• Birthday partiesparty cup ctreamers and party banners image by Warren Millar from Fotolia.com
  
  Creating family birthday traditions makes your children feel special. The birthday celebration traditions also create stronger bonds in the family. All of the family members grow excited as a family member's birthday approaches. No two families are the same so choose family birthday traditions that feel right for you.
  
  

Birthday Seat

• Decorate the birthday child's chair before he wakes up in the morning. You can make a simple chair back cover from a large piece of felt. Sew the sides of the felt together leaving the bottom open so you can slide it over the back of the chair. Cut out letters to spell "Happy Birthday" or add images such as a birthday cake or presents. You can hot glue these images onto the felt chair cover. Other ideas include covering the chair with streamers or tying balloons to it.
  
  

Birthday Dinner

• Let the birthday person choose the menu for dinner. This idea ensures that she gets to eat her favorite meal on her birthday. You also can let her pick out the menu for breakfast and lunch to give her a full day of her favorite meals. Give her the opportunity to help out in the kitchen if she enjoys cooking.
  
  

Decorated Door

• Decorating the birthday child's doorway greets them with birthday cheer in the morning. Hang streamers so they cover the entire door opening creating a curtain-type appearance. Another option is to tie balloons to curling ribbon to create a balloon curtain. The child will open his door to find all of the cheerful decorations.
  
  

Gift Treasure Hunt

• Instead of just handing over the birthday gift, turn it into a treasure hunt. Create a series of clues that leads the birthday child to different spots around the house. If you have several gifts for her, hide a smaller gift with each clue. The large gift waits at the end of the treasure hunt. This idea builds excitement as the child gets closer to the end present.
  
  

Birthday Letters

• This birthday idea is something that the kids will appreciate more as they get older. Have each family member write the birthday person a birthday letter. Younger kids can simply draw a picture. Gather all of the letters after they are read to the family and place them in an envelope. Mark the envelope with the child's name and the year. Another option is to purchase a birthday journal for each person. All of the family members write a birthday message in the journal. This allows you to keep all of the messages from year to year in the same spot.