My brother and 2 sisters and I had a blast planning my mother's 70th birthday party. We come from a very corny family that loves to sing together so keep that in mind when reading what we did. We all dressed the same--light green tops and white bottoms. Kids, spouses and grandkids. Why? Because we did a skit. It was fashioned after a Bill Cosby Show episode and was called, "When Mom Was my Age." It took quite a bit of research. We lined up oldest to youngest and stepped forward one by one to say, When Mom was my age the year was 1980. Ronald Regan had just been elected president for the first time, Charlie's Angels was the number one show on TV (here my sisters and I adopted the Charlie's Angels huddle with guns that's their 'trademark'), and a gallon of gas cost $1.10. Then the next youngest (my sister) stood forward. At one point we all hummed the theme from Star Wars, another point we all did the Hustle. We tried to get as much sound and movement into each person's fact recitation as possible. Each of us said 2 facts about the times and ended with the cost of a gallon of gas. It took a lot of prompting to get our 4 year old neice to say her lines at the end (a gallon of gas was around 24 cents) but the whole thing was a big hit. We also did a Powerpoint presentation to music. My mother's childhood photos to In My Life by the Beatles, her early married life to What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong, pictures of us growing up, getting married, the grandchildren to Through the Years by Kenny Rogers. On the tables we had small Hershey candies with computer made wrappers with photographs. For favors, each guest got a larger sized Hersey Bar with a photo of them with my mother at some point in life with the words, Thanks for sharing Connie's birthday. The table numbers were made from an enlarged black and white photo of her from a beauty pagent in her early 20's. We glued them to foam board, secured them to bases and put them out like a large paper doll holding a number and stood one on each table. My parents taught us songs to sing in the car for long rides. My siblings and I did a corny rendition of Down By the Old Mill Stream with fake moustaches after a funny story about how my father dealt with us in the car. My SIL made a big scrapbook with contributions from all the party guests. It took her over 6 months to gather the photos, stories and rememberences from everyone. My husband, a radio DJ, was MC and kept the day flowing smoothly. All in all, we had a terrific time. Everyone was entertained, well fed and my mother still brings the party up when we're together. She says she watches the DVD of the party every once in awhile, too.

Hi, Kay. Yes, she is going through all of the paperwork, and she is getting a bit overwhelmed. My dad left everything to her, and my sister-in-law, who is an accountant, is the executor of the will. She is doing most of the work, but they are waiting on the official death certificate before the house can be put in my mom's name. She can't sell until that is done. She also has to get rid of the car, since she doesn't drive, but one of my brothers needs a trade-in, and he is going to buy the car from her ( at a fair market price, of course). My dad did have his affairs in order, and all of the investments were in my mom's name anyhow, so she doesn't have too much to do. Right now she is slowly going through the house getting rid of things she won't need in an apartment. They lived in the same place for 44 years, so it's quite a big job, although in recent years they did begin to clear out a lot of junk. The biggest job is already done. My dad was into model trains, and had a huge set-up in two rooms in the basement. He had literally hundreds of cars, plus little villages, etc. He kept all of the boxes, but it still took us the better part of a week to dismantle the whole thing. The trains are going to be divided up between my brothers, and my mom didn't have to do a thing. We have been very fortunate that there have been absolutely NO arguements over money or disposing of posessions. I have heard so many stories about how a death in the family can bring out the absolute worst in people, but this is not the case for us. All of my brothers and I just want our mom to have as smooth a move as possible, and to end up with as much money as she can get. She is anxious to sell, she finds there are just too many memories in the house, and she wants a fresh start. Hopefully, she can be settled in her new place before the winter weather begins.

Lydia, I know what you mean about January in the midwest. When my sisters (twins) were about to reach a significant birthday, I threw them a surprise party. Since I wasn't going to be able to visit them on the actual date, or any time near the actual date, I threw the party 4 months ahead of time. I invited my aunt and cousins who live on the other side of the state, and we had a grand time. We said that we were having a dinner (we happened to rent a room from a condo association where one of them used to live.) So they were dressed up nice. Since it was no where near the birthday, they were really surprised. Anyway, it doesn't necessarily have to be a surprise, but if they are homebodies, perhaps they would enjoy seeing family and friends, even if it's a few months early. Just thought I'd throw this out. I also think that the scrapbook is a great idea. I've done several for family members, and they've been very well received. Good luck, Lynne

My best birthday ever was my 11th, and my mother bought me a horse. I say my mother, because my dad was overly protective of me, and tho I had been promised a horse, if left up to him, I never would have got one. The rest of my childhood and teenage years revolved around that horse. He broke his leg and had to be put down two days before I got married. It was worse than a funeral. My whole family grieved that horse, and it was a test for my husband to be, because it was so rainy and muddy a backhoe couldn't get in to bury him and my dad and Jody dug his grave by hand. When I was a kid, my mother always baked a cake for me...and fixed a birthday dinner. My daughter came years after our marriage and there were parties and sleep overs and trips for her and her friends, but I am like whatsayyou....if celebrating birthdays is your thing, good, but I don't care much for the hoopla. I am very self indulgent and I have always done and had whatever I want. Fortunately, my wants aren't very excessive, unless you count my horses. I have never felt deprived. I love to cook but it is not easy living here. Once I move, I may be a whole different person. I may even become normal for a little bit. (Doubtful....but maybe.) ;)