georgejungle Posted September 22, 2009 Posted September 22, 2009 1. Our apartment is too small, but we'd love to have it there and just host a small intimate little shindig with our Baby and invite her Grandparents and aunts (my sister, Wife's sister) 2. BUT, my extended side of the family (aunts, uncles, cousins, MY grandparents) is huge and I know if we hosted it at a Park or Restaurant they'd come. Wife just has her parents and sister who isn't married. 3. Wife isn't truly into the park thing, but said that she would, but I could see in her eyes, she didn't want to. We don't have a lot of money for to throw a big restaurant thing. 4. Wife is all for the small intimate thing, I am too, but I don't want to seem rude and feel bad when people ask about a birthday party and I have to say, were having a small thing and youre not invited? 5. Can't please everyone and we should do what we want for our baby? i just don't want to be mean by having something small and not inviting people who have asked about a party or who inquire about our baby all the time, etc. i.e. good friends who live near us. I want to do what we want, i want my wife to be happy, but I also don't want to offend anyone.
GorillaTheater Posted September 22, 2009 Posted September 22, 2009 When in doubt, opt for keeping your wife happy. Your kid certainly doesn't care where or even if a party is held at this point.
melodymatters Posted September 22, 2009 Posted September 22, 2009 What about hosting it at one of your many friends or families places ? I'm sure not everyone would be willing, but many people like to entertain, and of course you would buy all the food, clean up etc...
Author georgejungle Posted September 22, 2009 Author Posted September 22, 2009 When in doubt, opt for keeping your wife happy. Your kid certainly doesn't care where or even if a party is held at this point. Well, i'm certainly in doubt and my wife means the world to me and I know she wants a small thing at our house and wants to cook so... the answer is right in my face. Maybe i'll just call a few elders and mention what were doing so they don't feel like we're leaving them out. What about hosting it at one of your many friends or families places ? I'm sure not everyone would be willing, but many people like to entertain, and of course you would buy all the food, clean up etc... We just wanted to (as first time parents) be the one to host something for our baby. Kinda selfish maybe, yeah, maybe...But We just want to be in control of it , the decor, the food, we just want to host it.
quankanne Posted September 22, 2009 Posted September 22, 2009 some apartment complexes have clubhouses for residents' use – check into that? Your wife can still prepare a meal, you can still invite a nice-sized, but manageable crowd, and you're not stuck trying to get the apartment ready for guests. If you belong to a church, see if you can rent or borrow the parish hall – most have kitchen facilities. at this point, I'd recommend keeping the birthday parties to a low-key event when they're small because they don't really get into the festivities until they're about 3 or 4. most of all, just have fun with it. Cake, ice cream and lots of film are the order of the day, everything else is ... well, icing on the cake!
Author georgejungle Posted September 22, 2009 Author Posted September 22, 2009 some apartment complexes have clubhouses for residents' use – check into that? Your wife can still prepare a meal, you can still invite a nice-sized, but manageable crowd, and you're not stuck trying to get the apartment ready for guests. If you belong to a church, see if you can rent or borrow the parish hall – most have kitchen facilities. at this point, I'd recommend keeping the birthday parties to a low-key event when they're small because they don't really get into the festivities until they're about 3 or 4. most of all, just have fun with it. Cake, ice cream and lots of film are the order of the day, everything else is ... well, icing on the cake! That's what I figure, baby is only going to be 1, so it's a big deal for us, but too young to really enjoy much nor care who's there. I had thought about keeping it small, but also inviting my two grandmothers as well, to keep it "generational", but also small. But If I invite them, then my aunts might get a little bent out of shape wondering why they werent invited. Just her parents, her grandparents and my grandparents and that's it. p.s. we've thought about all possiblities, Apartment pool area, nearby park, the magic 8 ball keeps pointing to our place and keeping it small. I just have to get over the guilt of leaving a few peeps out.
quankanne Posted September 22, 2009 Posted September 22, 2009 thinking back to when my nieces and nephews were really small, it's been just immediate family for the first few birthdays – grandparents, great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. With my one niece's kids, that got extended to include-great aunts/uncles (me and my sibs), mainly because we are a close family. Now that her kids are a little bigger (8&9) the parties are for kids, with grandparents on hand to help control the little monkeys!
Athena Posted September 26, 2009 Posted September 26, 2009 Perhaps you are overestimating the importance of keeping the numbers down? How small can your apartment be? I once hosted a party for my son when he was 7 in my overseas apartment (tiny 60msquared with a big balcony of 40m sq) to about 12 kids from his class and some parents. I was smart though and hired a clown with tricks on the balcony while the few parents had tea with me in the kitchen! lol Point is, if you invite a dozen family members, they will all fit!!! Come on... do it.
Athena Posted September 26, 2009 Posted September 26, 2009 Just keep it a family party, don't worry about not inviting friends and neighbors if you have sooo many family members (how many do you have) Don't forget not everyone sits in the same room at all times... and even if they are in there, they can STAND... As for seating, just borrow some folding chairs. Don't sweat it.
Lucky_One Posted September 28, 2009 Posted September 28, 2009 Rule of thumb for children's parties. Invite the number of guests that equals the age of the child plus one. I guess, though, we established that this party is for you, and not for the child? Decor? What sort of decor does a 1 year old need??
sb129 Posted September 28, 2009 Posted September 28, 2009 Hey, its a first birthday- it IS bigger deal to the parents than the baby, and its also a celebration that they made it through the first year of parenthood! Personally, I couldn't invite one lot of grandparents and not the other- our baby will have three sets thanks to divorce and remarriage, and it would be a political minefield to not invite everyone! Could you have a picnic in the park and ask everyone to bring a plate of food instead of a gift to help keep costs down? Or maybe have lunch at your place with the smaller group, and then go to the park for a quick afternoon tea to accommodate the larger group.....
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