New Trends in Slumber Parties

By Kim Mordecai

What You Need To Know Before Packing the Sleeping Bag

Trends permeate every facet of children’s lives. You might hope that classic traditions would remain sacred in this day of video games and Britney Spears, but that even age-old pastimes like slumber parties are being updated.

What was once a simple event involving preteens, pj’s and popcorn now includes preschoolers, hotel suites and coed mixers. Such trends may sound alarming, but with the right knowledge you can make the best decisions for your children.

Preschool Slumber Parties

Traditionally, slumber parties involved children 8 to 12 who got together with sleeping bags and scary movies to play games and giggle into the wee hours. Today, children as young as 4 are hosting and being invited to slumber parties, and reactions from parents and kids are mixed.

"We have a friend who had a sleepover for her 4-year-old," says Lori Jordan of Folsom, mother of Jamie, 6, and Dani, 9. "My kids didn’t go. I don’t think kids are ready or that they would be comfortable."

Next month Jordan’s youngest daughter will attend her first slumber party, but Jordan is hesitant about her daughter’s young age.

"I don’t know how she’ll do," she says. "Dani was 7 years old for her first overnight. She was ready, but I have to say it was hard for me the first time."

Jordan says it is exciting to watch a child have new experiences, but it also is nerve-wracking sending them off to someone else’s house.

Jordan says she will advise Jamie as she did Dani, "I didn’t call her, but I told her if she wanted to call and say goodnight, or if she needed anything, she could. She (Dani) didn’t call and I have to think, ‘no news is good news.’ "

The Ideal Age

Penny Warner of Danville, a nationally recognized author of children’s books, including Slumber Parties: 25 Fun-Filled Party Themes, says the ideal age for kids and slumber parties is 8 to 14.