A More Natural Birthday

I can’t help but feeling like there may be an end to the traditional birthday cake in the future of our family.  In our attempts to take care of our bodies and live more conscientiously our traditional birthday cakes seem a little out of place.  Also, after having celebrated 11 birthdays already and we’re not even through the potty-training years–we have quite a few more birthdays coming.  So we may forgo the traditional birthday cake simply out of boredom!  (My sister-in-law with three kids all born in the same month as well as already being the birthday month of an aunt and a grandpa can tell you all about being tired of birthday cake.)

I see the future of birthday cakes in our house as being very open.  Jeremy always requests a chocolate chip applesauce cake for his birthday.  I imagine lot’s more homemade cakes from our favorite recipes and new ones as well, and maybe cheesecakes, or trifle’s or hearty bread pudding or even creme brulee made from fresh backyard chicken eggs.  The point is, my last lingering desire was to not give up the tradition of birthday candles–they’re so festive and make the celebration so special.

Last year I found this wooden birthday train for my boys.  I’d seen the Waldorf birthday rings around and appreciated the function and the aesthetic, but I wanted something more personal for our family.  This little wooden train is perfect for my three little boys who love, love trains.  Last year we inaugurated the birthday train, placing it along side the decked-out birthday cakes.  But as time goes on, this train will become more special to my boys–a tradition a symbol of good times as a family.  Slowly the train will take the prominent position on the birthday table.  And sometimes there will be cake and sometimes there may be something a little different.  But the boys will feel special, and loved, and connected to each other by this little wooden birthday train, and that’s what I really want of a birthday celebration.