Birthday Fun

I love birthdays.  I know that most people stop liking birthdays as they get older, but I hope that is not me.  I genuinely enjoy my birthday.  I enjoy spending time with people I care about on my birthday, thinking on the past year and looking forward to the next, and let’s not forget the cake.  I try to make birthdays special for people around me too.  

The first year Greg and I were married I tried to establish Greg-palooza.  He was not the biggest fan of it.  I wanted to do little things each day of his birthday week.  It did not go over so well.  He was appreciative of it, but it was not his thing.  The past two years we have done dinner of Greg’s choice and typically some kind of cake he wants.  His favorite is German Chocolate so that’s what we did.  Sometimes he wants dinner at home and sometimes he wants to go out.  It’s his day so he can pick.  

My birthday tends to be pretty similar.  We have went out for dinner on my birthday each year during our marriage.  It’s not that I don’t like eating at home or that Greg can’t cook but more because we don’t eat out on Valentine’s Day.  My birthday is just 10 days before the holiday where you can’t eat out without months of planning.  

Growing up we basically did the same thing.  Some years my parents would let me pick a restaurant to eat out at and others they would let me pick my favorite meal at home for my birthday dinner.  That meant 9 times out of 10 I would pick for my Dad to smoke some BBQ chicken and have loaded baked potatoes.  If you don’t know yet, I could eat a baked potato every day and would be perfectly happy.  

There were two things about my birthdays growing up that were the two most common traditions.  I always and I mean always wanted my birthday cake to be a Reese’s Blizzard Cake from Dairy Queen.  This love of ice cream cakes has not changed.  Secondly, my Dad and I often would have our birthday present be tickets to see the Arkansas Razorbacks Men’s Basketball team.  I loved going to Bud Walton Arena with my Dad to cheer on my beloved Razorbacks.  

I haven’t been to a basketball game at Bud Walton Arena in many years, but Greg has got me my ice cream cake a few times.  He’s a keeper.  

I hope I enjoy turning 27 as much as I have enjoyed other birthdays in the past.  In case you are curious, February 4^th is also the birthday of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Rosa Parks.