Every marriage has to figure out how to navigate the holidays. Whose family do we visit on Thanksgiving? Where do we go for Christmas? When you add a birthday to the mix it becomes even more complicated. All too often his birthday celebration was a last minute cake tacked onto the end of Christmas dinner. It always seemed forced somehow.
We tried a few solutions. There was "The Twelve Days of Birthday" where he got to open a gift every day for the twelve days leading up to Christmas. It worked pretty well for awhile, but it always bothered me that he never really got a special day. He never complained, but I think deep down it bothered him too.
After a few years, we decided to turn Christmas into a birthday celebration for him and dedicate other holidays to family. Lots of folks think its strange that we don't make an annual trip to visit family, but it's been great for us.
Over time, we've done some pretty fun things. One year we went to Paris, another year we trekked through coastal Oregon, there was the trip London. The year we moved into our current home, we stayed put and got settled in. This year we went to spa up in the Wisconsin Dells.
I know it's not unique, but there is something pretty cool about going swimming in an outdoor pool with snow all around.
We had a really nice time. There were facials and massages. There were fancy dinners and simple breakfasts. And most important of all, time to celebrate Michael's birthday without distraction.
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