Birthday Memories

Since it is September, the month of birthdays in the McBride family, I have birthdays on my mind.  Birthdays were always such happy times at our house!  Looking back on childhood birthdays, they were simple.  I love that they were not commercialized with expensive birthday parties at expensive venues and excessive gifts.  These were the procedures and routines for McBride birthdays.
1) We received mail from Grandma and Grandpa McBride, Grandpa Forster, and Betty Jean and Walter.  This was usually the first sure sign that the birthday was really coming!  I am not sure if we were allowed to open them before our actual birthday, or if it was just strongly understood that Mom believed that they should not be opened until the actual day.

2) When the day came, we received "happy birthday's" immediately in the morning. I remember waking up to the birthday balloons and crete paper that Mom and Dad must have put up after we went to bed. There may be fun little surprises throughout the day, but mostly things were low key until dinner time.

3) Every other year we had a friend birthday party.  These parties were always at our house with school friends and the obligatory neighborhood friends.  Often some of these friends were in Sunday School with me but not in my grade.  This means that we were acquaintances, but it was always polite to invite some.  We played games, ate cake and opened presents.  These were often not on the actual birthday.

4) When the much anticipated birthday dinner came, then we knew for sure it was birthday time!  We always ate at home.  Mom would cook our favorite dinner.  For years, I had chicken tenders, twice-baked potatoes, homemade rolls, and jello (always orange or red--sometimes rainbow!).  Mom put all the love and time needed to make sure the meal was just what we had ordered.

5) Presents were next!  After our first remodel, we always sat in the "Birthday Chair" by the window.  Usually we tried to act nonchalant about anticipating gifts, but often--if not always--the birthday kid was waiting in that chair way before everyone was ready to give and watch.  No matter how small and humble, presents were given by everyone.  I remember in the early, early days, we always shopped at Jobbers Odd Lot.  This was such a treasure of a store where we could find cool and sometimes strange things for great bargains to give the birthday kid.  Mom and Dad's present was always the grand finale.  My most memorable gifts would have to be my Cabbage Patch Kids that I received as a kid and my picnic basket with new scriptures and a pocket watch that I got for my 16th birthday.

6) As soon as presents were out of the way, we immediately went back into the kitchen for birthday cake. The cake was also made special order by Mom.  Flavor as requested, and decorated to suit the kiddo.  I remember choosing strawberry more than anything while growing up, although I have moved to "wedding cake" (white, jam filling, nuts, white frosting) in my older days.  These cakes were always fancy and fun.  Sadly, my most vivid memory of a birthday cake is Micah's Gumby cake, from probably his 6th/7th grade years? I think that I just remember it because I helped and someone put a candle in his mouth to make it look like he was smoking.   :(

I am so grateful that Mom and Dad made things so fun for us even though there were a lot of us and there was not a ton of money to go around.  Birthdays were always as great as I dreamed they'd be.  It was a great day to feel loved and sometimes teased (ask Jeremy about the "It's a Beehive" crown and front page news taped to my door).

Grandma and Grandpa McBride

After smelling the scent of freshly baked doughnuts wafting from Dunford Doughnuts this week, Mom and I began remembering the smell of the Clover Club potato chip factory by Grandma and Grandpa McBride's house in Kaysville.  The memory of this scent has sent me reminiscing about visits to their house.  A classic visit to Grandma and Grandpa McBride included the following:

• lemon cake
• Grandpa getting "mad enough to eat ice cream" and letting us all enjoy!
• A trip to his workshop in the basement to make something cool.
• Climbing the tree by the garden while smelling the mentioned factory.
• Looking at Grandma's artwork and works in progress.
• Listening to Grandpa's stories about amazing feats in the army, in baking, and in crazy life in general.  Usually, he gave all the credit to the Lord for his inspiration.
• A trip to the grocery store in which Grandpa would tell a random lady not to buy ice cream or else it will make her fat, or asking a clerk for his "other $20", or teasing someone!
• Eating Quaker Oatmeal Squares or over easy eggs for breakfast and each of us kids staring at each other wondering who would actually eat the goo and who would come up with a good enough excuse to get out of the eggs!
• Listening to Grandma's stories about her childhood, college, or her big brother.

I loved the little playhouse in the backyard.  I loved that there were miniature roses, including the beautiful "Heidi Rose".  I loved that the tree was just the right size for climbing in.  Sometimes I would climb it and read my scriptures there in the morning.  I loved Grandpa's mischievous smiles and twinkly eyes when he told stories, cracked a joke, or said something like, "I feel a whole lot better than when I was feeling a whole lot worse."  Life was a little slower at their house than we were used to at home, but it was always a good time and we felt loved.