My son had his first invite to a party- the child in question has a website dedicated to the day. Is this normal party ettiquette for a 5 year old?

[DrSpaceman]

They barely know each other as they have only just started school.

The website is really sweet but I can't help but feel horrified at how slick it is. There is a family profile, a wish list of presents, the games they will play and what the day will consist of and photos of the previous years photos with cake etc.

I was hoping my ds could have a few friends round for tea with lots of coloured food and some donkey tail pinning.

I am a novice at this and look to the vipers and their wisdom to put me right on all matters normal/crazy with this schooling lark.

I have namechanged as I suspected supermum may be a mumsnetter/Fly type

A "wish list"?????

How materialistic...

crokky it is not good organisation, it is obsessive self-delusional craziness.

No one needs to dedicate that much to one child's friggin ability to get to their fifth birthday.

it sounds very American actually, wish list

Enjoy as one example of how to throw a party ... then throw your own, however you like, in your way - I expect both will be great fun!!! If they were all the same it would be dullsville!!!

At least you have an ice breaker for these parents, and other parents of receptioners too!

showmethewaytothenextwhi - can not agree with you that its a good idea.

But I go agree on the party bags. I dont fill my girls with the usual stuff.

Sometimes I buy books and selotape a packet of sweets to the front or buy a nice cup each etc.

Always costs roughly the same as normal bags. You can get so carried away with filling them,

Now my oldest is 6 I am not so bothered about her eating sweets but when she was younger I use to hate it when she would have a party bag with lollypops and horrible sweets that got stiuck everywhere.

Wilkonsons is great, you can buy colouring books for 50p each and crayons 25p or fancy pencils really cheap. They also have fantastic cheap arts and crafts that are actually really fun.

Hand animal puppets that you sew together where a hit at the last party, think they cost 50p each or £1 -cant remember now. Another fav from there are their badges that you design and make. You get 4 or 6 in a pack for a £1 - bargain!

We do wish lists for family at xmas, but usually I tell them. As i'm from a big family and they always want ideas of what to get.

Because my parties only have 6-10 children I would never do a wish list. I think its a bit presumptuous. I spend £5 max on a childs birthday present, in my group of friends. We agree its a good enough amount to spend to get a nice gift.

Some mums spend ridiculous amounts. The child is overwhelmed with all these presents that they probably dont even care about.

My children play more without toys them with them and I think that goes for alot of kids.

of course I'd never actually do a website for a child's birthday party, but there is a slight, sneaking feeling of admiration for someone who'd put that much effort in

and dd asked me if she could give her friends a wish list and I told her she would be grateful for whatever she got - usual budget around here is £5-£10 for a birthday present, anything more would be considered very OTT

Up here in the North we only give sticks and bits of twine as presents and we send children home from our parties with a cuff round the ear and a lump of salt lick.

Thank you for sharing this DrSpaceman. I was feeling tired and a bit down after today and this gave me a good snigger .

This is OTT, but it is something I can imagine my DH doing if I let him (without the present wish list of course - the shame!) Maybe one of them is just really into technology.

It's not anything too extraordinary.

Lego star wars
Mega Bocks Streets
Brio
Ben10
Transformers
Hammerhead shark

All the sort of stuff that my own like.

Slubber

And stop backtracking OP. The wish list is vulgar, vulgar, vulgar. Give a donation to charity instead

A party website/

COOL! I WANT ONE!!!

Rabbit that is on the list too, an Oxfam token ?????

Oh please tell us the website adress!

ott doesnt even cover it. these people are planely insane and you should avoid them for the rest of time.

(wanders off muttering about the state of society and the end of the world...)

OP - you've been very sweet but this is a bad thing on so many levels.

A wish list really? Does the parent concerned not think that fellow parents know what children of the same sex and age as the Birthday Boy are in to?

Dh thinks one of the parents is an out of work web designer with way too much time on their hands. I think he's right - but that's no excuse!

Ugh.

Any chance that one of the parents wants to start a party planning / website kind of business and using this opportunity to judge interest or advertise??

DrSpaceman - do you think the wish list is aimed at close friends/family rather than other parents? I just ask because I sometimes ask my close friend what to get her DC's as I'm a bit clueless really.

Northernlurker, I think your dh is spot on. I guess if that is the case, you'd have to forgive them really - better than sitting at home bored and frustrated.

Ugh... horrible... so smug and ostentatious and pretentious and...

I bet they have made it together with the child. I reckon it was great fun.

BUT, I might add, if we were to create a site together with our kids, it would NOT be a birthday party brag blog!!

DS1 is learning programming. He is 7.

oh god please link, link, link, link

they will never know it was you

Please, please link!

Please?