How do you celebrate birthdays?

**Sara Noel** · 07-28-2002, 02:07 PM

Do you have birthday traditions? Is it a simple day or a party/celebration day filled with overabundance?
Here birthdays are simple. For Gabe and I it usually is a nice dinner, cake, and sometimes a gift and sometimes not. For my son it also includes a special outing and gifts.
We have a unique situation of not having any family around at holidays, so we don't have large family celebrations.
I have been toying with the idea of a fun tradition. Whether it be a scavenger hunt, movies, or pinata~ Just something fun for my children, so am curious about what others do.

Sara

**PrairieRose** · 07-28-2002, 03:12 PM

We have a family dinner (usually just the 5 of us, sometimes we also invite extended family, just depends on the timing and what else is going on), cake and a few gifts. Usually we give the kids a gift and then the siblings do as well. For mine and dh's birthdays we cook or go eat at a fav. cafe and then just have a gift and the kids give a gift as well. It's always the birthday person's choice of meals and cake (although I rarely get a cake...I'm the baker!). It's really hard during December.....dd's birthday is 19th, dh's 21st and then Christmas. We have to plan ahead for birthday celebrations for that month.

**aylasmommy** · 07-28-2002, 03:13 PM

For us we do the same as you pretty much, nice dinner, cake, and some gifts, sometimes no gifts..

For ayla she's had the one birthday, just close family came, we did the cake, presents and a meal and that was good enough for this time around..

I think in the future as she gets older I want to try themed birthdays..like the camelot miniture gold place we have, I would love to have a renaissance themed birthday sometime, and one year I'd love to have a Fair theme, since the county fair is so close and is during her birthday ..things like that I think would be really neat to do..

I just remember from growing up the birthdays I remembered the most were the themed ones, oh and the scavanger hunt birthdays were REALLY fun

**Kitten20** · 07-29-2002, 05:03 AM

For birthdays, we go out to dinner as a family (birthday person gets to choose the restaurant) and have cake and ice cream at home, along with the opening of a few gifts.

**CAGmomof2** · 07-29-2002, 03:58 PM

For our birthday we celebrate by just having close family and some close friends over for DD birthdays!!
For my DH and My Birthday we keep them real simple usually just us and dd spend some time together and go out to eat as a family and then our parents usually take us out to dinner for our birthday's or give us money for our birthday!!

**Michelle** · 07-30-2002, 01:18 PM

Originally posted by Kitten20
For birthdays, we go out to dinner as a family (birthday person gets to choose the restaurant) and have cake and ice cream at home, along with the opening of a few gifts.

Same here...though for the kids' bdays we also have family parties. Next June I will be hosting my first kid party for my dd who will turn 6.

Michelle

**bmiltimore** · 07-30-2002, 03:29 PM

Every year my mom cooks my dinner of choice: Allsup Stew (family recipe), twice baked potatoes and green beans (fav veggie)
We usually do a store bought dessert

As I get older, I realize that I don't need or even want presents. I just like spending time with family and having a home cooked meal.

DH and I have not exchanged b-day, Valentines, Anniversary or Christmas presents since our first year together. When we want something, we usually buy it if it is within our budget. We'd rather enjoy each other instead of stressing out over what to buy each other. Less stress is the best present of all!