Birthdays from heaven

Avid Time Out Kids readers (and really, aren’t we all?) will remember the Birthdays from hell cover story from our July issue detailing the excesses of some parents’ party planning. Just when you may have given hope on ever insulating your child from year after year of materialistic celebrations, the New York Times reports on an altruistic trend that’s apparently on the rise. Children as young as four-year-old Mindy Knapp are either re-directing or outright donating the spoils of their birthdays to charities or other worthy causes. Writer Tina Kelley does note that such a change does hold its share of tension for would-be gift-givers and gift-getters alike, whether they’re grown-ups or kids. So far, it seems that the goodwill generated by the bread-on-the-waters approach overrides any no-present potential crankiness.