OH, don't get me wrong, I have nothing against birthday bashes for kids at all....when we had one kid and two incomes we threw big ones! And we do throw big parties for baptisms, first communions, confirmation, etc.
It's different when the family consists of, for example, the parents both age 25, one decent income, no college or marketable job skills between them, and four children age 7 and under. (and yes they got married at 18). ya know? I mean it's a free country and they can do whatever they want.
But. Now they are talking bankruptcy and somehow, doesn't that kind of stuff trickle down and increase cost for the rest of us?
Sorry, I'm veering off topic, aren't I? LOL.
Around here, most parties either have a jump house or a clown or other entertainment. Those things cost over $200.
This past year we spent the most on my daughters' birthday party. We took 20 kids ice skating. Their birthday is during the rainy season in California, and it had to be an indoor party.
However, my brother had just died, and my dad had been in and out of the hospital. It was well worth the money, so that I didn't have to do much. Also, if I had to go see my dad, my husband could have handled the party all by himself.
The other fun cheap party we did was last summer for my son. It was a survivor party. We have a pool, and we invited about 7 kids. We had races in the pool, a gross food challenge, a treasure hunt, and bingo. We spent more on decorations for the party, but we knew we would reuse the decorations (tiki torches, grass table skirt, and lanterns).
You can have really cheap parties if you want to. I read one idea that I thought was pretty good. A mom gave her kid $50 for a birthday party. The kid got to make all the decisions. The kid decided to have things white paper plates because she could spend more money on other items for the party. She made her own invitations for free. I thought that was a great idea for an older kid.
I totally agree with you regarding birthday bashes one can ill-afford.............I put those in the same category as any purchases that one can not afford.
Our daughter wants a swimming pool (so do I) but it is out of the question for at least another month, so yesterday we spent $8 and bought one of the water slide things that lays on the ground and attaches to the hose...........she'll get to play in the water and my berry bushes and fruit tree will get watered without me having to lift a finger :)