Birthday Party - RSVP

[elcmum]

I usually follow up with a text to ask for a headcount for catering purposes. (And by catering, I mean "going to Sam's Club and not wanting to buy so much food that we have to eat it for two weeks following the event.")

I go with the philosophy it's easier to have less food and then send someone out for pizza or drinks should guests suddenly appear.

 

[tcufrog]

It might be rude to you just like I consider your comment rude because like I said, it's a cultural thing...different customs. Maybe you should have told them your expectations or contact them for a count...my sister did with her wedding..yeah, she had to go out of her way for it..but she needed the headcount.

I think most invitations are pretty clear WRT RSVPs. If it says RSVP followed by instructions then you're expected to do so. It's that simple.

 

[Madteaparty001]

Do you have an email contact sheet for the other parents? My kid's teacher handed one out at the beginning of the school year, we all volunteered to provide it for things like play dates. Got an invitation for one of her classmate's bday party last week before school let out for break. I stuck it on the fridge so I would remember to RSVP no to it. The mom emailed everyone asking who could make it. I RSVPed then and there, everyone's lives are so busy these days, sometimes you just have to make it effortless.

 

[wendow]

Many will call the night before or the day of and a few will just show up. It's just the reality of kids parties... welcome to the game.

I agree. Sadly, this has been our reality as well.

Nice thing is, once the kids get older (I have two teens), parties change and most of the time, there are less kids involved and the kids rsvp to your kid and in general, if they say they can come, they really can and do. It gets simpler imo.

 

[AZMermaid]

I try to RSVP as soon as I get it, otherwise I'm more apt to forget. Ive only done so once, but I felt awful about it because it felt so disrespectful. I've found I get better RSVP responses using evite than paper invites.

I'd still have the party and spoil anyone who comes so hard they all talk about it at school on Monday.

OP- did more rsvps come in?

 

[Gracie09]

I usually try to reply promptly, but what I really hate is the invitations 2-3 months before the event. Its an 8 years old birthday party not a wedding. I had two like that this year. I get that may be when you booked the place but I have no clue 3 months in advance if I will have a family thing or something else that could bump you and now I have to put a reminder on my calendar to rsvp 10 days before the event when I have a good idea of what is happening.

 

[Minnesota!]

I ALWAYS (yes or no) RSVP as soon as I get the invite...otherwise I would forget.

However, last month, YDS gets an invite, I bring it to work and send my YES to the email listed. Get an email the day before the party (that I did not receive until the day AFTER the party being as it was on my work email) from the mom that NOBODY has RSVP'd and she is planning on cancelling if she doesn't get any RSVP's in response to her email.

OMG I felt like an ***, but I went and looked and the invite (written out by the birthday girl) had the wrong RSVP email on there (spelled the first word of it wrong...). So, I am glad mom followed up, because it was an error, and had she NOT and cancelled the party anyway, the kids would have all shown up, thinking they had RSVP'd, and there would have been no party. I explained to her so I didn't look like such an inconsiderate schmuck, and she was very apologetic, etc.

Summarized: FOLLOW UP. If they forgot, you can nicely call out their rudeness by following up, or, maybe the invite never made it to their hands, etc.

Follow up.