Many people are not familiar with the concept of the Golden or Grand Birthday. A person's golden birthday is the one in which they are turning the age that is the date of their birth. For example, when a person is born on the 11th of November, their golden birthday is the birthday when they eleven.

This is a particularly interesting tradition for children. It can be uses as a teaching tool for counting and ordering numbers. It also allows them to see how numbers are used in a variety of ways.

While all birthdays are special, the Golden Birthday adds a little bit of extra excitement to the occasion. Using golden candles or other golden items is a great way to weave the golden birthday into the party. The best thing about the Golden Birthday? It will always occur before anyone reaches 32 or older, so everyone will look forward to celebrating it!

Unbirthdays are often celebrated by those of us who have a summer birthday or a birthday that routinely falls during any school vacation. It is up to us to find an alternative day during the school year to celebrate our birthday. This can be difficult for many young children, who see their friends being the center of attention on their birthday, while in school. In general most schools have a policy or guidelines to address the celebration of summer birthdays, which may include a special assigned day for all Unbirthdays or which encourages the celebration of the half birthday instead.

As we get older, the idea of a summer birthday is often very appealing. There are so many more options of things to do with friends and family in the summer. Many people are able to take vacation in the summer, which offers the opportunity for destination celebrations, especially once kids are in the picture.

For people whose birthdays also fall on a major cultural holiday, they also benefit from the Unbirthday traditions. While it is exciting to share a birthday with a well know celebrity or famous person, it less exciting to have a birthday on a major holiday. It feels less personally special. For babies born on Christmas, New Years, Valentines Day and Halloween, the attention and excitement is generally focused on the holiday and their birthday becomes secondary. It is important, especially with children, to make sure that their birthday and the holiday are celebrated with equal attention, pomp, and circumstance.

Birthday Cake is the traditional sweet served at birthday parties. Birthday Cakes are often times highly decorated and very fancy. The tradition of the birthday cake dates back to the Middle Ages. In the middle ages, symbolic coins or other treasures would be baked into the cake. Whoever received the coin or treasure would have a sign or a prediction of their fortune.

At many children's birthday parties it is customary that the birthday boy or girl will receive the first slice of cake. With adults it is often customary that the guest of honor slices and eats the first slice of the cake. In many families the person whose birthday is being celebrated picks the menu or restaurant for the birthday meal.

In some cultures, the birthday guest of honor is treated for their birthday and in other cultures, they treat their guests. While surprise parties are a fun way to celebrate, sometimes it is supremely satisfying to organize and throw your very own Birthday Bash. The nice thing about birthdays is they happen once a year and every year is new and different. There are many traditions, but birthdays need not be boring and routine. What worked at 15 will most assuredly not have to be repeated at 35. There is so much versatility and endless possibilities for creating the very best birthday to suit almost any age and any mood. Some years may feel more somber and other years may feel more exciting, but each year will hold something new and different and the nice thing about a birthday is, the celebration can be tailored to reflect those feelings and experiences.

Some people view birthdays with excitement and others with a true sense of dread. For many it is just another day, while other people see it as the BIG day. There seems to be very little middle ground. AS a group of ten people and there will be very few folks in the middle.

Many people do not want to eat cake and listen to endless rounds of "Happy Birthday to You." While others would gladly invest in a neon sign, which loudly and brightly calls attention to the fact that someone is celebrating a birthday. Some people in general do not go all out for every birthday, but do place a special emphasis on certain special mile stones like "Sweet 16", 21, 35, 50 and so forth. No matter which camp one falls into, it is important to respect the others preference. There is little chance to win over the birthday dreader and it is doubtful that the birthday lover's candles can or should be dimmed.Every culture has a special way of celebrating birthdays. In Vietnam, everyone celebrates on the New Year or Tet. Regardless of a person's actual birth date, the celebration is on New Years. The year they were actually born in is demarcated by the lunar sign for that year.

For many busy people in the United States, this might be a welcomed tradition. It would make remembering when to send cards to friends and family very easy. Like Christmas, it would be a time to send out a mass mailing of cards and greetings. On the other hand, it would also make for an extremely hectic time of year, with all the parties and celebrations happening at the very same time of year.

The interesting part of living in the United States is the mixing of so many cultural traditions. Families celebrate in so many ways, with a variety of traditions. Some families stick very closely to their cultural or religious traditions and others celebrate in a more culturally homogeneous way, taking bits and pieces from many cultures. For example, piñatas are often a staple of Mexican birthday celebrations and are now often included in American children's birthday parties. While every culture has an age in which young men and women either "come out" or are recognized as adults, in the United States the ages of 8 and 21 are legal age when young people are considered adults.

Birthdays are not only a time of celebration and frivolity but also a way to mark the passage, to reflect on a years worth of experiences and a milestone with a variety of cultural and personal significance.