Dear Parents (especially those living in the good ole USA),
Listen, I know there’s a lot of pressing matters right now— I hear you that it is a terrifying time to be a parent in America right now (even though that’s not how a lot of you are acting, but I’m trying *not* to judge). Actually, I’m here to discuss a topic we can all hopefully agree on. It’s time we had a chat about goodie bags. You know the kind I’m talking about— the small paper handle bags adorned with a fun character and sold in a multi-pack at places like Party City (RIP) and Dollar Store (RIP?). I’m not against giving away little presents for my kid’s friends, but I wish it didn’t have to feel so wasteful… or stressful.
Every few weeks my son comes home with another one of these paper tote bags filled with tchotchkes, a pencil and or/eraser, slime, playdoh, some candy, and other junk that’ll be disregarded in 1-2 days, and inevitably cause a fight between friends. These little toys accumulate in the corners of the house, slowly collecting dust or becoming little hazards for us to trip on or for the dog to ingest. Eventually, they are thrown away and never thought about again… until the cycle starts all over again with the next birthday party.
I’m not pointing any fingers, here… we all spend the extra hours we don’t have putting together something our kids don’t even really want and definitely don’t need. And we do it because other parents do it (and some do it better and with more money and resources). So, I have an idea… let’s just stop doing it, okay?
We, the parents, have the control to collectively decide we’re no longer participating in the gift and goodie bag waste.
And since I never like to point out a problem without offering a solution, might I suggest we start giving out some practical gifts instead? For the same price it costs to get bulk items via amazon1, you can order easy-reader books, or a little gardening pot with seeds. You know, practical things; things that teach our kids some values that aren’t just capitalistic ones. That would be really, really swell.
I get it… we have so much to already worry about, and I know it’ll be a little bit of a task (aka, actual parenting) to convince our kids to do without these wasteful trove of “goodies,” but again… we’re the parents, we have the control. What do we say?
Signed,
A stressed out parent during birthday week
p.s. My sweet son turned seven and felt all the birthday love. Thank you to everyone who made it so special. It’s the first time I haven’t posted about it on social media, but that’s another post for another time…
p.p.s. Only four kids refused the books 🤓
I shudder to think about the labor violations that go into making those little plastic toys
This is such a good idea!!