If you are a father or mother you will have attended children’s birthdays, some will be more austere and others more ostentatious, but all of them are intended to be special for children. Theme parties, children’s entertainers, fondant cakes, inflatable castles, helium balloons (the bigger the better), candy tables and even catering … everything is little to celebrate the little one’s birthday.
A boy or girl who is less than 4 years old will not remember anything of what is happening in the future. That doesn’t matter though, because parents want their young children to enjoy their day… But is the party really for the kids?
Now birthdays are a business
Until not long ago, children’s parties consisted of a cake (or a cake) made by the birthday boy’s mother, and some children went to play at home. Mortadella or nocilla sandwiches were eaten and soft drinks or juices were drunk.
That was the most special time of the year because it was your birthday and they also brought you gifts. The best parties had balloons hanging on the walls and while you opened the gifts they would take one or two photos of you. As the gifts were not many, after opening them they were played with.
Without realizing all that magic has changed and now a children’s birthday seems like a contest to see which mom does it better. Mothers and fathers feel that if you are not original or if the birthday is not ostentatious, you do not love your child enough. Mothers don’t talk to guests, they just want everything to be perfect. The birthday boy plays with his best friends and the rest of the children run around without further ado. The child’s relatives do not enjoy the birthday because it is too big a party.
Too many gifts that are not appreciated later, too much money spent on a party that contributes nothing more than materialism and superficiality to children, does not teach them the true values of family celebration, with people who truly matter. Is the party really done by and for the children or just for fear of “what will they say”?
It is good to compete
It is fine to compete with other parents, it is fine to try to scale social status through children … it is a toxic behavior of parents that has nothing to do with what children really need.
Young children need to be with the people they love the most, do something special like bake a cake with Grandma, enjoy loved ones, and capture an image that will be worth a thousand words. They don’t need to impress anyone, they just need to be happy.
And then it will be when you truly teach your child what happiness means in the company of those who truly matter. Nothing more than that. You don’t need anything else to be happy. Take the test, you will see how your child will have a wonderful day on a birthday where the value of celebrating with loved ones is really enhanced.
