Nursery party bag for 3yos

[elorana]

Hi mums, can I get your view please. DS1 is turning 3 in a few weeks and we have decided we won't throw him a party yet particularly as he attends nursery on that day and all his friends (pretty much) are from there. Instead nursery is very well versed in organising a small double as part of their day so we'll be doing that.

There's 13 children in his class and we'll be bringing a chocolate birthday cake. Can I get your thoughts on party bags (DS has received a few this year from nursery parties), I hate receiving a lot of tat the kids only play with once and would rather get a decent toy than 10 cheaper ones that will end up in landfill. Was therefore thinking a soft toy - found some very decent 20cms ones for just over £4, some bubbles £0.50 and a bag of harbour £0.25. Does this sound ok? It's not a huge group so unit cost works for me but does it sound like something your children/yourself would like or do I need to rethink and go down the quantity over quality route??

haribo. I meant haribo 😅

Get yourself to the works. 10 books for £10 and a haribo if you must

I have always just done a present and not a bag for our parties. So many children have dietary restrictions, I'd steer clear of edible stuff. A bear each sounds good. We've also done books, bath bombs, bulbs, bubble wands, toy trains...

Honestly I wouldn't bother. They will all be happy with cake and a bag of haribo. It's not a party where you use the bags as a way to get them to leave. Plus at approximately £5 a child it sets a precedent that others won't thank you for.

@SausageMonkey2 yes I saw these but they didn't feel that nice for presents (quality and narrative) so decided against them

@stichguru yes maybe I could go for the one thing instead, would make things simpler

@VIII yes I do see your point re the food lol. Like I said DS has already received some would not want not to return the favour. Is £5 much? The parents won't know and I'm not expecting anything similar - it's just a budget that works our end

I would avoid the haribo, lots of parents don't want their 2/3 year olds eating sweets!

I think it’s fine. We did bulk bought sets of chalks one year and some of those plastic boats for the bath (still in use nearly a decade later here!) another.

Books for the win. Or craft things from hobby craft (paint a window skylight thing) are usually fairly cheap. I detest the tat and immediately chuck it

@elorana

ive done the books from the works wrapped in cellophane with a printed thanks for coming to my party sticker on

the larger bubble wands with a thanks for coming to my party like cardboard luggage tag

small selection box and as older - chocolate orange (£1 on offer often in Tesco works a dream)

Then I’ve done things like I’ve had a selection of rubber ducks when they were toddlers and had them in a basket to choose one

Mini craft kids (Baker Ross packs on the clearance tab)

Haribo contains gelatin, so anyone who doesn't eat pork can't have it. Although it's common enough that the parents will probably be aware of this and have a plan for it.

Do the nursery actually allow for party bags to be given out? DS2's did, and DH got really into shopping and filling up the bags for him to give out but shortly after this they put out a note saying please no more birthday gift bags because it was almost starting to get competitive and I think the staff felt it was putting pressure on parents who might not be able to afford to give stuff out to the whole class. Plus I expect it became a bit of a hassle if you think about how many birthday celebrations they hold over the course of a year.

I think it's OK to bring a cake to nursery if they are used to doing a little party there, but I wouldn't have the nursery celebration be the actual party to the point you're giving out party bags, personally. If you don't want to do a big party, it's totally fine at 3 to have a couple of children over for a birthday tea or take them to a local attraction, something like that.

What about a colouring book and small pack of crayons?

I wouldn’t get a teddy as lots of people have too many already (or maybe that’s just us).

The books at the Works are not all crappy. I’ve seen Elmer, Kipper and Jill Murphy books for example which are all decent.

If I recieved sweets I usually don’t give them to my 3 year old DD, at least partly due to them being a choking hazard.

I wouldn’t do hating, 2 and 3 year olds don’t need it and hating especially is bad for teeth. I’d be surprised if your nursery allows sweets to be given out. The soft toy is a nice idea, just give one of those to each.

I think a fun sized chocolate bar is better than haribo. Ask the nursery if anyone has allergies.

Skip the haribo definitely, a small toy and some bubbles is perfect 👍

Thanks all, much appreciated - I think I'll ditch the haribos 😊