Celebrating Irish Twin Birthdays
We just celebrated my son Isaac and my son Logan's birthdays. They are basically Irish twins. Isaac was born February 2014 and Logan was born March 2015. Every year it is a busy birthday time during those two months! For the last two years, we have had a big party for boys in the middle of February. It is so much fun to celebrate with family and have a big party just for them. One year I did an Animal Masquerade theme and then the following year I did a train theme where our house became "Storm Station" and we went all out with the decorations.
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The first one we had in Kansas City so we could celebrate with my husbands side of the family. And the next year we had it in New Jersey so we could celebrate with my side of the family. My husbands mom and dad flew out from Kansas City to be here for the second one. They got SO many presents and got to spend time with friends and family. They are definitely birthdays that they will remember!
Since then, I have begun a war with where to put all of their toys. Between their birthdays, Christmas, just because gifts, and grandparents that like to spoil their grandsons, the boys have accumulated so much stuff. I had a brilliant idea a few months ago and hid half the toys they didn't use in a closet. But of course, in true toddler fashion, they found them all within a week. It led to some hard questions for mom from two very disgruntled boys.
The big birthday parties are so much fun, but they are also expensive. As their birthdays came nearer this year I started to think about all of the other ways we could have used that money for them. I also grappled with the idea that they were going to get a lot more stuff that was not going to be appreciated. So I decided to move away from buying either of them material gifts for their birthdays and from having a big party.
Now, I am not a Scrooge, I know that their grandparents and aunts and uncles are going to spoil them with lots of things. And, they love opening gifts so I am not taking that joy away from them. But, I am cutting down on the amount they are getting.
I also wanted to make their birthdays about more than just presents. So, for Isaac's birthday I had a brilliant plan. I decided that instead of presents we would go somewhere, as a family, and spend the day celebrating him. I wanted him to feel some kind of ownership over this choice so Matt and I thought of three different places that we knew he would love. We picked Build-A-Bear, Rainforest Cafe, and Peddler's Village. I knew he would love the experience of making a bear, he absolutely loves Rainforest Cafe and going down to the beach even in the winter (a true Jersey boy!), and Peddler's Village has a giant kids play area and lots of fun shops and restaurants for us to all enjoy.
So the weekend morning before his birthday when he woke up, I made him his favorite breakfast and we showed him three pictures with all three choices on it. He picked Peddler's Village and off we went!
It was the best decision I have ever made to move away from material items for my sons. Isaac had the best time that day. And, we all enjoyed spending time with each other. I know that as he gets older and makes friends that he will want to spend his birthdays with them and do a party again. But, it was really special to focus on just Isaac and making him feel so loved and important.
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On his actual birthday we made sure that he felt special too. We went out to dinner at his favorite restaurant, the Pop Shop in Medford, where Poppy from Trolls was making an appearance. He LOVES Poppy. So much so that he hid under the table when she came by to see him. My parents came with us and then we came home and opened all of the presents that people had sent him and had cake.
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He was a very happy 4 year old!
For Logan's birthday, a month later, we did the same thing. I changed the three options to fit more of what Logan would enjoy. His choices where Legoland, Build-A-Bear, and Adventure Aquarium. He knew exactly what he wanted and picked Legoland right off the bat! It was the best day all about Logan and he loved every second of it.
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For his birthday we also went out to the Pop Shop with my parents and then came back to our where he got to open all of the presents that everyone had sent him and have cake.
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He enjoyed every second of the day and we all loved to celebrate him.
I am not sure what we will do next year, a big party or a special day out? Maybe both? But, as long as my children feel loved, special, and we get to spend quality time with family, we can't really go wrong.
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