The Rachel Cruze Show - Parents Are Spending How Much on Kids' Birthdays?

Episode Date: November 22, 2024

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Hey, you guys. So I recently saw a stat saying that parents spend on average $314 on their kids' birthday parties. And I would be honest, with all the custom balloon arches that I'm seeing on social media, I'm surprised it wasn't more. But today, I want to talk about the root of why this is going on, share my honest thoughts, and even offer a few tips for celebrating your kids on their special day without sacrificing your family's financial future. And if you love this content, make sure to hit the subscribe button so we can chat more about topics like this. All right, first, USA Today reports that having a set theme for a kid's birthday party automatically increases the price. So if you're a 90s kid, you know, it was Barney. Today, it may be bluey or paw patrol. But throwing a specific theme birthday party usually means that the price is going to increase.

Because if you think about it, you've got to get custom invitations. You've got to get the branded play. You gotta get the themed party favors, the matching napkins and tablecloth and balloons, the custom cake. I mean, all of it together has to work if a theme is happening versus just kind of finding what's on sale

and what works and throwing it together. But again, the idea that like there is a theme and a color palette, you're gonna end up spending more. Another reason for the increase in kid birthday parties, I believe is social media. I think comparison culture is a real thing. I mean, you really are watching people, either that you know or that you don't know,

maybe in your town or maybe on the other end of the country, you know, throwing these birthday parties and you're like, oh, wow, look at that. That's amazing. And naturally, you're going to compare what they're doing versus what you're doing. And usually comparison leads you down a road of discontentment, end up spending more money and even debt at the end of the day. So being able to put the blinders on and just saying, you know what, I'm going to do what's best for me and my family. It may not have a color palette. It may not look, you know, beautiful. aesthetics may not all work with my house, but like, this is for my kids. We're going to be reasonable here. I think is really key. So just repeat after me. If I don't hire a Disney

princess for my toddler's birthday party to impress everyone at the party and the internet, I'm going to be okay. I'm going to be okay. So just take the, take the guilt and the burdened off, parents, take it off. All right, reason number three, kids' birthday parties are getting pricier simply because time is passing and your children are getting older. And the survey found that parents spend more money on birthday parties as the child gets older. And inflation makes everything more expensive year after year. And apparently 20% of parents confess to spending more than $500 on their kids' birthdays in years past. And I think we can all agree that inflation does play a huge part. You guys, you're going to be paying more and more as the years go on.

And the idea that, again, you see what everyone else is doing. And so as this price increases and the expectation of what these birthdays parties increase to, those expectations are sometimes just completely out of reach. I think it's okay to say that. All right, before I share my tips on how to save in this area, let's talk about what it should look like if you do want to go all out for your kids' birthday party. Because the truth is, too, people are creative.

That's not my bent, naturally, but it may be yours, and you may be like, hey, I enjoy a good aesthetic when it comes to my kids' birthday party. I enjoy doing a theme and doing all of this. And if you love it, here are a couple of things to remember. Number one, always check your intent. Why are you doing this? Why are you spending X amount of money for your kids' birthday party going into all the effort?

Why? Because you can kind of check yourself with these four questions. If nobody sees this, do I still want to do it? Right? If you can't post it or even if nobody shows up to the birthday party, right? Like, what is that motivation there? Also, will this earn my kids love if you're kind of thinking, oh, I felt guilty. because of X, Y, and Z in life, and I can go big on this day because they're going to love it

and they're going to be happy with me and it's going to be great, not a great motivation. Also, is it in the budgets? Are you going into debt for it? Those are automatic X's, okay? But if you can budget it and it's reasonable, then go for it because also, I know you guys watching, everyone has different income levels. You know, there are different places financially. So if you have the margin, the ability to kind of, yeah, go all out because that's what you want to do, it's not a bad thing, but again, making sure that you can budget for it. And also, is this what my kid actually wants? Because sometimes as parents, we can tend to live vicariously through them. And you just want to make sure that this is actually what my kid is wanting and it's not just all about me.

Also, think about the balance in it all. So if you are party planning and that, again, brings you joy, then that's great. You just want to make sure financially you're able to do it. And doing a budget, like we talked about earlier, is a key part of it. So if you've not done a budget, you guys in general, you need to do that. And every dollar is a great budgeting app, especially when it comes to these kind of expenses. Because as of right now, I'm actually planning a birthday party for Charles because he'll turn five soon. And in every dollar, legit, have a line item for Charles's birthday. So it's able to, like, we have the amount we want to spend.

