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Grandparenting

Birthday Party Blues

(9 Posts)
Princessjonsie Sun 07-Jun-26 23:12:35

Today is my grandson birthday. He is 4. Im the grandparent on the dads side . Since he was born I have tried really hard to not push myself forward , not make demands , offered help but not pushed . Always knock and waited for the door to be opened and never turn up uninvited. I have my grandson on a Saturday or Sunday to help out and give them a break . He has an 8month old sister . I don’t push to have her as I know I will when they are ready . I use my work holiday if they need child care .

I pushed to be given a job to help out with the party . I was asked for helium balloons . I sorted that out and had fun doing it . Delivered them to the party and helped as much as I could . The party went off well . At one point I was sat opposite my son and his brother in law discussing what was happening after the party. They were all going to the maternal grandparents house to open presents and have cake . At the end i helped clean up and everyone hung about . It felt awkward so I asked if there was anything else to do ? The answer was no and I wasn’t invited to go back and felt they were waiting for me to go so I left . I asked my son to take a picture of him opening his presents. Back home and a few hours later a picture came through and they were at the other grandparents house to open presents. I was so upset and couldn’t understand what I had done to not get an invitation. Any suggestions would be appreciated

BoggledMind Sun 07-Jun-26 23:20:49

That's so sad and a bit mean in my opinion. I would have been a bit miffed myself.

Perhaps you could say to your son something along the lines of "Thanks for the photo, it looks like I missed a great time", and see what response you get.

MissAdventure Sun 07-Jun-26 23:21:10

Oh, that must have hurt.
It's probably best to say nothing, though, I suppose.
Things have changed so much with regard to family life, it seems.

Shelflife Sun 07-Jun-26 23:35:37

I completely understand how you feel.
However I urge you to tread with care. So many GP. are at odds with their AC - please dont let that happen . You sound to be a very sensible woman and a wonderful GM . I agree it was mean , you should have been invited to the maternal GP home. However, don't let what happened damage your relationship with your son and DIL.

avitorl Sun 07-Jun-26 23:36:58

I'm so sorry to read this.That is so hurtful.I can't really offer any advice but do offer my sympathy.

MissAdventure Sun 07-Jun-26 23:44:34

Perhaps you could do a very small "unbirthday" day when you next have your grandson.
One little cupcake, one balloon, some music playing and maybe one tiny gift.
Be sure to take a photo, of course.

Madmeg Sun 07-Jun-26 23:54:30

I am heartbroken for you. Our elder DD and her DH have always included both sets of parents since the day they were married, and similarly since the GC came along. The other GPs do see more of them cos they live within walking distance and we are 30 miles away, but overall they do their best to share things with us all. Fortunately we get along well with the other GPs (so long as we don't mention politics cos ours are quite different from theirs!) and want to keep it that way.

You never know, as the GC get older you might find you have a closer bond with one or both of them, or a different bond depending on their hobbies, so you can make the most of that.

As others have said, keep stum as far as you can cos it seems it can soon go pear-shaped and I can tell that you wouldn't want that

crazyH Mon 08-Jun-26 00:02:33

Oh that is so sad - my heart aches for you. I can’t give you any advice as I am the ‘all guns blazing’ type of person and have got into a lot of trouble because of that.
Shelflife has given you good advice…..

cornergran Mon 08-Jun-26 00:17:14

I’m very sad for you having experienced the same sense of exclusion. Our tactic has been to smile and say nothing, accepting another grandparent has wanted just ‘their’ family to be in their home. It’s kept the peace but yes, it hurts if I think about it.