Friday, February 11, 2005

i had no idea birthday parties cost that much.....

So we're channel surfing last night. Actually, I was channel surfing and the bride was just along for the ride. It was during that in-between time for us on Wednesday night. We never got into "The Apprentice" (apparently we're two of the few in America), and "ER" didn't come on for another half-hour. I had been watching a game show bloopers show on VH1, and during a commercial I started looking for something else.

We came across a show called "My Super Sweet Sixteen" on MTV. Evidently there are several episodes of this, where a rich kid gets this outrageous 16th birthday party thrown for him/her by his/her parents. I caught the tail-end of the one that came on at 8:00. The girl, right before her 16th birthday, went shopping in Santa Barbara and used her parents' credit card for several purchases, one of which was an $8,000 piece of jewelry. The girls' mom called and cancelled the card. Later that day, the girl tells the camera that she's really going to be mad if she doesn't get a car for her birthday. The next day, as they went out to eat at some exclusive restaurant, the camera shows the girl bawling her eyes out because her parents didn't buy a car for her birthday. On the second episode, it was a guy who was turning 16, and his dad shelled out (get ready for this) $250,000 for the party. Yep, that's right, one-quarter mil. The party had a tennis theme, and it was in an old warehouse. The dad even hired dancers (and not Riverdancers, either) to entertain at the party, and he and his son "went shopping" for them. I didn't let the bride see this happen, but a tear rolled down my cheek as the father and son embraced after choosing the two dancers. Such a moment!

Our kids' birthday parties have been at such exotic places as a bowling alley, Chuckie Cheese, the skating rink and the neighborhood pool. After watching these shows last night, it's very clear to me that we're going to have to kick it up a notch for the next party. I'm thinking maybe extra chocolate for dessert.....

1 comment:

cac said...

I occasionally catch "My sweet sixteen", its pretty funny if you forget about how said it is. That girl did end up getting the car she wanted.