What can you do to have a special bday party for a 3 year old when his brithday is at christmas time?

Question

My son will be 3 on December 23, and we are trying to figure out what will make his day special being so close to christmas. People dont give him bday presents, they just give him one that is for his bday and for christmas. Its hard to explain to him why he doesnt get more like his other brothers do. Please help, I want him to know that we care and he is special even if his bday is at christmas time.

What kind of theme do you think would be good? Especially staying away from the whole Christmas thing.

Answer 1

i think thats such a shame people dont give him 2 sets of presents. what difference does it make that its so close to xmas to them - its still a seperate occasion. he probably doesnt understand being so young but when hes older he wont like it all. poor little fella. im sure he knows realises you love and care very much for him. personally id talk to people about this whole 1 pressie thing. its not fair on the poor chap.
just have a really nice party for him with loads of balloons, cakes and treats.music and little games. he will love it im sure.
good luck

Answer 2

Pick a them that he likes, my 3 year old wanted spong bob. Just let him chooes what he wants that will make him feel a little special. Then try doing it the week before his birthday on like the 16th. Then its not as close to christmas. My son likes to have swimming parties , in december that would be hard unless you go to they ywca in your area, around here they are pretty cheap, they also offer a gymnastics type party where the kids get to jump around and play for an hour. Lots of gyms have them kind of parties as well, or a bowling party is fun even for the little guys as long as enough adults are there to help, or doing a party at your house is easy too, cake ice cream , pizza , or your son's favorite foods, ask him what he wants, do a couple party games and have some goodie bags and your set. GOod Luck hope I gave you some ideas.

Answer 3

I'd suggest having it early. Maybe late November or early December. My sons birthday is Dec 29 and we have the same problem. So I usually wait until Jan 7 or so to have his party, since by then, most people are past the thoughts of Christmas. There will always be someone who doesnt see him for Christmas that gives the same present for his birthday. Oh well.

I've also heard of doing half-birthdays in June or July so that it is easier to celebrate, but to me, thats kinda weird. I dont know, maybe some day I'll try it.

Answer 4

Pick a character or show that he likes and go with that theme. And have his party a week or two early so that it's more clear that it's a birthday present. My friends' had a daughter that was born around Christmas and she too only ended up getting Christmas presents. Having his birthday party a couple of weeks early will make it more likely that he'll get birthday gifts and then Christmas gifts. Or you could wait until the week after Christmas to have his party. And of course always make him a cake and celebrate his special day at home too.
Or pick the birth date of one of his siblings that is closest to his and then have a double party for the two of them.

Answer 5

Have you tried holding his party a week or two early since everyone is always busy at Christmas anyway. Also I would tell close friends and family that he wants 2 smaller gifts instead of just 1 larger 1. And holding it early may mean that he gets that anyway since it is too early to give him his Christmas gift. Also when you have his party, hold it in a place that is not decorated for Christmas and don't use anything Christmas colors or related.
Have a theme for the party like sponge bob or something that is totally not holiday related and request that all the gifts be related to that. ( of course choose whatever is his favorite) That may help too.

Answer 6

I love that you asked this question! I have been in the same situation for 29 years. I was born close to xmas also and alot of times I would only get one present or people couldn't come to my part because they were "too busy" getting ready for xmas. The worst part is my daughters bday is the day after mine. For her first birthday I was worried that the same would happen to her and I remembered how bad that felt so I decided to have her party on the first Saturday in December every year. I even send the invites out alittle early so people can schedule it.

Answer 7

Well, I'm due on Christmas Eve. We plan on having a birthday party the weekend after Christmas every year. Having it earlier would be stressful on everyone seeing that it's a major holiday. As long as you and your husband show your son that he's special and keep christmas seperate from his birthday, that's all that should matter. Who cares what other people do with gifts for your son. As long as the child sees that his parents aren't ripping him out of his birthday vs christmas, he'll appreciate you and his birthday more when he's older.

Answer 8

I sympathize with your problem. My oldest son's birthday is Dec. 21st. What I did, was, since it was the holiday season and the house is always decorated, I would have his parties outside of the home, i.e. Chuck E. Cheeses, Magic Mountain, etc. This not only helps to make his day special by "separating" it from the holiday, but his friends and family seem to realize that it is his birthday and a gift for that and christmas isn't fair to him. I started this when he was four years old (preschool) because I was having the same problem. We have done it every year since and it works wonderfully. Good Luck!

Answer 9

I was born on Christmas. I love it, but I agree with you that it was important that my parents made an effort to make it separate from the holiday.

For us, that meant having a family Christmas together in the morning, but a birthday lunch. We'd do the birthday cake, singing, etc., plus a few small presents.

THEN . . . we had a half-birthday party in June. ;)

That's when all the kids were around, school was out (when I got older and that mattered), and it was warm enough to have a party outside. My parents would invite my grandparents to the kids party and I'd get my "real" birthday presents then. I loved having two parties every year and couldn't imagine how other kids waited a whole year for theirs! *lol*

Answer 10

I have the same problem. My daughter will be 4 on December 22. I'm just going to throw her a regular Dora the explorer birthday party. No christmas wrapping paper or bows allowed. I'm actually shopping for her birthday and christmas separately. She's already naming what she wants for her birthday and what she wants for christmas. I hate it though. It's only going to get worse as they get older.