One Birthday Party for Two Kids?

Do not hesitate to do a shared birthday. It is much easier on you, and the guests that come to the parties.

My children don't have birthdays anywhere near each other - - BUT as a friend of someone who does -- - it is much easier on everyone to have one get together for both kids.

My friend has 2 different cakes for the boys, each has their own candles to blow out - but everything else is shared, They are 6 and 8 and have had shared birthdays for the last 3 years - They seem to really enjoy it. Since they are so close in age - they really do share alot of the same friends as well. (so far at least!)

I think it is perfectly acceptable.

We have two kids, two years apart, both born in August. We do their parties together. We do two separate cakes so each child has their cake of choice. It easier on our wallet to have only one big party. And easier on family to only have to get together once.
Have Fun!!!

Go for it, expecially if the guest list would be similar if you did them separate. The guests appreciate it, at least I do.
I like the idea of a cake (or any special dessert) on the actual birthday day. We've done that for a while as well. (I've even used one layer of a cake for "just us" and froze the other layer for use at a later date, whether a birthday or unexpected company.)

I have done that for my boys as well. now they are 3 and 1 and we will have a combo party again this year. It just makes sense, like you we do not live around family so they can come only once. What i did was have a special cake on each of their birthdays and I had the party on a week between their birthdays.

S.,

I had a co worker ask me the same advice for this month in April. after asking around, she came to the conclusion to throw one big party and is pleased in her decision! I also have another girlfriend who has a 2 year old and a 4 year old. Both birthdays are in Nov and every year, she throws one cool party.
Do it now while you can!

hey stef.

I always have atleast 2 parties in one, and its easier and more fun

Eg. My oldest is 12 in MAY and in April my little guy turns 2
they are merely 2 weeks apart, like you family is far away so I need to accomplish as much as I can in one visit LOL

So we will have a party on MAy 11th weekend

My MIL is coming to visit so we want to have a little welcoming for her

Its mothers day weekend

My oldests Birthday

My youngests Birthday

and strangely enough my bestfriends moms birthday,May 5th

My nephews birthday may 5th
his brothers birthday may23

and my neice May21st

SO while they are there i will have gifts for them and honor them all in some way.

CRAZY but necessary.LOL

M

As an early childhood specialist, I see no problem with a double birthday at this time. However, they get older, you might want to have the parties on separate days or give them the option. This will eliminate future sibling identity issues.
Favorite cake or cupcakes can also help separate identities.

Happy 3rd year of motherhood!!
Shel

Well the only advice I have for you is that my children are born 1 month apart......but are 13 months apart themselves. They also are born Nov & Dec...which does not make it easy to plan parties around all the holidays that get squeezed in as well. Anyway I just gave my 1 year old her own party this year becasue she was turning one and plan on doing them together from now on. But I am going to have another baby in end of Oct, so parties together will probably be big in my house. Just male sure to have 2 cakes.

Hi
I have that plus one. I have 3 kids born in April, my two boys are going on 14 and 11 their days are the 11th and the 9th and I have a girl who will be 5 on the 22nd. On top of that Easter is usually in April also. So what we do Is one big party for family, and the kids can invite a few friends, but we also do something special with the kids to mark their day. Other wise every weekend our family would be at our house. For my girl we did do a seperate party for the first 2 years but it got a little crazy. The kids don't seem to have a problem with it. And my boys are like yours 2 years apart. Good Luck

No question about it! One party is easier for you and also all your family who has to travel to get there. I have 2 girls 5 weeks apart and they have always had parties together until the last 2 years.

S.,
My children will be very close in birthdays. I am due May 5 with my daugther and my son is May 2nd. My husband and I were saying that we are going to have to have joint parties for them because it would be alot on our families to have them come up two weekends in a row for birthday parties.
Until your boys get to the age where they have different friends and different interests that's when I would have two birthday parties.
Hope this helps =)
L.

My family had four birthdays in October - my mother, brother, son and myself, so we had one BIG October birthday party, which we all looked forward to.

One party for two kids. We do it for my son 11 and my daughter 4 and we also do it for my daughter 12 and her cousin 12. It's fun......I make two or three cakes - we sing 2 times - heck one year we had four birthdays at once.....family is family and as long as the "birthday boys" are getting gifts - I think they will be happy. As they get older - just invite two or three friends each - you don't have to go crazy - they will love anything you do for them - I'm sure of it!!!!!

Good Luck!

