what no pressies??

[bloom73]

Had daughter's lush 8th birthday party in the park ystd, no to pressies no to party bags, yes to fun, swings, hammocks, tree climbing, berry picking, jelly, ice creams and cake!

Instead of pressies we passed round a hat & collected fifty quid for birthday girl to spend in oxfam over the coming weeks. She's happy to be helping towards the Nepal earthquake thro' oxfam, and not to be creating more environmental impacts - trad' parties can breed waste (making new toys= more resources used & more pollution) ,when they should be about bringing friends together and having fun.

We're off to spend some of the donations with a couple of her pals after school =more fun than a pile of uneeded/chosen toys (tho granted some pressies can be cool, but lots don't get used).

We did buy her some pressies by the way - she loves her new trapeze swing & bike!

I'll step down from my soap box now please share this idea to reduce the impacts of lots and lots of kids birthdays Imagine the good that could be done and the damage to our lovely world avoided!! thanks CPx

I quite like the idea of mucking about in the park, cake and jelly and stuff.

But passing a hat around and forcing guests to contribute to a charity they may not want to support (I have REAL issues with oxfam)?! I'm afraid I would turn down any further invitations from you and generally start to step away....

No presents...except plenty of dosh.

Tut, tut.

No it was this one.

Shall I stop with the recycled knit pictures now?

Oh g'waan then, just one more...

What the fuck is THAT, *Penguins"? It looks like giant triffid teeth are eating someone!

Funny, penguin!

Pressies
Presents
Both 8 letters.

Oh the smugness of parents of summer born kids when it comes to party time.

No, a party in the park/garden doesn't work for some of us....... There's only so long you can have kids out in the middle of winter/rainy day, even if you armed yourself with flasks of hot drinks.

I find the idea of a whip-round super tacky I'm afraid and dictating that your child spends it in Oxfam is well, acting like a dictator isn't it.

Let them loose on preloved/eBay/gumtree fgs to buy something they really really want and this in turn may put some much needed funds in the hands of someone else who may need it badly.

Thumb I have no idea but I want one

Apparently it's a wank laptop privacy sock.

I'm a bit hormonal and emotional today

This made me LOL.

Thanks judgey mc smug pants il keep it in mind

I hate stuff like this. We are constantly skint despite working and we have turned down parties in the past because we have not been able to afford a present.

If we do attend I would have been able to search round for an acceptable present I could afford.

With the hat I would have felt pressured to put the same amount as others in even if it was more than I could afford.

That doesn't actually sound like a birthday celebration though. More like a gathering in a park that might take place on any weekend, except you charged people to attend.

and I think it's a bloody huge hypocrisy to spend ££££s on a bike and trapeze and then think your mother earth because your making a donation which won't even cover a chuggers commission for a couple of days.

Oh Penfold you beat me too it. Tree climbing/hugging which ever it is you like your dd to do, isn't practical in January as a rule. So as much as some people might like the idea of a trip to the park for money saving birthday party, it isn't going to happen in the pissing rain and howling wind.

As for a whip round, urgh! Did you even pre warn the parents that's what you were going to do? If not you could have made some of the feel awful if they hadn't brought any cash out with them! Is have been mortified and besides, if have probably lied about having money on me just to be a PITA.

Also, rather than using your dd's birthday as a reason to do some good for charity teach her that fundraising and awareness is much more useful.

And lastly, I really hope you only get a charitable whip round for your birthday otherwise it won't seem quite so "lush".

Sheesh, I think some of the responses to the op are rather unpleasant.

I think the party sounds lovely. Hat-passing sounds a little odd to me and maybe there's a bit of smugness creeping in but op's heart was in the right place....

It's not the location of her heart that's the problem, it's her head.

The party sounds great. The approach to presents not so much.

Her head is so far up her own arse, she could wear it as a hat.

and pass it round at parties

All sounds very hashtag awkward to me OP.....

How on earth did you have the front to pass round a hat? I would literally die at the thought of doing that to anybody I had invited!

Yes actually in theory the party is lovely I say in theory because of the fact we get precisely 1 and a half days of sunshine a year here up oooop North

But yeah I think it's a nice idea teaching the kids it's not all about spending lots of money or getting presents bought . ( each to their own though I quite like presents !)

But then comes the whip round .

I can't even imagine that situation, seriously.

And the fact that if a child doesn't need loads of gifts they won't use, their highly unlikely to find anything they will use or need in a charity shop.

Also writing the post in such a preachy way seems very smug

I sort of see what the op is trying to do but it comes across as quite preachy and a bit

The fact that you posted about it makes you see a bit like you want a huge pat on the back or something.

I bet the hat was the one on the swing-pushing womans head in the photo.Which was bought in Oxfam.As a wedding present,no doubt

Gag. Nothing said 'I'm a greedy fucker' like passing round a hat at a child's party that is really, really nasty.

Yeah right, nice try.

Haven't rtf thread yet but why didn't you just accept presents and let her donate the ones she didn't want to oxfam? I'm sure new and boxed/packaged toys sell for much more than used tat