In the comment section below, tell me one of your favorite birthday traditions to be entered to win a free copy of Love in a Broken Vessel!
Be sure to include your email address in the comment.
Deadline to enter is midnight (PST) December 12, 2013. I’ll use a random number generator to choose the winner, and an email notification will go out December 13, 2013! Winner has 48 hours to reply with mailing address before another winner is chosen.
Comments 41
The birthday boy/girl getting to pick the meal and birthday cake flavor has to be the best… especially as an adult!
Author
So agree!
We were always allowed to pick our favorite meal for our birthday (mine was always lasagne), and since my mom decorated cakes for a living and we ALWAYS had cake cuttings (cut off to level the cakes for stacking) in the house, I always chose blueberry pie.
With our children, when we could afford it we would let them choose a restaurant, and we would take them out for dinner on their birthday. After, we would come home and have birthday cake that Grandma made (of course!) for them.
Author
How fun to have a cake-decorator mom! It’s a hoot that you wanted pie for your birthday! 😉
Our birthday tradition is, the birthday person gets to pick where she/he would like to go for their birthday dinner. Also they get to pick if they would like a homemade cake, a bakery cake, or a Dairy Queen Ice Cream cake!
Blessings!
Judy B
Author
Oooohhh! LOVE DQ cakes! 😉
When we still all lived at home, the birthday person got to pick what we had for supper.
Author
We did that too. I always picked my mom’s cubed steak. Yum!
We go out to eat at a restaurant chosen by the birthday celebrant.
susanmsj at msn dot com
Author
We’ve done that with our kids. It was great when they were little and wanted McD’s but a little harder on the budget when they got older and wanted Red Lobster or Olive Garden! 😉
We got to choose our favorite meal for dinner; mine is spaghetti, green beans and french bread. I always wanted chocolate cake for dessert and my grandmother made it every year. Now I either will have dinner at home or go out to dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. And I still have chocolate cake for dessert! audreysmom1@comcast.net
Author
Yum–chocolate cake! If I go back to Indiana, I’d have my mom make her famous Angel Food cake or butterscotch pie. No one can top those!
My mom and I always go out to lunch.
Author
THAT’S a great tradition! After all, she did all the work, right? 😉
I was always treated very special on my birthday. I never received a lot of gifts. We did not have a lot. But, it was my special day as it was always a special day when my parents celebrated their birthdays. I would never have thought of receiving a gift for myself when it was my Mom or Dad or best friend’s birthday. What a shame that we treat each other to expensive and special gifts on the birthday of the King.
Author
I’m enjoying giving a book away on my birthday! But I think you’re right about the “expensive” part, Nanci. In the scheme of things, a book isn’t a big deal, but it’s fun to celebrate with folks on a special day–and hear your stories! Thanks for stopping by!
We always got to choose our favorite meal, and I passed that tradition down to my children, who have passed it down to theirs. Enjoy YOUR special day Dear Friend! XO
Author
Thanks, dear one! I got your card in the mail with the sweet note! You are SOOOO thoughtful. What a blessing you are in my life. Love you oodles! <3
birthday tradition…mom making your favorite meal…w/ love 🙂
Author
It’s the LOVE part that makes it yummy!
We always sing a special song for birthdays:
A happy birthday to you, a happy birthday to you! Every day of the year may you feel Jesus near! A happy birthday to you, a happy birthday to you and the best year you’ve ever had!
Author
What a fun song!!! On my birthday, my mom and dad would always wake me up singing Happy Birthday. Even after I got married, they’d call and sing…every year, without fail. I missed that this year, but my kids now call and sing to me–how awesome is that?!!! 😉
putting chocolate decorations on the tree. Our 4 year old son has once again told people all year that he doesn’t like chocolate, only chocolate off the Christmas tree. All year he’s refused to take chocolate offered to him as he doesn’t like it and each time he’s simply explained “I don’t like chocolate, I only like chocolate off the Christmas tree”.
Perhaps this will change before next Christmas but for now he’s once again making up for lost time!
Merry Christmas one and all!
Author
Fun tradition!
We always had taco salad for our birthdays but other than we didn’t do much. However I was surprised when glancing through the comments to notice that Angie Arndt had the same “Happy Birthday Song” that we used. Wow! Small world! I hadn’t realized that anyone else knew that song!
Btw I just finished “Love in a Broken Vessel” and just loved it. Unfortunately it was a public library book. I would be delighted if I could own a copy for myself.
Hope you have a blessed birthday!
