It’s that time of year again: the Holidays. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and so many more. In the span of just a couple of months, we have literally dozens of holidays, both religious and secular. And then there’s my birthday, smack in the middle of it, in late November, right next to Thanksgiving. Some years, it even falls on Thanksgiving, since that holiday isn’t tied to a specific date, but is just the fourth Thursday of November each year. Like so many other kids with birthdays that fall around major holidays, I hated it. I still do, in some ways. My wife once said, “My birthday is important. It’s like a holiday.” She has a point. It’s a day that we try to set aside to make a kid feel special. For those of us with birthdays around a holiday, it gets overshadowed by the actual holiday more often than not. Ever had a birthday cake shaped like a turkey? I did, more than once. I was saddled with the nickname of “turkey” for years by my mother, who lamented multiple times that she missed out on Thanksgiving dinner the year I was born because she was at the hospital. “It’s your birthday? Great, now pass the gravy and get outta the way, kid, the football game is on.” “Sorry, our kiddo can’t come to your birthday party, we’ll be out of town for the holidays.” Common refrains. At least I didn’t get it as bad as the kids born around Christmas; they frequently get a single gift to “cover both bases.” I’ve made a point to get separate gifts for my two nieces who have their birthdays at Christmastime, because that’s just not fair. [amazon_link asins='B07FPMHYSL,0394800761,B01C9MW8Z6,B07JV7SPCB,B076H3Q971' template='ProductCarousel' store='harlander-20' marketplace='US' link_id='771bc568-ef9e-11e8-b35e-f16c4584e787']