Having four children means we get LOTS of birthday party invites. I realized last year just how expensive going to these parties was getting. My children believe we HAVE to go to every party we’re invited to - even if you don’t even like the birthday kid! If each child attends just 10 parties each year, and you can get away with spending just $10 on each gift, that’s $100 per year per child on birthday gifts!!! You do the math - four children at $100+ a year is over $400!!!!

Now, the parties we go to are usually great and chock full of entertainment, good food (sometimes even enough for a meal), and some type of goody as a memento of the party. So I can easily give a gift knowing that the birthday kid will enjoy it and we’ll all enjoy the party. Write the $400 off as part of your entertainment expense and get over it, right?

Sometime we receive plenty of notice to attend a party, but I noticed in the last year or so that we often find out about a party the week it is to occur. One week, we received an invitation on Monday to a party on that Saturday. I went out and purchased our gift. The VERY NEXT DAY, we received another invite for a party to be given that Sunday afternoon. Having to make another trip to the store for ANOTHER gift finally got me to find a fix for birthday party presents!

One day, when my husband could stay home with the kids, I visited Ross, Dress for Less to shop in their discounted toy section. They regularly mark down several of their toys off the already-discounted price. In that day, I purchased over 15 toys (in a variety of age brackets) for just under $100. Many were only $3.99 to $6.99 - and they were neat toys! Now (when I’m kid-free), I try to check through the toy clearance sections at Wal-Mart and K-Mart for any great deals, just to keep the supply stocked.

Despite my efforts to be a party pooper, none of my kids are ever willing to miss a good birthday party. At least, now my attic is stocked with birthday gifts for the next year, so I’m prepared WHENEVER we get an invitation.

I recently had a mother tell me about her birthday gift “tragedy.” She went to Target to buy a few things, including a gift for a party her child was to attend the next day. Getting distracted with some of the items on her list, she completely forgot about the gift. So, she went back to Target the next day to purchase the gift just before the party. She took her tape, bought some gift wrap and wrapped the gift in the back of her minivan just before the party. What a pain! When I told her about my solution, she really liked it, so I thought I’d share it will all of you. If it works for me, it might work for you!

Check out lots of great ideas over at Shannon’s for Works for Me Wednesday.


Posted In: Ideas You Can Use, Parent Care, Time Savers, Works for Me Wednesday