We're an adoptive family and have two eight year old boys who have birthdays one month apart in the winter. They have separate and mutual friends. The first time we did a party for their friends vs family only (age 3), we did two separate parties and it was a lot of work, and it was asking people to give up free time 2x around the holidays. Ever since, we have always had a single party for their friends halfway between their birthdays. Since we do the party at home, space is a little limited, so they have about 5 mutual friends from church, and then they each invite about 5 friends from school. The boys pck a mutual theme and the parties have always been a blast (albeit noisy). The boys have never minded sharing a party. I put two sets of candles on the cake on opposite sides so they each get their own set to blow out. Some tips I have learned after several years of doing this are: we do not have them open the presents until after the guests have left. A shared party means twice the gifts to open, and it quickly gets overwhelming and chaotic for the kids and yourself. Let them know ahead of time that the gifts will be opened later and don't cave in or it becomes a free for all. Also, we don't have family to the kids birthday party b/c it just became too many people in a limited space--instead we have family come to the house for cake (keep it simple) on the actual birthdays and then everyone is happy. You may not have a space issue though. Also, here's a big one--make sure you put an END time on the invitation for the children's party!! Hope this helps.

HI S..
My name is Vicki R. My husband and I have a combined family, together we have 7 children (6 raised in one house, his daughter came over when she wanted to). We have 4 boys and 3 girls. We have 1 Jan, 2 April, 1 May, 2 Sept, 1 Nov (also mine is in Nov) and my husbands is in Dec (21). My ex and his wife have two beautiful children and their birthdays fall very close to my childrens (within days) and honestly it is best to do seperate birthdays for your children. As hectic as it may be, your children will appreciate it later. We have a seperate party for all of ours, and it makes them feel very special for that entire day. It is the one thing that they don't have to share with anyone. Our kids are older now, and we eight grandchildren. All seperate birthday parties, and its great. I have to tell you, my second eldest son and his girlfriend had their first child, a boy, on my son's birthday. How special is that? I wish you the best of luck with your boys, and their parties. Have a wonderful day/night. Vicki R.

It is perfectly fine to share their birthdays. It helps you with the planning expense and timing to have only one party. It also is considerate to your friends and family not having to attend two children's parties in the same month. The children will be learning to share. They will only think it unjust if someone brings it to their attention. They are much too young to even be worried about it. My cousin and I were born on the same day a few years apart. We celebrated birthdays together every year until her Sweet 16 and that was just fine by the both of us. We had a special tie.

Good luck to you and Happy Birthday to the boys.

We always do one big family party for everyone. My 3 kids, and my father, all have birthdays within 5 weeks of each other, and no one is local, so when we get together its one big family birthday.

One year we did a combined friends party for my younger two. They were turning 5 and 7, and due to a death in the family, their separate friend parties had to be cancelled. A few weeks later we rented one of these indoor playground places, they both invited all their friends, and the cake was decorated half pink, half blue. It worked great!

I would combine them. Just don't do it on exactly either day. On their special day, just have a small cake for the children, maybe 1 friend and yourself. There shouldn't be any problem. I'm sure your family will not mind. It will save money all around. My sons birthday is new years day and we did it all at Christmas as soon as we thought of it. Now that he is older he celabrates with his girlfriends family because their son has the same birthday. Actually all 3 kids in that family are born within jan and feb.

His girlfriend calls it her birthday month so she can get all she can out of it and says so. Makes me crazy!!! Greedy girl.

Heya! I have four kids! Two birthdays are in nov, and two are in april. I have two parties a year. The kids birtday that are in the same month fall a few days a part very close. I am having one this weekend for my 8yr and my 1yr old. On the day of there birthday they all get there own cake an it just me and my husband and they four kids. But the weekend of there birthdays we have a party with family, friends. It is a blast. we just have party at home but we all have a good time. We have two cakes at the party because we have alot of poeple. So we do 2 half sheet cake. I been doing the party thing together for 4 years now and knowone ever said a thing to me and what is good for you the children are both boys and my kids are boys and girl each party so we do a boy thing and a girl thing we have both kinds of decoration for boys and girls. I think it is just fine. It is not about how much you spend but the heart you put into the party. Well good luck have fun!

Hi S.,

I have two children the birthdays are not that close one born June 10, and the anther August 10. However I did share my daughter's first birthday with her cousins all born in August. I see everyone has given good advise however from my experience I think it should only be one birthday at a time, I would never do it again. That is a very special day for them and I want to know its just for them. Doing it together took away from my daughter I was not happy she did not know what was happening but I did, never again.

We have a large extended family in the same area as us. We would do one "family" party for everyone having a birthday during that month. As the kids got older, we had a "family" part and then a "friends" party. The family party didn't require alot of preparation (decorating), so I could concentrate that energy on the friends party. It can get overwhelming at times, but it is worth it. Your kids will remember the effort when they are older.
L.

