Crafterateur

I have the most wonderful friends and family in the world! And they all spoil me. Best of all, they support this whole birthmonth concept I started back in 2008. Last year, since I turned the big 3-0, I obviously had a website. This year, to much dismay, I didn’t go all out and plan a lot of activities. Well, I did, and then I changed my mind. I kind of wanted celebrations to happen organically instead, but let’s face it – April was a busy time in my life (which is great!) and I didn’t want to plan more activities and burn myself out. It’s all about balance, right? But let’s back track just a tad. You might be thinking, what is this birthmonth thing anyway?

As I define it —

Birthmonth is a celebration of birth all month long, a reason to hang out with friends near and far, and a time to party er’day.

 

Friends and family just thought it was a fun idea, but for me, it was a necessity. As the years passed by and everyone got busier and busier, it became apparent that if I wanted to celebrate with all my lovelies I couldn’t just celebrate on my birthday. Thus, birthmonth was …born. I’m not just full of myself. 😉

So this year, even though I didn’t plan official events, I had mini celebrations all month. –A weekend away with my parents, dinners with close friends, birthday sweets from my sweets, and the most adorable surprises. Cue in the garden mouse, animal pens, and mini cookie cutters! And I must be getting old and more responsible because my fiancé and I got a new vacuum and wardrobes for our home and we were super excited. These are now part of the tour when we have guests over.

Should you decide to plan a month long celebration, here are my tips for a successful birthmonth.

Birthmonth Tips

1. Celebrate with awesome people. People who encourage you, support you, will tell you you’re crazy when it’s needed, and who will laugh and laugh and laugh with you. I’m blessed to have these kinds of awesome people in my life.
2. Choose at least one activity you’ve never tried before. It’s so much fun to try new things with your favorite people. Last year it was hula hooping class; and in years past it was trampoline adventures and aerial dance class. Birthdays are the perfect way to get people to do random things.
3. Spread out your celebrations throughout the month on different days of the week and at different times. This will increase the chances that you can celebrate with (almost) everyone on your wish list. It’s nice when some events are kid-friendly, too, in case the kiddies want to celebrate your oldness with you.
4. Have treats for your celebration crew. I don’t know about you, but I love a tasty snack or a cute goody bag. Even adults need a little treat every now and then. I’ve made a piñata, poppers filled with stickers and confetti, and since my birthday sometimes falls around Easter, plastic eggs full of surprises.
5. And lastly, my life rule: never work on your birthday. Since I’ve been a full-time employee I’ve made a point to never work on my birthday. I take the day off (if it’s not a weekend day), get pampered, and wander. Oh, and I always need to have my birthday noodles and other yummies.

This year I was joined by my super awesome friend (we’ll call her Lady Awesome Sauce) who also had the day off. We had relaxing mani-pedis at my favorite nail salon, then delicious noodles at my favorite noodle house, my first Philz experience (so good and I’m not even a coffee drinker!), and random shopping adventures around town. I capped off the evening with a Greek dinner at one of my favorite establishments for tasty beverages with my favorite fiancé. 😉

How do you celebrate you? Share in the comments section below.