DECORATIONS AND PRESENTS

One of the most exciting aspects of preparing for a party is decorating the house. Streamers and balloons everywhere promote a very festive and happy environment for a child's birthday party. In the fifties and sixties children and their parents would often sit together and make homemade decorations for the party (Carlson, 96). It is much easier, and less time consuming now, to stop by the nearest party supply store and pick up premade decorations. This is also true with party favors. Before the abundance of preprinted party bags, children would spend time coloring individual paper bags for their friends. Party favors often consisted of a small toy and a lot of candy. These contents of the party bags has stayed generally constant through the years, even if the outside of the bags has not.
Presents were and still are a major facet of birthday parties. Every year children look forward to what they are going to get on their birthday. This is true all over the world, but it is especially prevalent in suburban America. For girls one of the most anticipated gifts was Barbie. To see more on Barbie's relationship to suburbia, try exploring April Hall's, Kristi Johnson's , orMichelle Sit's projects. On of the best birthdays a girl could wish for included getting the barbie house from her parents, and a few barbies from her friends. The types of gift toys have not changed that much over the past forty years, but the amount given and received definitely has. Children expect more and more every year. Parents are often appalled at how much their children desire, compared to their own birthdays twenty or thirty years earlier.

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