Hi!
I have two girls, ages 1 and 4. They were born about two weeks apart(Aug. 18 and Sep.2) I have had just one party for them. Lastyear we had a princess party. It worked well for them as my 4 year old loves all things princess and the baby was the 1st birthday princess. I made one big cake for everyone, and individual little cakes for each girl(I am a baker!and couldn't help myself!)Especially since this was the babies 1st. This year we are having a strawberry/strawberry shortcake party.I am going to do decorate your own cupcakes for the older kids, and a special little cake for the baby. Evertone else will have a big strawberry shortcake. Next year the baby will have more of an opinion, but we will find something that works for both of them. My husbands family lives about an hour/hour 1/2 away and we just couldn't imagine having them come for 2 sep. parties. But, even if that were not the case, we still would do it this way. I want the girls to be close and be each others best friends. When they are older we will still prob. have one big "family" party, but each girl will get something special one their actual birthday.(we do that now as well. Each girl got small decorations in a theme they liked.)I guess we will figure it out as we go, but I don't think there is anything wrong with having one party and would like to keep it that way as long as we can!Hope this helps. Good luck!

Hi S.,
I have two girls who are now 8 and 10, their Birthdays are both in June and we have always done a large joint party for them and they always looked forward to it. Recently as they got older they started asking about seperate birthday parties that they could do with their friends. We still do the big joint family party but now we also do a little something special that they can do with their friends, wether it be a movie, bowling, or even pizza and a sleepover. So far this seems to be working, but as you know things are always changing when you have children. Good luck.
D.

My children are less than 13 months apart and like you we have family that do not live close. It was not possible for our family to travel out for two parties within a month's time. For many years we celebrated their birthdays together with no difficulty. It was easier when they were smaller to have the parties together because they both received gifts which can often be difficult for young children to understand why one was getting and not the other. We made a very big deal about the fact that their Kindergarten birthday would be the big party at a fancy place with the whole class and all of the trimmings. It would be a party just for them! We also made it clear that it was a special treat and that subsequent years wouldn't be as elaborate. The kids never seemed to resent it or even recognize that it may be out of the ordinary.

i have 2 one on 1/13 and one on 1/6 and this year my 1/06/07 turned 1 and asked my 7yr old if she would mind sharing her birthday party and if its ok to have it on her sisters birthday because its her first and shes smaller and on her birthday i would take her and 5 friends to this place called libby lues where they do make up hair and nails all that girly stuff well she agreed and i kept my promise she and her little sister had a great time on their party which they both had their own theme on hannah montana and minnie mouse so that was a success which i also recomend.

I say go for it...they're too little to know any better. We did it for our son and our nephew (who lives out of town)...it was one of the best parties we ever threw...Once they're older it'll be a bit more important to have them each have a special day...but even then, do 1 big family party, then you can have each child invite a few friends for 2 special separate 'friend' parties. Double the work for you, but at least it's fun work!
Good for you taking the year off...you'll never regret staying home!
-J.

Hello S.,

I've done it and I'd do it all over again in a heart beat. Even when they're older. My boys are 4 & 7. The only birthday I kept sacred for their sakes is their first. And of cousre my older one had some of his own before my little one came. If you sit and think about all the money you spend on one party and the time planning no less, then times it by two, you'd be in shock. One party is easier on you, your family & friends and the boys. I say it's easier on the boys for the simple facts that neither one feels 'left out' one the other's birthday. And let's face it, they're not old enought yet to understand 'individual birthdays'. Not only is it saving heartache but the more people the more special they feel. 1 party + 1 day = 2 happy babies and a happy mom. Now let's talk about cakes.... You have to do two cakes. Each boy has their flavor and your guests have their choice. They will each be able to blow out their own candles. Go a little further and get a character or two to come occupy the children on their level. E.I- a clown for yor 1yr old and ?Diego for your 3yr old. Your party will be a hit. Have the cake made, save yourself the trouble. I know it sounds like $$$ but you'll still be saving big time with just one party. You can go to the office supply store, but a pack of multi-colored card stock, print your own information on them and let your babies draw and color all over them. Your guest will love and cherish their invites. Cheap, cute and no one will throw them away. Make the party in primary (red, blue, yellow,etc..) colors so you can still get these things in the party store but you can buy in bulk and save. Skip the favors. Do a pinata and the goodies thwy get are their party bags. In your thank-yous, you can enclose pictures of the boys birthday party. Well I'm hoping you get some use out of this information and good luck. Sorry if I rambled, I just love kids parties.
H.

