Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday!

I absolutely love birthdays. Mine and other people's! I am a big kid at heart and get very excited on the run up to my special day.  It was my 50th yesterday and I had such a lovely time celebrating with lovely friends and family. I love having a special day to celebrate another year of lovely people and occasions. 

I have always loved birthdays, from being little when my mum would have my friends over from our street, a few from my class and my cousins. We would play games in the back garden and dance to the record player she would bring outside. One of my favourite memories is my 8th birthday when my cousin bought me the single 'Come on Eileen' and we played it over and over, me in my ra ra dress and white sandals. 

Not long after this birthday, I broke my arm and needed an operation. I was bereft that they had to cut my new, pink Worzel Gummidge t-shirt I got for my birthday! I loved that present so much! 

My mum always made so much effort with my parties. Probably why I do now with my own daughter! I remember all the lovely parties we had and went to. One Saturday, we went to three in one day! Most of our family and friends did catch nora virus at one of our parties but I think we will brush over that!

These birthday memories are fab to look back on as an adult. The family tea parties too. On my mum and dad's side. On dad's side we would gather in the front room, dancing to the 70s and 80s tunes, laughing with our aunties and uncles. I was the youngest girl cousin of many cousins and we would play snooker on the billiard table upstairs. Well, I watched! I loved the old record player that held about six singles and I loved to see them drop on top of each other. My favourite single was called 'Venus in blue jeans' and it got played a lot! Always so much laughter at these get togethers. I would love to see my older cousins, all dressed up, 80s style and going into town to meet their mates!

We always went to grandma and grandad's for lovely parties, my bro and my cousins making up little musical shows for the adults. We would practise in the kitchen then put the show on in the living room. Amazing memories of everyone laughing and clapping. We would play so many games too. My fave was always 'Boys name, Girls name' and we would try and find the most unusual things in each category, to get the most points. My aunty was brilliant at this game. Charades too. Lovely evenings! We are a very musical family and my grandad would play the spoons and his harmonica. Even played the comb in a piece of paper. At my aunty's we would have fab sing songs too. I have wonderful memories of my dear dad and uncle singing along to Chas n Dave that they'd 'got no beer in the sideboard here'! We laughed so much. 

We meet now and every party has a quiz. It's an unspoken rule. My cousin's son is Quiz master and he is a whizz! His other son is a music maestro on the piano and keyboard where one minute he is playing Beethoven and the next, the Miami Vice theme! I love these get togethers so much and feel we are continuing the games tradition. We all laugh along with each other, reminiscing funny memories from when we were children and sharing these with our children.

Love this pinterest quote. Looking back on wonderful family memories with precious people makes me feel blessed. For a while, you can relive these moments in your head and in your heart.

I have always thought that birthdays are not just for the person being born but for the mum doing all the hard work! We do have mother's and father's days, of course, but I always thank my mum, every year for what she went through for me. She was very poorly indeed and I always feel I need to show my appreciation every year! I love this quote. And your grandma and great grandma's stories. I love the names of my great grandmas. Violet and Doris. Great grandma Doris and I shared birthdays and I was her little birthday girl, which I loved being! Then, I shared my birthday with my boyfriend's grandma, who became my hubby. One year, we both bought each other the same Royal Jelly prezzy. Great minds think alike! Both lovely ladies. 

I was lucky to be brought up by an amazing mum and dad. I love this too.

I love Autumn the most out of all the seasons. Each season has something special and memorable about it but Autumn is my favourite. But then, I am an Autumn baby. September is my all time favourite month where late Summer turns crispy and we have sunny September days.

Love this quote from J K Rowling, introducing September and Autumn. I do love the 'ber months! Thinking of Harvests and collecting conkers. Excited about getting wrapped up for Halloween and Bonfire night, eating bonfire toffee and drinking pumpkin spiced lattes and hot chocolate.

Love this quote I saw on facebook that a friend shared. Such a lovely time, the ber months!

You can feel that change in each season but the Summer to Autumn is my favourite as it is still warm.

October is a lovely month too. I love this quote from Anne of Green Gables. The leaves are really starting to go golden by October.

On reading about Autumn, there is a meteorological Autumn and an astrological Autumn too.

I do like to read about my star sign Virgo and the characteristics are definitely me! I love being a Virgo but I can get in my way sometimes with my perfectionism and procrastinating! Being a Virgo can be conflicting as yes, I am a social butterfly but also crave my book reading alone time to recharge my social batteries.

I remember a boyfriend buying me a Garfield cup for a Virgo, when I was a teenager and the list of characteristics was spot on: meticulous, simply stated worry wart. Yes! But we are also very loyal, true and give our everything to our friends, family, work and projects. 

I do love gem stones and I have a few rings with gorgeous stones from amethyst to emerald. One of my favourite rings is my mum's engagement ring that became mine. It is a sapphire in between two diamonds. My birthsone is sapphire and I love this quote from pinterest. 

I love flowers so much. The flowers for September are the aster and morning glory which is really lovely. I love what they stand for.

A lovely thing about birthdays is sharing them with loved ones. I have had a lovely time with family and friends celebrating my 50th and was really touched by the little, kind gestures to make it as fab as possible! Especially my sister in law who knows how I am about special birthdays! I love connecting on social media and I love it when people wish folk Happy birthday, sharing kind thoughts and wishes with each other. We all have our tribe who root for us, when we are down, when we need a shoulder to cry on and when we need to celebrate. Sharing our special times with these people is so precious. 

Birthdays aren't just about receiving presents and cards, even though these are lovely! They are about celebrating your life so far and being thankful for who you share your life with. Reminiscing times past with your loved ones, funny memories of past birthdays and parties. Birthdays are about people. 

I love this quote too. We all help each other to he our best. We all hold each other up, remind each other of our qualities and be happy for each other. We get each other and want the best for each other.

I have remembered something else I love about being born on September 1st. It made me the oldest person in the year at school. Even the oldest in the school! Apart from at secondary, where I shared it with three other boys so I was still the oldest girl. It didn't really make me the most mature though! 

I had to sing that song! 'Young at heart'. Great song from the 90s. I loved the 90s so much. All that dancing. Some days, I feel like I am in my 90s! But in my head I am still a teenager! 

This quote is such a fabulous question. I loved being 12 but I also loved being a teenager. It was traumatic and there was the Alanis Morrisette angst going on but it was also a carefree time too. Then getting wed and being a new mum in my early 30s. Different ages. Not just one springs to mind.