When my husband and I got married we moved to the suburbs. Within in the first few months of living in our neighborhood we received our first invitation to a child’s birthday party. After receiving the invite we were baffled. We didn’t have kids and had only lived in the neighborhood for a short time. Why would we receive an invitation to a nine year old girl’s birthday party?
Out of courtesy and curiosity we bought a gift for the child and went to the party anyway. We expected to see pin the tail on the donkey, piñatas, balloons; you know the typical birthday scene. Instead we were greeted with heavy hors d’oeuvres and alcohol. One thing we quickly noticed there were hardly any kids. The parents threw the child a birthday party but invited their friends, not the child’s friends. The poor kid stood in the background the entire night looking bored. This child, we’ll call her Abby, didn’t have the opportunity to invite her friends from school, so the child rang in her ninth birthday surrounded by strangers. Sadly, the birthday girl did not enjoy being in the spotlight instead her drunken father grabbed most of the attention.
This family has three kids including Abby. Every year for the past few years, we’ve received an invitation to each child’s birthday party. This past fall, my husband and I welcomed a baby girl into the world. She’ll celebrate her first birthday this fall. So, are we obligated to invite this family to our daughter’s birthday?
No, I don’t feel obligated to invite this family because the birthday should be about the child. If I threw a birthday party for my husband I wouldn’t invite my child’s friends to his party, I would invite his friends. You throw a birthday party to honor the person celebrating the birthday, so the party should be tailored towards that person’s friends. Or in the case of an infant, invite close family and friends only.