My nephew who lived out of town shared a birthday within a week of my daughter. Since it was a hastle for everyone to travel out of town for his party, we would combine the two kids together and it worked fine until they got older. They last shared a party for her 6th and his 4th. It is cheaper and easier to fit in with all the busy schedules we have these days.

Don't sweat it! They don't even fully understand separate birthdays yet. My one daughter has a birthday right before Thanksgiving, sometimes we have a party for her in the summer (which she loves). Her sister has a summer birthday and we have a pool, so my girls have even combined parties and had one big one. They're 3 1/2 years apart and it still works out well.

Hi,

I have grandsons that were born on the same day,3 years apart. My daughter is planning to have their b'day party together for now. When they get older they will do something different. There b'day is 3 days after Christmas which makes it a bit harder. J.

i have one party every year for my two kids, they are a boy and girl two years apart but both are may babies, the 13th and 29th. to make sure they feel like its there day i make two cakes they each choose what they want. it is some much easier on me and family to only have to worry about one party.. i also just make sure on there Real birthdays it is about them, balloons in the house just for them and one special treat.. goodluck

D.

Hi I'm a mom of twin boys and yes I do the combined party. It is very important that my boys have their own identity, so I have had a different theme for each one. My son would like Cars when the other likes Thomas the Train. So I would seperate the room into 2, and then decorate accordingly. Even going as far as 2 cakes. This is an approach that you could take especially with the little one celebrating his first birthday. Hope this helps!

D.

My brother and I are 3 years 2 days apart and always had co-birthday paerties! It works out fine and makes for fun stories later in life!

My neice and nephew's birthdays are only 10 days apart and we have a big family birthday every year(their dad and auntie also have birthdays within that same 10 days). The kids love it and as they get older I am sure they will have seperate smaller get togethers or sleep overs with all their individual friends, but for now the one party solution is PERFECT!

Hi S.,

I think that one party for both of them is fine ... I would, however, on their actual birthday, make it a special day for each one.


Warm Regards,
C.

*
(: have an awesome day :)
*

One party for two kids......ABSOLUTELY!!! I am a mother of four (3 girls and 1 baby boy) and it just so happens that all of my girls are weeks apart. The ages are now 9,8 & 5 born within a 3 week span from the end of November and first week in December. The only solo party that was ever given was the 1st birthday and that was generally my family around the table singing happy bday and eating cake! After that, all parties have been combined. My girls are very understanding about this one shot deal because parties are very expensive and some guests can't come out every weekend for a party so I wrap it all in one. As they've gotten older the themes change so the age differences wouldn't really matter. Although the older two girls generally have the same friends and the 5yr old has friends of her own (sometimes siblings of my other daughters' friends) they still mingle together and have a great time. We've done the build-a-bear thing, the arcade party, even a bowling party. This way it is a general party concept and each age group can keep their clique and have a great time. As your boys get older you can do themes too like laser tag or bumper cars, airbrushing t-shirts, etc... I hope this was helpful! Good Luck!

Hi S.. I also have 2 children with birthdays that are close together. My son is 5 and my daughter will be 3 on Saturday. They are born 9 days apart. Since my daughter's 1st birthday we have done the parties together. For now, it works out great.

K.

I have two sons who are also two years apart. My older son will be 3 in July and my younger son will be one in August. I have planned two different parties. My older son's party is for kids and is at a "kid" place. My younger son's party is in a restaurant and is for family and a few VERY close family friends. I really like the idea of everyone getting their own function so that get their own special day (particularly for the first year that their are 2 children). That said, big parties are really fun too!!

Hi!
I have two girls that have birthdays 3 weeks apart. Up until this past year (they are now 6 and 8), I have had their party together. It works out great, I have it in the middle of the two dates and there are many friends that they have in common in addition to family - makes it alot easier on all! The only thing you make sure of as they get older is to make sure it is a nice party - meaning - give out a little remembrance to the attendees. Sometimes I gave out candles to each couple and a nice goodie bag to the children as well as a home-made chocolate lollipop in a birthday shape.
Hey - there should never be a problem with any type of celebration! :)
Feel free to e-mail me if I can help you out with any ideas....
Have a great time!
Celia

My son is 6 and my daughter is 4 and their birthdays are 2 weeks apart. We usually have one combined big party for the whole family and family friends with separate cakes for each kid (which they love). I plan to do the same this year also (we tend to do small celebration in school for their birthdays with their friends or we might invite 2 or 3 friends for a small birthday outing activity - got to watch the budget!), but otherwise, we keep it small and personal with school friends.
Good luck and have fun!

I have attended parties that were for more than one child and everything worked out great. At this age, I see no reason why the parties can't be combined.

