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LAURA ON LIFE
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Every year we have two birthdays that fall within ten days of Christmas. This happenstance produces a special kind of chaos that is somehow very fitting for my family. The chaos is enhanced by the fact that the two birthdays we celebrate are for very different people. Consequently, I can't get away with having just one birthday party for both of them.
The first birthday falls just two days after Christmas. This one is for my teenage son who is reaching his majority at eighteen this year. Ever since he was a baby, certain people always wanted to give him one gift and say, "This is your Christmas and Birthday present." I can see how it would be easier for the giver to do that, but every year, I have had to be the "present police" and discourage any thoughts along that line because, well, every kid should have his own birthday and it's kind of tough having to share your birthday with someone like Jesus. He tends to upstage anyone.
There are other small annoyances having a birthday so near to Christmas as well. For instance, people will tend to use left-over Christmas wrapping paper to wrap his birthday gift, because they don't want to run out and get more paper.
I try very hard not to fall into these habits but once in a while, I have a brain malfunction and forget to buy birthday paper; but I will still try to wrap his gift in any paper I have that isn't Christmas paper. Sometimes I'm a little overzealous with the non-Christmas wrapping paper rule. As a result, this year he got a gift wrapped in paper that featured Sesame Street characters and little blocks with the ABC's in primary colors emblazoned on it. It's cute paper for a 3 year old girl, but absolutely hideous for an 18 year old boy, but it was the only paper I had that wasn't Christmas paper. He never invites friends over for his birthday. He hasn't since he was in second grade. Apparently, that's when the correct wrapping paper starts to matter.
The other birthday that is being celebrated is for my daughter who is 7 years old. Because I only have one girl, I tend to have a surplus of wrapping paper for girls' birthdays. This is mostly because after embarrassing my son by forgetting the wrapping paper, I'm not likely to make the same mistake twice in one week. I'm witless at times, but not all the time.
Since my daughter's birthday falls after his, however, and he's ten years older than she is, I'm usually out of birthday candles by the time her special day rolls around. We get creative with this. Once, we lit the matches and stuck them right in the cake. You have to be quick if you're going to do this, though. Those little rascals like to go out before she's ready to blow them out. Another time, we used a citronella candle in a glass holder and told everyone to sing fast because you're not supposed to light those indoors.
Have you ever seen those trick candles that relight themselves several times before they can be successfully blown out? What kind of sadistic people would put those on a little kid's cake? Not only does the frustrated child repeatedly slobber all over the cake while enthusiastically trying in vain to blow them out, but then they expect the birthday guests to eat it!
Maybe it's not such a bad thing to forget the candles.
Laura Snyder may be reached at lsnyder@lauraonlife.com
Or check her website www.lauraonlife.com for archived columns
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