Mmmm..... salsa.

I don't know where I've been (socially), but I can't imagine asking bridesmaids to come up with more than maybe $50 max for a shower for the brides (and truly I think that is excessive). I always thought the BM was responsible for dress/shoes and that was it.

Our wedding was out of town for both of our families. We paid for everyone's hotel bill. It was massive but *we* invited them to come and it seemed like the right thing to do. An invitation should not come iwth a price tag.

As an aside, the dog is barking furiously out the window at a blimp. Can't say as I blame her.

I need an oven thermometer, does any one have any suggestions about buying them?

Right up there with Kiddie Birthday Inflation.

I started getting those damned B-day catalogs right before Owen turned 1. Sickening with the theme decorations, goodie bags, toys, etc. *shudder*

My kids better be satisfied with cupcakes and a donkey's ass.

My kids better be satisfied with cupcakes and a donkey's ass.

As long as you never give them the idea that they have much say in the matter, they ought to be. The biggest birthday party my parents ever gave me, was taking me and two school friends to McDonalds. Most years, if any more than cake and prezzies at home with just the nuclear family was involved, it was going out for ice cream with one set of cousins.

I was generally quite happy with this arrangement.

We had pretty neat parties. But they weren't huge. A swimming party at the church swimming pool. My brother had cook out parties. One summer right before my birthday my brother came down with the chickenpox. Mom called all the mothers to let them know and cancel the party. The other mothers said they'd send their kids and hope they'd come down with the chickenpox.

As long as you never give them the idea that they have much say in the matter, they ought to be. The biggest birthday party my parents ever gave me, was taking me and two school friends to McDonalds.

My parents gave us good parties--but they were usually at home or very small (a group of six or seven girls at Pizza Hut). And when we were in grade school, we got to take Halloween theme cupcakes for our classroom treat every year.

ONCE they invited all 22 of our classmates to a party at our house. My folks were very brave.

ONCE they invited all 22 of our classmates to a party at our house.

That is brave. I was allowed to have as many guests as the year I was turning (6 guests when I was 6, etc.) My favorite parties were swimming at the club where my parents where members. We'd have a sleepover after the swimming - my mom said the swimming really benfitted her because we were all exhausted.

I always got to invite EVERYONE to my parties, not just eight or ten kids (an envy-making fact among my friends). Mom would make ice cream cake (layering the ice cream and the cake) in whatever combination I wanted (generally chocolate cake, chocolate chip mint ice cream) and color the whip cream icing however I wanted. We'd play party games and have goodie bags. We'd decorate with streamers that would stay up until they sagged enough that we could pull them down just by jumping. Sometimes there'd be a theme, one year everything was Chinese. (I was older by then, we actually had food and not just soda and cake -- chicken chow mein iirc).

For my little sister's parties sometimes one of my friends and I dressed up and were assistants. One year my Grandmother made us panda costumes. The next year we were Raggedy Ann and Andy.

One of the big deals about birthday parties was that it was the only time we had soda in the house (and for a few days afterwards). That was a huge treat.

I remember preparing for the parties as being nearly as much fun as the things themselves. We made pinatas and stuffed them with whatever I picked, decorated with the colors I picked...

The theme I see when I look at this is that it was MY special day and I could create something special and be in charge.

I remember when my friends started having roller skating parties. That was pretty fun, but sometimes they didn't open the presents during the party -- I considered this unforgiveably rude.