Smart Or Tacky? Mom Sparks Debate On $5 Birthday Parties

A creator on TikTok has sparked debate on gifting etiquette. Houston-based influencer, Rachel Gibbs (@rachonlife) shared a video justifying her stance on a five-dollar birthday party. In the video, she lists several reasons why it is better for guests to donate $5 to the family instead of bringing something that the kid may not need. However, her opinion has divided the viewers with many calling the idea ‘tacky’.

In the video which now has over 589,000 views, Gibbs goes on a rant while replying to another user who called the idea of a $5 birthday party “tacky”. Gibbs says that $5 birthdays aren’t a new or a tacky thing that she put out to get money. Gibbs says that for her daughter’s first birthday, they had requested guests to not bring gifts, and donate $5 to the family instead. She defended the idea saying that it works best for the children as they get what they want instead of gifts that they don’t need.

In her case, Gibbs says that the money would go towards redoing their backyard into a playground where her kids could play. Thus, the money wasn’t for her or the family, but only for the kids to have a great place to play. She further explains that because of her line of work, her daughter gets plenty of toys and other things, every other day. Thus, she really does not need any more unnecessary gifts and a playground would do her much better.

“Don’t waste your money on clothes or books or toys, we don’t truly don’t need any. I’m giving away stuff constantly,” Gibbs says in the video. She adds that she doesn’t want her family and friends to spend money on the stuff they don’t need. With this, Gibbs made a decent case for $5 Birthday Parties, and several of her viewers agreed to her.

One user (@user33282443) said that they also went to a similar birthday where the parents asked for $5 instead of a gift. The user said that the only thing the kid wanted was a ‘paw petrol tower’, so the parents were raising funds for that. The user called the idea genius and even Gibbs agreed. She added that her kids have everything they need thus a cash donation makes much more sense.

Meanwhile, some viewers added to Gibbs’ case saying that it would be cheaper for the guests as well to give $5 instead of a gift. The user (@brenda.t.c.) said that they would prefer to give $5 as a guest because she spends $5 just on the card and the bag to wrap the gift which generally costs her $20.

On the other hand, there were a few users who did not agree with what Gibbs had to say. While many users said they haven’t heard of the idea, one user (@kell) commented that they would never host a party and ask for money as they were raised in the South. Being a resident of Texas, Gibbs defended her position while politely asking the user to listen to her till the end of the video.

For more mom, wellness, and lifestyle content, follow Rachel Gibbs (@rachonlife) on TikTok.