Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that no, it is not okay. But these questions always remind me of when my kids were in preschool. Most invitations were silent regarding siblings so naturally, I brought my one invited child. I would get to the party and it would be swarming with siblings and sometimes TWO parents per family and the entire party I'd have people asking me, "Where is [uninvited sibling]?" and I'd just say, "Home with [DH]." But so wanted to say, "I left him home because the invitation DID NOT SAY SIBLINGS WELCOME!!!"

I have a 3 and a 1 year old and everyone wants to know where my DH and 1 year old are. It's for sure a problem.

No, it's not a problem. They are just making conversation. Trust me, they don't really want another kid and adult mouth to feed there.

NP. Follow up question. If my spouse and I get invited to a work dinner and my boss doesn’t say not to bring the kids, is it okay to bring them? What if I bring a sitter to keep them entertained. What if my sister is visiting from out of town and she wants to try that restaurant, can I bring her too?

Other follow up: if my kid and I are invited to his friend’s house for a play date, and the timing works out that it’s right after soccer practice, can I bring all the kids in my carpool? Their parents won’t mind. It’s only 4 additional kids, and play dates at people’s houses are even less formal than birthday parties, so it’s ok, right?

Anonymous wrote:I agree that no, it is not okay. But these questions always remind me of when my kids were in preschool. Most invitations were silent regarding siblings so naturally, I brought my one invited child. I would get to the party and it would be swarming with siblings and sometimes TWO parents per family and the entire party I'd have people asking me, "Where is [uninvited sibling]?" and I'd just say, "Home with [DH]." But so wanted to say, "I left him home because the invitation DID NOT SAY SIBLINGS WELCOME!!!"

I have a 3 and a 1 year old and everyone wants to know where my DH and 1 year old are. It's for sure a problem.

I agree that no, it is not okay. But these questions always remind me of when my kids were in preschool. Most invitations were silent regarding siblings so naturally, I brought my one invited child. I would get to the party and it would be swarming with siblings and sometimes TWO parents per family and the entire party I'd have people asking me, "Where is [uninvited sibling]?" and I'd just say, "Home with [DH]." But so wanted to say, "I left him home because the invitation DID NOT SAY SIBLINGS WELCOME!!!"

No, its not ok. We say siblings and parents welcome. If you don't see that, siblings are not welcome.

No! How do people not know this?

What the heck. Stop bringing siblings!

I think it's rude because then the organizer feels compelled to say yes. If it's at a venue, the organizer is likely paying per head. If I want to include a sibling, I put both kids names on the evite.

Why do you need to bring a sibling? Can you drop off the invited kid at the party and then leave with the sibling and come back for pickup?

Rule of thumb: siblings are not invited unless explicitly stated

Please don't ask.

IME, the organizer will make it very clear if siblings are included. Err on the side of siblings not being invited. Asking the host is awkward.

no--if they wanted siblings, they would have mentioned siblings

No. The person whose name is on the invitation is invited to the party--and no one else.

No.

If the invitation did not say yes or not to sibling, is it okay to ask the party organizer if it is okay to bring a sibling?