I’d never heard of pass the parcel! May have to introduce that around here.

Deb: Oh, I totally agree that it’s a parent-thing and not a kid thing so much. S was thrilled just to have candles on a homemade cake! hehehe

We played a few party games for the first time recently and the kids had fun. One of the moms and I were laughing that the pass the parcel game is not the same as when she was a kid. Nowadays, whenever each kid unwraps a layer, a chocolate falls out until the main prize is unwrapped. She said, there just used to be the one prize and noc chocolates.

I’m noticing so much over-the-top parenting behavior this time back in California. I’ll have to organize my thoughts and write about it.

And if I’m feeling ambitious, I’ll try making/decorating a cake. Somewhere there’s a photo of my version of Pikachu. It looks like something yellow splatted onto a sheet of tinfoil-wrapped cardboard, and died. The kiddo loved it.

Sometimes there are balloons and streamers. We sing Happy Birthday, eat cake & ice-cream, the kid opens presents (not necessarily in that order).

Those insane birthday parties are not (in my opinion) about the kids at all, but some messed up status symbol in certain parenting circles.

We as kids loved the crazy parties, but we all had an equally fun time trying to beat each other at “drop the clothespin” or “musical chairs”. And when I was a kid? Everyone might have gotten a party favor, as in a single item, but only the winners of the games got Prizes.

A prize isn’t worth diddly squat if everyone gets it.