DC have!) where instead of a party bag, they've been given ... a present. Just a normal, wrapped present, on a par to the one they've just handed over to the birthday child. A bit odd ...

Damnbamboo...

I chatted up a chap who ran the reptile dept at our local zoo. I hired a hall, and we had 3 crocs, (on leads!) pythons, armadillos, tree frogs, scorpions, chameleons, iguanas, hissing cockroaches, and a bird of prey. It was brill. He has since started his own company I believe, if you want message me and I'll hunt out the details.

He was 4, the theme was dinosaurs, I got them all an Indiana Jones hat to decorate when they arrived. Dog tags with their name, and rank (explorer etc) on. Bought 9ft cardboard cut out T Rexs. Chatted up the local army lads and got them to cover the entire inside of the building with their camouflage nets...we lost a tree frog escapee in there for 20 minutes, that was fun :) I got helium balloons in the shape of pterodactyls. A bouncy castle in camouflage colours. A facepainter who gave them all triceratops horns on the way in. A balloon modeller who made them all balloon dinosaurs whilst the zoo was setting up.

So after all that, they can go fuck 'emselves if they want a bag of tat to go with their hats, dog tags, balloon model, helium balloon and piece of cake :) The Indiana Jones hats, dog tags, face painter and balloon modeller came to under £150. And were superb. I would have spent more than that on tat bags for the 45 guests.

party bags are stupid and I hate the idea the you either need to be given a present to be happy to go home (or else there will be tears!) or that you should expect something in return for gracing the party with your presence.
we never had them.
party-fun-cake-home
job done.