Aibu to go on strike over world book day

[TigerOnTour]

DD2 wants to go as an animal for WBD. I don't want to spend money/time/the earth's resources on making her an animal costume. It doesn't help that she is DC2 so I have done lots of costumes for DC1 in the past. DD2 us in year 4, if that's relevant. School have given the option of wear PJs but she wants to go as this animal.

I think i'd buy my dc an animal costume for world book day if she wanted one.

I understand if you don't want to though.

Not fair if you did it for the first child.

Tiger onesies are your friend here! Packed both mine off in these for WBD (The Tiger that Came to Tea) and DD (who is now 12) has only just stopped wearing hers for bed!

If she's in Year 4 she can make it herself - or at least come up with the plans and ideas.
She designs it and figures out how to make it.
If she doesn't do that - well then tough luck. She goes in jammies.

If your eldest had costumes I don't think you have a choice! I sympathise, because it was the bane of my life and I can't sew to an adequate standard. Make a mask (which she will take off for sure) and some clothes in the right colour? I never bought a costume and generally invented something from old stuff at home, or from something very cheap.

Why have a second child if you can't be bothered to do for them what you did for your first child?

Can't you just buy one? Doesn't have to be from new if you can get it from Vinted.

What animal is it? I’m sure the power of Mumsnet can find you something that doesn’t cost the earth or help with ideas to make something. A onesie is a great idea as it can be worn again so not a waste of resources.

Have you kept DD1's costumes?

@dimllaishebiaith don't be daft. Surely there's times you do something for a first child that you realise wasn't good/worth the money/worth the effort/was a disaster etc so you aren't going to do it all again with child 2 and beyond.

Depends on your perspective

I was the second child of a mother who should have stopped at 1

I was well aware by the OPs Dd2s age that I got less and got to do less because my mother had "done it all before"

Sometimes you have to suck it up even if you don't think it's worth the effort because the child wants it. In this case the child actively wants a costume. Not getting her one because her mother has done it before is mean

There's nothing daft about that

Definitely go for an easy option. DS went as James Bond one year as he already had a little suit. I just bought a plastic martini glass!

I'm not creative so I don't make stuff.

I would let her especially if you did the same for dc1.

Our school is doing things differently this year. They go in in cosy clothes, and then go round each classroom and have a workshop on different cultures in book form. There will be an educator of each culture there to talk about it

@dimllaishebiaith sorry to hear of your experiences as a child.
To be honest though a child in Year 4 (so 8 or 9) is old enough to understand the concept of costumes being difficult to make/wasteful if only worn once etc and just because it was done for an older sibling doesn't mean it has to be done for them.

Fox onesie for fantastic mr fox, with plaster over the tail. Buy bigger size so it can be worn next winter.

Can you not just do leggings and long sleeved top in the appropriate colour for whatever animal she wants? Then ears headband either home made or from eBay, face paint, bosh, done.

My youngest is doing a character from his current favourite book, who conveniently wears jeans and a t-shirt.

I do think you need to try and match the effort you made for her sibling. I have twins second so I'm dreading replicating everything I did for PFB with his homemade eyeball costume etc but it seems unfair to say "well I did it already so I don't want to do it again". Altho this year he is in a shop sale brought outfit

A child of 8 or 9 is also old enough to wonder why it's wasteful for her, but not wasteful for her sibling

I think there are very few reasons why you shouldn't be willing to do for one child what you would do for the other if both of them want it

@dimllaishebiaith because people learn and change opinions.

I thought my WBD days were over! But they still do it at DD's secondary. At first they said Harry Potter theme which would have been tricky as DD doesn't particularly like HP but now they have said anything so she can wear her Coraline costume from Halloween!

Of course. I don't think a school event that the child really wants to take part in counts though!

That doesn't really cut it when you are 8, and you really want a costume and your friends got costumes and your sibling got costumes when they wanted them though does it

If wastes the issue buy second hand, make one etc be inventive

Exactly!

Animal pj's the end! They'll never know.

@dimllaishebiaith you have a point tbh. I should make a bit more effort. I don't think I ever bought DC1 anything specific costume wise. But she was choosing more reasonable characters like where's Wally etc. DD2 wants to be a beaver 🦫 😂