Author
How funny that you gals sing the same song! I’d never heard it before. Maybe you’re long-lost cousins? ha! So glad to hear you enjoyed LBV. (BTW, it’s on special for $3.99 on e-formats until Dec. 22nd if you have an ereader.) Thanks for stopping by, Audrey! 😉
Birthdays were a day for your favorite meal served on a special red birthday plate. The flavor of cake was also of your choosing. One of my children preferred cheesecake or pie for her choice! We usually managed to go out to lunch somewhere around the birthday as well. Enjoy your day!!
Author
Thanks, Susan! I love the red plate idea. How fun!
I love it when everybody sings the birthday song – usually a little off key!
Author
Off-key is definitely best! 😉
I like to go to the museum every year.
Author
What a cool tradition! Same museum or different one?
When I was growing up the birthday tradition was to get the number of spankings of how old you were and then to get shoved under the bed. I’m pretty sure that is why I am claustrophobic LOL. Needless to say I have not passed that tradition on to my children and they are thankful for that. 🙂
Author
Hahaha! I’ve heard of the spankings but not the shoving under the bed part!!! Definitely explains the claustophobia, woman! That’s a hoot!
My dad died of a heart attack shortly before his 43rd birthday. I was 12-years-old at the time and the fifth of seven children. He was a very good man who loved his family.
As we grew older, many of our friends celebrated the milestone birthdays of 18, 21, 30, and 40. For myself and each of my siblings, it became important to us to reach the age of 43, something our dad never achieved. Leading up to that (odd number to everyone else, but special to us) birthday, we cheered one another on. As we each reached our 43rd birthday, we celebrated with joy!
I thank The Lord for our family’s unique tradition and am happy to report that all seven of us siblings have healthily celebrated our 43rd birthdays!
Author
Oh my, Julie! What an amazing story of your family’s journey together and how birthdays have played a part in uniting you. I love that! Thanks for sharing it–and I’m rejoicing with you that y’all made it to 43!!! Woot! That’s awesome! 😉
This is my 50th birthday–so, I suppose it’s a milestone–though I’ve never gotten too worked up about my age. It was a good one! 😉
My family and closest friends-if we’re near enough to each other-meet up at the favorite restaurant of choice and have fun, laughter, and an all-around great time then either part ways or meet at someone’s house usually for cake or dessert, if we so choose. If it’s my birthday we end the time with banana pudding. I’m not much of a cake eater so we enjoy the best non-birthday cake dessert ever, in my opinion! Thanks for a chance to win Broken Vessel!
kam110476(at)gmail(dot)com
Author
You and my mother-in-love would have been great pals. She LOVED banana pudding! Sounds like you are an extrovert, my friend, loving the energy of people and fellowship. What a wonderful way to spend your special day!
Hi, Mesu!
I guess I would have to say that my favorite birthday tradition is the celebration of my Lord’s birthday – because I was born on Christmas day. There really aren’t any traditions re: my birthday, personally, as it kind of gets lost in the shuffle of the holidays (I only remember being given one birthday party – when I was 16 years old), although there is, usually, a birthday cake. But that’s OK – I consider it an honor to have been born on the same day, the birth of my Lord – is celebrated!
Thanks for the opportunity to win a copy of “Broken Vessel”! I love historical fiction based on the bible, I haven’t read any of your books, but, would, certainly, love to!
I’m curious as to the origin/meaning of your beautiful name?
bonnieroof60(at)yahoo(dot)com
Author
Oh Bonnie, I’m sure as a kid it was tough having your birthday on Christmas. You’ve sure got a sweet attitude about it now. I love that you feel honored to celebrate the Perfect-birth along with your own. What a tender heart.
“Mesu” is a nickname, self-proclaimed when I couldn’t pronounce my big, long given name (Maralasu). No special meaning. Just shorter and easier for a toddler to say–and it stuck. 😉
Author
Thanks, everyone, for sharing your birthday traditions! This was fun. Our family has always made a big deal of birthdays. We have the traditional “at home” birthday meal that the birthday boy or girl chooses (including cake or dessert of choice). Then an “out to eat” meal of choice. Then, when we lived closed to our family, we’d go out to eat with each of the grandparents. We didn’t just have birthDAYS in our family. We had birthday-MONTHS!
Our poor son-in-loves have tried to keep up with all our special birthday traditions, meeting all our girls’ expectations, and have almost worn themselves out. We’re trying to tone down the birthdays–mostly because we live so far from each other now. But birthdays are still a very special part of our family traditions.
Thanks for helping me celebrate mine this year!
Blessings on y’all!
Mesu