At our house, we have discovered that late May birthdays are hard. And we have two of them. School is trying to wrap up- there’s performances and graduations and end of the year parties. People are planning vacations and family events. It’s hard to find a day to ask people to come to a birthday party. Well, my youngest daughter turned 10 just last week and she said she wanted a party. What’s  a mom to do? We threw out some ideas and talked about when we could have it. Honestly, our days were full.  I was trying to figure out when I even had time to plan a party! And in a moment of inspiration (or maybe desperation), I thought of something that she might like better than a party. I approached her and asked if, instead of a party, she might like to spend her whole birthday with me, just the two of us. Her eyes lit up immediately and she said, “Yes!”  

We had the greatest day. I took her to get her hair cut.  We went out to lunch and then shopped at the mall.  We got pedicures. We joined the rest of the family and ate out for dinner. And we swam in my sister’s pool with the cousins that evening. She was so happy and I was so happy. It was so simple, but it was the best gift I could have given her. Yet again, it’s not the “stuff” that mattered- it’s the time and the experiences that she will remember.