Stay within that budget and it keeps you accountable, which is great. All right, now here are my six budget-friendly birthday. tips if you're looking to throw a birthday party on a budget. Number one, don't pay for invitations. Just send a text or an email. Let's be honest, we all need tracking. And if you mail an invitation or at least to our house, more than likely, we're going to lose it. And so when I get a text, it is so much easier to see. And that's literally what I did. I was like, Charles's birthday with the confetti emojis on each side. I tried to make the like the text cute. But besides that, you text it out to all the moms or texting your back and boom, boom, boom,

very efficient. It's great. Number two, skip part. party favors. My kids, they always kind of hate this about me. They're like, Mom, we want a goodie bag for our friends. And I'm like, yeah, but the truth is, that goody bag is going to go home. And that mom is like, here's more crap that we're going to have to deal with on the floor of the minivan or being, you know, it's going to break or you're all going to fight over it. Like, it's all crap anyways. It is. So like, if you need to save money, if you need to save money, skip the party favors. Number three, focus on the essentials. So think about, you don't have to go and cook for 50 people and do a huge full meal.

Listen, a fun fetti cupcake is going to be a crowd pleaser. And that is one thing that we have done is we have Nix's birthday cakes. Well, we do a birthday cake, but I'm next going to a bakery and buying one. Because the kids don't care. They really don't. And again, it's beautiful, good for pictures. And again, if that's your thing and that's where you want to spend your money, do it. But for me, I've kind of nixed it.

And my kids, we bake their birthday cake. We go get a box, literally a box of cake. And they make it. and have fun fatty is usually what it is, and everyone's happy. Everyone's great. Number four, keep it casual for as long as possible. So listen, if they are under three years old, your child has no clue what it's going on. I would even say when they're three, they probably really don't know.

Like, maybe when they're hitting that four or five age, like they're starting to have friends and ask specific things and what they want. But besides that, y'all, they don't know. They do not know. So do not feel like you have to go all out. because they don't know what's going on. It is for the adults at the party. It is not for the kids at that point.

All right, number five, think about experiences over things. So if you notice that your kids have a favorite activity or something that they love to do, incorporate that into the party. Like, I've known people as our kids are getting older, they're not doing big birthday parties. They're just like, hey, they tell their kid, pick two or three friends, and we'll go to dinner

and go to a movie or go to a sporting event. Like, we can do something that, again, is a little bit of smaller capacity. and it doesn't feel like you have to throw this big birthday party for everyone. So if your kid likes that kind of thing, that could be a way to save some money. Number six, research affordable venues. So I know here in Nashville, there are definitely places that you can throw kid birthday parties. Everything from Chucky Cheese to the trampoline, indoor trampoline thing,

this other thing that has all this crazy stuff that the kids can do, or the skate center, right? And so there's all different venues at all different price points. So look at that because you can spend a significant, amount more depending on the venue. And my daughter had a skate birthday party this summer. And the skate center, y'all was so cheap. Like when I saw the quote, I was like, really? That's great. Okay. So that's much different than some of the other places that we've done that are like indoor and bigger and much more expensive. So do your research. All right, this is some tips when it comes to a budget-friendly kid birthday party. I hope that helps. And also remember, as your parenting,

sometimes we can put such importance on like one day, right? Whether it's like Christmas or their birthday. And the truth is who they are all the other days of the year and who you are with them is what's really going to shape them. And that's why it is so important to always remember to be teaching your kids things about giving and sharing and all of that because the character of your kids is what's important. And that's not going to be defined by one birthday party

that you overspend on. But again, cultivating who they are is so, so key. and I'm so passionate about that. And so I actually wrote another kid's book specifically about sharing and giving. And I am so excited, you guys. It is out. It released this week.

And so make sure to check it out because, again, it is something that is so near and dear to my heart. It's called I'm glad for when I can share. And it's a sweet book that goes along the series about contentment and generosity. And this book is about sharing.

So make sure to check it out. All right, you guys, share this episode with a friend. If you know someone that's going to be thrown, a birthday party soon and if you want to cut back on other places make sure to check out my episode on three places you overspend without even knowing it remember you guys to take control of your money and create a life you love