My Grandson Said, "A lot of people in my family have birthdays on the 21st!"

When picking my grandson up from driver's education, we started talking about his older brother that was visiting from Alaska. I asked if his brother would be here until his birthday. He said, he thought he was leaving next week, which meant he wouldn't be here for his birthday in April.

I knew this birthday was in April, along with another older brother of his. I had written a check a year ago in April and he only recently cashed it. It is hard to keep track of so many grandchildren and great-grandchildren's birthdays.

He then said, "A lot of people in my family have birthdays on the 21st." I don't know that to be true as he then said, how his birthday is on the 20th of May. I guess we had just changed the subject of his brother from Alaska to talk about his birthday.

Then, I brought up his brother in California's birthday is on April 19th so that isn't the 21st. So, what I think happened is we were talking brother from Alaska and it turns out that brother's birthday may be on the 21st and his younger brother's birthday is on the 21st.

It is his dad's birthday today on the 26th of March. Maybe he meant lots of birthdays in his family are close to the 21st. Anyway, we went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant for his dad's birthday. I asked him what his plans are for his birthday or does he have plans and what is he hoping to get for his birthday.

He said, "I will tell you later." I think I caught him off guard. It used to be something small, but being he is older now, my guess is it will be something much bigger.

At the birthday party, my daughter said, "Mom, all but one of our kids are here!" Seven children, my grandchildren, and three of her grandchildren or I like to say three of my great-grandchildren were there.

There is always something going on with someone. My daughter is busy. Her youngest boy wanted 2 children's meals and she allowed it. The reason she allowed it, I don't know. The reason he wanted it is because his older brother, the one with the birthday in May bet him that he couldn't eat both meals.

The bet was for $26.00. When I found out I said, "I would have finished my meal for $26.00 as I have a to-go box, if I knew you had $26.00 to bet." I asked him point-blank and he answered that he did not have the money. I pointed that out when they were arguing the details as the grandson with the to-go box was trying to say that he didn't say he would finish his meal in the restaurant.

So much fun! And so noisy. My husband pointed out that bars are often noisy! Not from kids I replied and Mexican restaurants almost always serve alcohol and that doesn't make them a bar as most people go there for the food. Only one beer was at our table for the entire 1 1/2 hour we were there. And there were seven people old enough to drink.

Then I get weepy as I started to think about how those once babies got to be so old. And how one of those babies was in California. I should say too that at least four of us do not drink as we had our turn with drinking and it didn't work out for us.

A large family is great! And I am glad that my daughter saw fit to have a lot of babies. She has always loved babies. She is done having babies now though. She will inform me that she no longer has her baby carriage. She did put the grandbaby to sleep while his mother ate. She still has the touch!

Because she had such a large family we continue to have the luxury of having babies around when we want them around. She took one granddaughter home with her. That granddaughter was so scared of grandpa when she was a baby, but now she just loves her great grandpa and he her!

When great-granddaughter and her seven-year-old auntie got into trouble, I told my daughter to blame grandpa as he is almost always at fault for getting them stirred up.

They were going back home for cake. Yellowcake and peanut butter frosting. The son-in-law's favorite cake. He turned 50 this year. Imagine fifty years of yellow cake with peanut butter frosting.

We drove off to Hibbing in what felt like a moment of freedom. The birthday guy was trying to pawn off children but ended up with a grandchild to take home, along with his own. I wanted to say, that is what you get for having so many children. But, I gave him a break, after all, it was his 50th birthday!