Birthday parties are a-changing! Back in November, my twelve-year-old got a birthday party invitation with the words “No Gifts” written across it. This was a first, but I figured it was because the invitation was sent out late.
Then she got another birthday party invitation, which read “No Gifts Please!” This invitation was sent out several weeks in advance. And it was pretty clear they didn’t want any gifts. Period. The only real gift was your presence.
After this one, I decided to do some research online. I read articles and blog posts on the subject. What’s a parent to do?
I quickly learned this is a new trend for children’s birthday parties.
More and more parents are inviting kids to birthday parties and requesting no gifts. In fact, the etiquette gurus insist you should respect their wishes and forget the gift. In other words, when they say No Gifts it really means “No Gifts.”
So my daughter did just that and took a card (without a gift card inside). No one else took a gift either. They all had a great time at the party too.
This month my nine-year-old got a birthday party invitation with the words “NO GIFT NECESSARY” (in all caps and underlined) at the top.
To be exact, here’s what you saw when you opened it:
NO GIFT NECESSARY
ANY GIFT
BROUGHT WILL BE DONATED TO:
MOOSEHEART – CHILD CITY,
MOOSEHEART, IL
My daughter brought some toys for the kids at Mooseheart. At the party, I asked her friend’s mother about the invitation. Here’s what she had to say about “no gifts”:
My daughter gets so much stuff at parties and we don’t end up using it. She was OK with the idea of asking people not to bring a gift. She really just likes having a party. Most parents asked if they could still bring her a gift though. So I said, “Yes.” I wanted to donate the gifts to Mooseheart because it’s a great organization that cares for children from babies until the age of 21. They would appreciate the gifts.
Photo: liz west