Having one party is no problem. My extended family is quite large - we actually have a birthday party every month to celebrate that month's birthdays, anniversaries, etc. The kids look forward to the big family time, and no one has ever felt insulted or left out. Your boys will be used to the idea that the party is for both of them. If they express a need for individual parties when they're older (probably when they're tweens?), you could separate the family party for both from smaller gatherings with just a few of their friends. I don't see any problem with it at all, just a realitly that best fits your circumstances.

I just went through this... I have 3 children (5, 3 & 1). .. Birhtdays are 2/9, 2/22 & 3/11 - all within a 1 month period. So I did 1 big party for all 3 for our family/friend.

I looked at it this way - how could I invite people to 3 different parties in just a 1 month time? It was too inconvienent. No body complained and it worked out fine.

Good Luck!

I have two girls now 10 and 8 their b-days are four days apart and we have always done them together and will until they complain about it. They are super close and I haven't had any issues.

I don't see anything wrong with having one party for two different kids. Maybe you could get a magician or something that kids of all ages would enjoy. And as a person that has family EVERYWHERE it makes it so much easier on the family to only have to come once. And like you said as they get older family members will not be as important as friends at the party, in which time you would have two seperate parties.

S.,

i don't have children born in the same month, but i remember a similar request on mamasource.

have the big family party (with friend and family) at the same time as you normally would. BUT on each child's actual birthday, do something special for them to make them stand out.

nikki

Right now, one party for the two kids is fine. I did that with my daughter and son, whose birthdays are two weeks apart. Once my daugther hit kindergarten, I started having a small party with some of her friends, but I kept the dual birthday thing with the family for a while.

My two older kids birhtdays are Feb 17 & Feb 25th. My kids are one year apart. We have always done one party with two themes and two cakes. They both have the same friends for the most part and they get to invite a few from each of their classes. Love love sharing their party. Plus it is easier on the guest instead of coming to our house two weeks in a row - not to mention an easier clean-up and cost savings.

My daughters' birthdays are 2 weeks apart in February. Our family lives 1 hour, 2 hours and 4 hours away from us and I felt I couldn't justify 2 trips in the middle of (sometimes snowy) February for my parents-in-law who are 80 and 85 and live in Maryland. We have had combined parties and my girls celebrated year 3 and 5 this year. I let them each pick a theme and we have paper good for both and they each get their own cake. It's less work for me in the end and they enjoy it. We started having kiddie parties for my elder daughter when she was 3 so this year we had a party for the kids together with their friends. I don't know that I would recommend combined kiddie parties. We had it at a play space and ended up inviting my 5 year old's whole preschool class. She had been invited to a lot of parties and I didn't want anyone's feelings hurt. With all of the classmates and neighbors it was 22 kids. My husband and I justified the expense to ourselves because it's a combined party and also because we don't indulge them too much throughout the year. I also feel that since they're having a combined party they should have fun. I've had some guilt about this over the years because I'm the youngest of 3 and I always treasured my birthday as MY day, not to be shared. But I didn't plan for their birhtdays to be this close together. I hope this helps. I'm sure the situation will change once my kids are in school and have separate friends, then maybe I'll do separate friend parties but still keep a combined party for family. Good luck with party planning.

I see alot of parents doing this for a family celebration. (split the difference in date) Then have separate b-day parties for friends. To make the children feel special.

Hi S.!

Well, I don't have two kids with birthdays in the same month, but I have two nieces that have birthdays in August, plus my son. They have always had their birthdays together, and last summer we combined all three of their birthdays. Since your boys are still very young, and most likey have the same kids in common I think its perfectly acceptable, plus it make things easier for you and family and friends! HTH

R.

Hi S., My friend has two boys 6 and 4 and their birthdays are in the middle of Sept and the very beginning of Oct. She has one birthday party for both with their friends since they share many of the same ones. Her situation is a bit different since their Grandparents and two aunts are close by so they have cake on each ones real birthday. I think your idea is great. Maybe since it is the little guys first birthday you can do something at the party to make it different for him...like balloons of his favorite character if he has one or a book he likes. When they get older and have different sets of friends then you can decide what to do then. Have fun!! I.

Hi S. - I've been doing that with my two older daughters (3 years apart, born in August and September) on and off for a few years. It has never been a problem and the kids really enjoy it. Now that they're older and interests have changed it doesn't work out as well. We usually have a family party and I'm still combining for that - I even added my youngest in last year (born in June) because the summers are so crazy. Making sure though to celebrate on their actual birthday with just us, going out to dinner, etc. I say do it while you can - it's less work for you. Have fun!