i married a really amazing guy, which makes me want to take extra good care of him on the anniversary of his birth. last year that special birthday treatment looked like this.
this year it was more of an intimate affair. just some friends, and us, and dinner. it was lovely!
and although there are lots of things that look different about birthdays from year-to-year, there are a few traditions around here that we've invited to stay . . . for good!
1. breakfast in bed.
this is a MUST every year, and typically includes something delicious, you know, not everyday foodies. this year it was a steak omelette with peppers, mushrooms, onions & salsa topped with one b-day candle. also served with fresh fruit salad and a glass of milk. {ry's fav. 'cause you can take the boy out of the dairy, but not the dairy out of the boy.} :)
2. special family dinner in & personal dinner out.
you should know these two dinners are not enjoyed on the same day. growing up in a family of ten, we usually celebrated the real birthDAY with the whole family and a favorite meal. this was like our party. dinner, cake, gifts. but . . . in addition to this, every year we were also promised {at our selected day & time} a dinner out alone with the parents. this was like gold having so many kids & only two parents. to this day some of my best & only memories having one-on-one time with both mom & dad are these special & formal birthday dinners out. loved it! so, even though we don't have kids yet, we've already started this one. nice dinner in, nice dinner out. plus, that just increases birthday celebration time - this is never a bad thing! {oooh, how i love me some birthday fun.} dinner in - yesterday, dinner out - to come this friday.
3. cereal.
kay, this sounds so bizarre, but every birthday {and christmas} we always got a box of our favorite "sugar cereal." i don't know how this one started, but it's such a gem of a tradition. we probably appreciated this more because our daily cereals were things like grape-nuts & plain cheerios & oatmeal. fruit loops, lucky charms, {and my personal favorite} corn pops were found in our house only following someone's big day or after christmas when these boxes were found in-a-plenty. {think of it, 10 people = 10 boxes of cereal, in addition to whatever was already in our cupboard. it was bliss.} these boxes of breakfast goodies were so treasured it was usually a race to find the best hiding spots in order to keep others from scavenging your personal supply. anyways, the tradition lives on and ryan was lucky enough to get a canadian box of our shared favorite corn bran.
so yesterday was fun, and friday will be even better.
i even have one more gift up my sleeve . . . but sweetie, you'll just have to wait.
~pictures tomorrow~
What a fantastic day! Jed's family does the same with cereal at Christmas time. We also came up with this tradition... When each of our children turn 16 their first "date" is with a parent... Like with Dalton he and I will go to a formal dinner....and if we have a girl then Jed gets to do the same. I might just have to ask Jed about adding the "both parents and child" dinner all other birthdays. Hope you don't mind. :O) I'm such a copy cat.
ReplyDeleteWe are sorry we weren't able to celebrate Ryan's birthday with you guys. We truly miss you both a lot. Enjoy your time in Logan, although it is fantastic to be out of school and have a career, life isn't the same. I never agreed with people when I heard that your college years will bring you the closest, dearest friends... but it is very true!
On a lighter note...Ryan's last birthday was a blessed day for me...It was the first time I wore maternity pants...and let me tell you, when your jeans aren't fitting anymore those pants are AMAZING! :O)
oh i love birthdays.
ReplyDeleteand i love the cereal idea. (we copied this one from your mom - i was always so jealous of you guys and your sugar cereal).
happy birthday ryan!
Ok, I LOVE that you guys have such fun traditions! You seem to make fun things in life WAY more fun and special. I love it! I just think you are so amazing. thats all.
ReplyDeletekera, that's fantastic that jed's family does the same thing, most people think that's a pretty weird gift. and i totally think you should copy that idea 'cause i absolutely loved that special time with my parents growing up. and we miss you guys, especially for fun things like this.
ReplyDeletebrook, i'll pass the b-day wishes along & we're excited to hang out with you guys this weekend.
jer, you're so very sweet. i think that making life fun is a hartley trait we share, it comes with the fantastic sense of humor! :)