How To Make Birthdays During The Holidays Special

When you are a December baby, birthdays kind of get lumped into the holidays. People mean well, but with all of the hustle and bustle it’s hard to make a big deal of birthday wishes in December followed by all of the seasonal festivities. 

My husband is one of those December babies. Born December 22, he never got to have a birthday party on his birthday in school and his birthday gifts were often lumped in with his Hanukkah gifts. The worst, he tells me, were the years when Hanukkah fell over his birthday. Instead of eight nights and a birthday night, it just got lumped into eight nights.

Then he married a Christian girl (that’s me) and now we celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah and his birthday all in the month of December. (Oh and my mom’s birthday too, but that’s another story.) 

Don’t feel too bad for him, he’s gotten used to it. But his poor wife! He’s the hardest man to shop for and I am supposed to come up with birthday, Hanukkah and Christmas gifts for him — in one month! I’ve tried to get him to celebrate his half birthday instead, but I have had no success so far.

So, I try to make his birthday special.

Part of making it special is finding the perfect card. My husband really likes birthday cards, and in his family finding the funniest card on the rack is part of the tradition. So every year, amid the holiday festivities you’ll find me in the Hallmark aisle searching for the perfect birthday card for my hubby.

Although I like visiting my local Hallmark Store, especially because they have so many cute things this time of year, picking up a Hallmark card while filling my cart at Walmart is uber convenient. 

Plus now that Hallmark Rewards can be earned from cards purchased anywhere, I can earn rewards with my Hallmark cards that I get at Walmart. (I am very excited about the new program, and just signed up a couple of weeks ago. This was my first chance earn points from my cards.) 

Shopping for one card always leads to more cards. While reading every card on the shelf, I grabbed a couple of extra cards. The middle one is headed to a very special recipient, but the other two are just to refill my box of cards. I always keep a generic birthday and thank you on hand for last minute needs.

In addition to finding the perfect card, and getting a separate birthday present for his big day. We also make my husband’s birthday special by taking him to dinner at his favorite restaurant. (I’d like to mention the good wife points here, I don’t care for his restaurant of choice.) For the last 20+ years, my husband has celebrated his birthday at Kobe Steakhouse. He and the girls love it – so I love it for them.

Celebrating a birthday during the holiday season is tough. But we do our best to make it special for him. Here are my tips for loved ones of December babies:

• Try to have a separate birthday gift (wrapped in birthday paper – not Christmas), even if it is small.
• Get them a birthday card.
• Make a tradition out of celebrating.
• Get the kids involved – their birthday enthusiasm is contagious.
• Celebrate the whole day – no work, all play.

With Hanukkah coming early this year, we have one holiday down – two to go. I still have Christmas shopping to do, but the birthday present is ready and waiting. 

Need more ideas to help celebrate a birthday during the holidays? Check out the Live SoFab Holiday Digital Magazine below, you will find more ideas from Hallmark too!