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Ask Amy Archives: baby birthday bummer
Mar. 19th, 2021 07:01 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lemonsharksNote: this letter is from 2011.
Dear Amy: We just celebrated my daughter’s first birthday with a wonderful party at a catering hall. We had live entertainment, food, an open bar for the adults, flowers, balloons, favors, you name it!
I spent months planning for this party to make it a perfect event. This is my third child, and every party has been a big event like this one.
My problem is rude guests. More than half of the party (20 families) responded several days past the RSVP date. They showed up one to two hours late with no apology, and some left early.
These guests took it upon themselves to sit wherever they wanted, even when I had place cards with assigned seating. As much as I love to throw parties for my children, in the end, I feel disappointed, insulted and used.
Should I stop having these parties, or should I continue doing what my children and I enjoy and ignore the rudeness?
Frustrated Mother
Dear Frustrated: It’s somewhat refreshing to learn that even in this tough economy there are still people who throw cotillions for 1-year-olds.
You need a reality check. You also need a reality show. If you had your own show, your guests’ rudeness — and your reaction — would be highlighted for the amusement of the rest of us.
Every time you host one of these extravaganzas you emerge with the same frustrations, so you should do an objective postmortem to figure out what you could do differently in order to have a different result.
I suggest that you adjust your expectations somewhat regarding timely RSVPs, consider doing away with your seating chart, and adjust the length of your event. Your only other option is to get different guests.
Dear Amy: We just celebrated my daughter’s first birthday with a wonderful party at a catering hall. We had live entertainment, food, an open bar for the adults, flowers, balloons, favors, you name it!
I spent months planning for this party to make it a perfect event. This is my third child, and every party has been a big event like this one.
My problem is rude guests. More than half of the party (20 families) responded several days past the RSVP date. They showed up one to two hours late with no apology, and some left early.
These guests took it upon themselves to sit wherever they wanted, even when I had place cards with assigned seating. As much as I love to throw parties for my children, in the end, I feel disappointed, insulted and used.
Should I stop having these parties, or should I continue doing what my children and I enjoy and ignore the rudeness?
Frustrated Mother
Dear Frustrated: It’s somewhat refreshing to learn that even in this tough economy there are still people who throw cotillions for 1-year-olds.
You need a reality check. You also need a reality show. If you had your own show, your guests’ rudeness — and your reaction — would be highlighted for the amusement of the rest of us.
Every time you host one of these extravaganzas you emerge with the same frustrations, so you should do an objective postmortem to figure out what you could do differently in order to have a different result.
I suggest that you adjust your expectations somewhat regarding timely RSVPs, consider doing away with your seating chart, and adjust the length of your event. Your only other option is to get different guests.
