No one knows for sure where the tradition started, but there is something rather mystical or at least extremely special about a person turning a year older. Perhaps it has something to do with the optimism of the days ahead, or the celebration of the ones lived, but it feels like there is something more to it than that. Whatever makes your birthday so special, here are a few ideas to make it a birthday to remember:
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The ideas below are a great place to start!
Wine tasting picnic – If one is near one of the many vineyard areas of the country such as Napa Valley in California, Virginia, Missouri or western upstate New York, a tour and picnic could be arranged. Bring along some friends for the wine tasting experience for it’s always better to have others around enjoying the same fun.
Go micro – Perhaps there are no vineyards nearby. However, microbreweries are popping up all over the country. Locate the closest ones and arrange for a tour of tasting some very interesting adult beverages. Arrange for a hotel nearest the breweries and host a small birthday party complete with personalized favors. These favors need not be expensive for there are many wholesale favors to be purchased to keep the party expenses more manageable. Personalized favors may include mugs, drinking glasses, caps and digital picture frames that capture the events that make up this birthday.
Birthdays can be murder – Gone are the days of kids’ menus at an all American cuisine restaurant for those turning 21. Now that drinking alcoholic beverages is legal, mom and dad can show their newly minted 21 year old that fun times can be had without the usual hangover as experienced across many college campuses. Arrangements can be made to attend a swanky European-style restaurant that also sports a dinner theater containing a very entertaining murder mystery.
Surprise, Surprise! – Of course, it might be desirable to keep everything low-key and go for the typical surprise birthday party. Mom and/or dad will assemble a list of their child’s closest friends and begin purchasing the decorations and personalized favors from specialty places that offer wholesale favors for just such occasions. If the party is to be offsite, the choice of a special restaurant such as Greek, Tex-Mex or Cajun cuisine might be just the ticket. Reserve a special area in the restaurant ahead of time and decorate accordingly with gifts in tow. The only hard part might be in getting the guest of honor to his own birthday party on time. Hopefully, his friends can help the parents out with that little chore.
You bet you’ll have some fun! – One of the most popular and expensive places to visit is Las Vegas, Nevada. Pack up the family, including grandparents, siblings and cousins. Las Vegas has a lot of gambling to be sure, but there are outdoor cabanas at the Bellagio, great shows at night following some of the best dining on the planet. There’s almost no way not to have a lot of fun, unless excessive poor judgment enters the picture. Hopefully, the rest of the family can be a check on such unfortunate activities. Just think of all the pictures and videos that can be captured and placed on social media for others to enjoy as well.
Dorm Delivery - Being 21 often means that the birthday boy or girl is in college. There are a number of online bakeries that can deliver specialty cakes and confectionaries right to the door of the dorm room or apartment of that birthday child. Set up a video link to enjoy the festivities together.