How Close To Christmas Is Too Close To Host A Birthday Party For Your Kid?

December birthdays can be especially challenging for both the parents of the birthday child, as well as friends and family.

Fact checked by Sarah Scott

The holiday season to-do list is beyond overwhelming for many parents. Raise your hand if you can relate to this: When I’m not scrambling to pick up enough gift cards for dance teachers, swim coaches, and crossing guards, I’m surfing Amazon Prime options for yet another holiday sock exchange at school, or obsessing over which is better between peanut butter trees or peppermint bark for the kids’ Christmas stockings. Oh, and I’m also tasked with figuring out what present to get for a 5-year-old’s birthday party the weekend before Christmas.

I’ll admit that when I first got the invite for this event, I was a bit nonplussed. Really? A birthday party so close to Christmas, when my budget and sanity are as stretched as thin as my gift-wrapping tape supply at midnight on December 24?

But I quickly realized that actually, my son really needs to make some deeper connections in kindergarten, so I’m grateful for this opportunity to meet parents outside of the madness of school pickup, so we can arrange playdates for after the holidays.

I also happen to be married to someone whose birthday falls right at Christmastime, so I’ve had a front-row seat to how hard it is to make a person feel special on their big day when everyone else is focused on Santa coming to town.

It’s not as if he or anyone with a December birthday can help when they are born, although as one social media user hilariously joked on Instagram regarding this topic: “Shoutout to all the parents throwing December birthday parties and wishing they had been more practical about family planning.”

Growing up, my mother-in-law typically threw my husband’s birthday party in early December, and some years, she didn't do a party at all, because too many kids couldn’t come.

As a side note, I have three kids with summer birthdays, and vacation plans typically mean our celebrations are small—or non-existent. One year, only two kids came to my son’s pool party. It was kinda heartbreaking to be honest, which is why, despite the craziness of the timing, I RSVP’d “yes” ASAP to his classmate’s pre-Christmas birthday party.

Meanwhile, another mom with a child born in December turned to Reddit for advice on how to differentiate between his birthday and the holidays. “I don’t want his birthday to be glanced over just because it’s so close to Christmas,” she says in her post. “I also recognize that is typically a busy month for other families and trying to schedule a party close to his birthday could be difficult, and lead to possibly some disappointment for him if others can’t be there.”

She wonders if she would be better off throwing a half-birthday party instead six months down the road. Some commenters in the same boat, er, sled, said they had gone this route in the past, while others suggest trying to host a party as early in December as possible—or perhaps in January. A few commenters share how they tend to celebrate December birthdays more quietly with only family members, which can be fun, too.

At the end of the day, no matter when your child’s birthday falls, it’s going to be poor timing for a party for someone—or many someones. But I really hope my son’s classmate has a huge turnout for his party, which admittedly is planned for a particularly challenging time of year. One possible silver lining: Parents can choose to drop their kids off and finish up some last-minute Christmas shopping.

As for me, I’ll be staying, hoping to introduce myself to a few other parents. At least we can commiserate about what a busy time of year it is. And then I have to get home and plan how to make my husband’s birthday stand out from all the other holiday merriment. Gotta love those December babies!

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