Manina usually gets the short shrift on her birthday since it’s so near Christmas.
She used to get fairly frustrated with me and my attitude toward birthdays. You see, I am the oldest of eight kids, we had birthdays all the time growing up and they weren’t a big deal. A couple presents and a from-the-box birthday cake and call it good.
But Manina’s family only had three kids and it was a much bigger deal. Ice cream cakes from Dairy Queen were the norm. Presents were more elaborate, it was a bigger deal.
But, to Manina’s credit, she has tempered her expectations and now just likes to do a fun activity as a family, although a DQ ice cream cake is still mandatory.
So this year, I tried to play off another casual birthday, but meanwhile I planned a pretty awesome day. I purchased some good winter gloves and a nice merino wool beanie as gifts. I planned out a ski day, and totally had her schedule cleared (here is the letter I gave to her as a gift). I even arranged a mini surprise party with the kids. She had no idea it was coming.
Manina and Megan had a great day on the slopes at Sundance. Megan tired quickly, so they were home earlier than expected. The bad part is that I certainly won’t be able to top this next year.
MightyJohnsons 