Kids' birthday parties - how much is too much?

On a quick tote up I reckon I have hosted at least 18 parties for Bell and have given a hand at 6 or 7 for Zig so that's a lot of kids and cakes and sweat and sugar and games. It's a lot of stuffing of Loot Bags and doling out of silly prizes and planning and playing old fashioned games and enjoying watching the kids get well and truly dirty. As growing up happened there was a shift in the 'entertainment' but the effort remained the same.

There was a kid's party in the park today. Zig's parties are always outdoors cos their house is a bit small for hordes of kids, so maybe the birthday girl's place is the same.

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Dog and I were out there, it's a dog park after all, and suddenly 2 trucks arrived and out popped 'Staff'. They set up a large pergola and a long table with about 20 shortie chairs for the wee ones. The tables were dressed and decorations were donned. A pretty pink piñata was hung and then other tables were arranged for food and parcels and 'stuff'. The second truck housed a walloping jumping castle and generator. It was fucking enormous and very LOUD!

A friend arrived with her dog and it promptly went and peed on one of the supports of the pergola. Just marking it's territory as dogs do. The Staff member was not happy and threatened the dog and was most unpleasant to my friend. I suppose he was unaware that the park is a public place and a dog park to boot. He must have thought he was in his boss' private back yard and we were intruders. All very fucking ho hum.

Steve and I decided that a dash out was necessary to avoid the shitful drone of the generator on a SUNDAY morning. As we were leaving we saw that Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse had also been invited  or more than likely they had been employed to entertain the wee ones.

I hate these sorts of parties. Bad enough when they are at someone's house where at least the owners of said house and kid have to sort the clean up and fallout of injuries or damage. But worse still in a public place disturbing the serenity of a sunday morning.

What must these kids end up like? Surely this all leads to a sense of entitlement that just beggars belief. They must at some point also wonder why their parents couldn't be bothered playing with them or their friends. They must figure that the rearing of children is something that can be farmed out and I can only wonder what will happen if they are not similarly able to pay up when their offspring arrive.

I'm happy for people to spend their money anyway they choose. I'm also be happy when breeders' primary motivation at party giving time is what is good for the kids, not what is going to be impressive or a talking point at Kindy, or what trumps little Annabella's 'do'.

Stacking away the cash to buy a car or pay HECs in advance seems much wiser. Or maybe the cash doesn't have to be spent on the kids at all. They haven't earned it.

Even if money is no biggie and is never going to be then perhaps all this excess could be carried out in their own yards so as not to piss of the locals.