Comments on: Goody Bags

By: Sunshine

Sunshine — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 22:26:53 +0000

I’m a 43 year old Mom and my son just started kindergarten. Call me a spoiler, but I was thrilled to do the goody bags for his birthday. (His school does not allow sugary treats.) Luckily I work near Toy Town so I get wholesale prices–super super cheap. Instead of plastic junk, I did jump ropes and nubby bounding balls, inside small “gender appropriate” canvas bags. cost $1.50 each! The best part–My son is learning that it is better to give than receive. No one knows his birthday is this Friday, and therefore he will not receive gifts, yet he is really thrilled about sharing!

By: Mrs Lemon

Mrs Lemon — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:33:16 +0000

(ps – that half birthday party means we had her birthday party in June instead of on her birthday in December)

By: Mrs Lemon

Mrs Lemon — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:32:30 +0000

I’m young (29) and I’m not only anti-goody bag, but I’m anti-birthday party. With my stepdaughter who was spoiled beyond reason before her dad and I married, we decided to start doing a half birthday party for her so she could have friends over in the summer instead of missing it for bad weather. She thoroughly enjoyed it, and it was inexpensive. But for our son, we just took a small birthday cake to mcdonald’s with just the four of us, and it was still just as special. We decided that our joint children will have 4, 8, 12, and 16 year birthday parties. The rest of the birthdays will be spent with family, the way they came into this world

By: Jill

Jill — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 23:12:40 +0000

Oh, those &^$##@ goody bags. I used to be (affectionately) known as The Bag Lady at my son’s preschool because I got stuck once doing the goody bags for some holiday and everyone thought they were so great, they begged me to sign up for the goody bags for all subsequent events. Last St. Patty’s day snuck up on me. It was on a Tuesday and I thought it was on a Friday. So I spent 2 hours on a rainy, dark, cold Monday night hunting goody bag stuff. And they were cute in all their green and polka dotted goodness. And when I came to get my 3yo at the end of the St Patty’s Day, there all 25 good bags still sat in the basket. No one bothered to hand them out. And I was not a happy mama. So I took them all home with me. Needless to say, I am no longer The Bag Lady. I sign up to bring the napkins.

By: Thea

Thea — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 19:17:37 +0000

I love presents, but they should have meaning, and I love personalized goodie-bags, but not the cheap kind, filled with commercial crap-ola. The original idea should be, a ‘Thank you for coming to my party’, that way kids don’t have to write thank-you notes. But so many people do not take the time to put creativity in it. Why not suggest a new tradition, like pulling names out of a hat and buying a book for another kid, and then circling all the books around during the last class, for each kid to write their name in? That’s a better end-of-the-year keepsake.

By: judy

judy — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:20:24 +0000

I am a grandmother but are we not teaching the younger generation that you always “get” something no matter what?

Can we teach them there are times you GIVE without getting!
Isn’t that a valid point?

* * *
Yes, ma’am, you make a valid point. I agree with you. It’s hard work to teach children to give without getting and it’s a hard lesson for little ones to embrace. But it will be even harder to learn that lesson as an adult because the world just doesn’t hand out goodies for no reason.

By: abby goerig

abby goerig — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 03:58:15 +0000

I am not a fan of the goodie bag either. I have actually adopted your idea about getting rid of the mcdonald’s toys to charity. But if your going to have to participate, my favorite addition is crayons and a notebook. Right now at walmart that would cost you 45c. 30cents for crayons (only crayola…the others are not good and 15 c for a notebook. Store them until the end of school and they will be a huge hit!!

By: Sir Nottaguy-Imadad

Sir Nottaguy-Imadad — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 02:10:17 +0000

You and I are polar opposites. I had my first grandchild at 37. The key with the goody bags is to stash them all away in a secret location. Then when you need to come up with goody bag stuff, you simply “regift” it.

I loved your list of inappropriate gifts.

By: Jenni D.

Jenni D. — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 21:03:56 +0000

A-to-the-MEN, AM!

By: Nette

Nette — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:14:55 +0000

Amen, and “ditto” everything you said! When my twins recently explained to their little neighborhood friend that they were declining the invitation to her birthday party because we would be on our family vacation, she offered that she would be saving their goody bags for them.

Now, if “Mr. Truth” had been eavesdropping, I’m wondering if it may not have gone something like this, “We cannot come to your party, but could we still have a goody bag?”.

I did ask for clarification, but they stand by the story that she’s the one who offered. It must be a big deal in their minds. Honestly, outside of a tootsie roll and a piece of Bazooka gum, it’s all bound for the trash can.

I’m also not a big fan of “treats” after every little gathering.