Birthdays through and for the ages

It’s amazing — but not surprising — how much birthdays change as you get older. 

Earlier this month, we celebrated our 6-year-old daughter’s birth, and with it came all the decorations that one could afford a birthday tea party: streamers, balloons, rainbow-colored plates and napkins.

Birthdays through and for the agesLast week, I celebrated my 45th, a lot more low-key, including an afternoon nap. Streamers also played a part, but let’s be honest, that was more for the little guys in the house who were more excited about my birthday than probably me.

Already this week, we’ve celebrated two more daughters’ birthdays — one 20 and the other 19. The 20-year-old lives half a world away, so celebrations can’t usually be more than a phone call, video message and lots of Facebook posts letting the social media world know how much we love her.

Birthdays through and for the agesFor the 19-year-old, it was a favorite breakfast, lunch and dinner, completed by her favorite dessert during this stage of her life: A more sophisticated key lime pie graced the table rather than the overly decorated desserts the 6-year-old requested.

And gifts certainly change with age, don’t they? Now, a watering can may not be the standard fare of most little girls, but to see my little one use and play with hers would make anyone smile.

Me? A chance to hit Starbucks with my wife sans children as well as money for a shop-vac that will probably end up getting used for a new pair of work jeans and muck boots.

Even the older girls are well beyond the dolls that may have been the focus of earlier birthdays. The one studying to be a midwife scored a stethoscope, and not one of those that come in the children’s play kits but the real thing so that you really, really can tell me whether my heart is working as well as it ought.

Which brings me back to my point. A stethoscope is a far cry from anything a 3-year old could ever want. For days, my 3-year-old son, who turns four in about 90 days but is somehow sure that must be tomorrow, has let me know exactly what he wants.

“Maybe Batman could call me?”

Batman, are you listening?