My Daughter's Birthday Party Gifts

My daughter turned seven and so we gave her a birthday party this past Sunday.

Disclaimer: My daughter actually turned seven in September, but because of Memorial Day and Chagim, we pushed it off till this past Sunday.

Further Disclaimer: For her party, my daughter wanted for her and all of her friends (16 girls total) to have their nails done--so, with permission, I left for 2 hours and learned in the Beis Medrash. Please note: 2 girls from the High School came and helped, for which they got "Chessed Points." Also, I helped before and after.

By all accounts, it was a success. One of my daughter's friends told my wife that she makes the best birthday parties.

My only problem is with the gifts.
Only 3 really made an impression on her.
She has not really looked at the rest.

One girl gave my daughter a Bratz doll, which--based on my daughter's reaction--is the in doll to have. Barbie is like sooooo last millenium. At least this year. But between what the doll looks like, dresses like, and the box it came in looks like--I am wary. I mean, how am I going to talk to her about being Tzenuah (modest) when she has this doll. Besides, it looks like a voodoo doll of Angelina Jolie.

My daughter also got a radio headset. At 7 years old.
I thought I could wait till she was 17 before she would be tuning me out.
Also, unlike a TV--with radio headphones there is no way to know what my daughter is listening to.

For example, that night we had the following exchange:

My daughter: Imma, all they have on here is talking! Where's the music?
Imma: Here, let me help. [finds station and returns the headset--then turns to me and says with a knowing, satisfied smile:] I found a classical music station.
My daughter: Imma, there's talking on this station too. And they're saying strange stuff.
Imma [takes the radio, listens, and turns to me with a shocked look]: It's a Christian Evangelical station!

The day after, our present to our daughter arrived: walkie talkies--Hello Kitty walkie-talkies. Hello Kitty? What will the Bratz Girls say?! I've been told that I agreed to this gift, but there is no written record that I ever did. I think it may have been a compromise, since one of the things she was asking for was a cell phone. Last year, one of her friends had one.

As soon as I got them working, she took both down to the basement and told me "I'll be talking to you." She didn't mean by walkie-talkie; she meant when she was done playing with them. Within 5 minutes she got tired of talking to herself on the walkie talkies and we experimented throughout the house. It took her a few minutes to pick up on the idea of pushing on the button and holding it down when she wanted to talk; to let go when she wanted to listen. Button or no, hearing her from one side of the house was no problem. Never has been.

My daughter wanted to know the range they had: 3 miles.
She wanted me to bring one to work so she could call me to pick her up.
Then she wanted to give one to a friend so they could talk at night.
She'll end up talking to friends when they come over to play on Sunday.

But I'm wary of walkie-talkies too--it turns out that the walkie-talkies from time-to-time pick up other people's conversations.

I'm not keen on the idea of my daughter talking to truckers.

The day I ask her to do something and she turns to me and says "That's a big ten-four, Big Daddy" those walkie-talkies are gone.