Well done that mum!

Anya....that's just the sort of parties I did for my children back in the early 70s. I still remember the favourite game of eating the chocolate with a knife and fork (cold from the fridge) wearing large gloves ...trying to cram as much in as possible before the next person shook a six on the dice.You have just taken me down memory lane again. The party guests at my children's birthday parties only took home a slice of wrapped birthday cake (an extra slice of two if they had younger brothers or sisters at home) plus a balloon or two which were already inflated before the party started. Let's hope for more of these simple party,s .....less stress ....and heaps more fun.

For our son's eighth birthday we decided to have a breakfast party - got it over and done by noon. Conjuror with white doves entertained them but they were more interested in when the birds pooed. My husband vowed it was the last birthday party for boys - decided it would be better to have a special treat day with our son's closest friends in future.. This was in the late 80s.

I really hope this kind of party is the new very long lasting trend. My DD bucked the trend of overnight visits to legoland, farm parties at the farm park and spa parties that were the norm at my DGDs school, my DGD 6th Birthday party( joint with her BF) was held in the local village hall,the whole class and the Rainbow pack were invited to enjoy a 'homemade' party. They child loved running and climbing in the hall garden. Quote of the party was one little girl telling my Dh that she "neeeeded more hummus"

I like that idea very much, mcem. We also have done a puppet show using our accumulation of puppets and the wooden puppet theatre DH made for our own children long ago.

I liked the suggestion made recently on GN about the books. Each child was asked to bring a 'lightly-used' book to swap at the party (instead of a present). Nice idea.

So glad to hear that 'proper' parties might be coming back. My girls look back at their parties with affection. Happy memories. Like the time I did a fairy party and put glitter/fairy dust into the invitations not thinking about when they would be opened at school. Glitter everywhere ....not the most popular mother with the teacher . Or the time I made a lovely castle cake for a princess party using doilies to make the Disney type spires on the towers. Unfortunately I didn't think about the flammability of said doilies and when I lit the candles the cake caught fire . My girls are in their late twenties now and they and their friends still remember and laugh about our parties.

Lovely to hear about this unpretentious party. These days it seems that children's parties are often just another opportunity for a one-upmanship contest.

Good for her some parties are getting rediculous I don't think it's for kids its parents who want everyone to think they think more of their kids by giving these expensive parties most kids arnt bothered they just enjoy get together . I know some will say it's their money and they can spend what they want so I'll duck now

Our balloon was already blown up!

We had a clown at one of our DD's parties - during the tea break, my OH (a doctor) and a Mum (also a doctor) were in the other room, where the clown had secreted himself, and were watching a new video of how to do a vasectomy - a very green clown staggered out of the door!

I do agree about parties though - they are OTT now. We only had the clown once - oh and a ball pool another time. Ah yes...little hint here - do not feed children yummy cakes and chocolate and then let them bounce in a ball pool, unless you want to spend the evening with your bath full of hundreds of balls and washing up liquid cleaning the vomit!

My parents never let we kids mess around with uninflated balloons because of that very risk, Lillie.

Although not relevant, I forgot to say last time round balloons in party bags can kill. We had a young girl at school who inhaled the balloon as her mum was driving her home. It got stuck in her airway. Tragic.

Well done indeed!! Let's hope a few more Mums will follow suit!

The rot started to creep in when my DD was going to parties in the 70s. Back then, there was only one 'entertainer' locally, so he kept turning up at the various parties. The kids were bored witless, having had to keep still while he clowned, magicked etc. Then there was the party which had TWO entertainers. . . . - plus the party bags had cost more than the invitees had spent on the birthday boy, which caused embarrassment and annoyance in equal measure!

There were two of us who refused to go down that route and did the silly party games. Joined in with the children, who probably thought we'd lost our marbles, and they went home exhausted (which pleased the parents!), full of food and with a modest party bag. Guess which the children enjoyed most?!