Cheers to chaos - a Slovenian birthday tradition

Some days just have a big, bold circle on them. Like birthdays! But here’s the twist, my mother-in-law isn’t really into birthday parties. In the 13 years I’ve known her, she’s only celebrated once—on her 50th. And let’s just say, if my mom didn’t remind me, I’d probably forget half the family birthdays. She’s like my personal calendar with a smile.

This year, though, was a big one—my mother-in-law turned 60, and everyone knows that birthdays ending in zero call for a party, whether you’re into it or not. So, fresh off a week of sick leave, I had the perfect excuse: “Sorry, can’t dance, doctor’s orders!” 😆

Now, there’s a unique tradition here, at the crack of midnight on your birthday, the whole family sneaks to your house and throws a surprise parade, complete with decorations, music, and (of course) a good amount of alcohol. This isn’t your basic “knock, wake up, and leave” kind of visit. Oh no, it’s a full-on ambush.

This time, my mom, who’s a mastermind of sneaky plans, decided we’d start at 3 a.m. to throw her off. We tiptoed over, set up the decorations, gathered under her bedroom window, and our friend started playing a Slovenian classic on the harmonica. As we sang, we saw the lights turn off, so we casually relocated to the door and kept singing. She finally came out, all bleary-eyed and disoriented, saying, “I was waiting for you at midnight! What took you so long?” 😂

And of course, we had to toast with wine. Cold weather? Who cares! When my family starts drinking, it could be snowing, and they’d be out there dancing. Eventually, they got inside to warm up while they partied on until dawn.

They finally called it quits around 6 a.m. so they could rest up before round two. Before they went home, they still needed to dance outside to wake up all the neighbors. My mother-in-law wasn’t exactly thrilled about our midnight raid, but you could tell she secretly loved it.

By the time the “real” party started later that day, I was on maybe three hours of sleep and figured, surely we’ll eat first and then drink, right? Wrong. The music cranked up, drinks started flowing, and everyone hit the dance floor.

When the food finally arrived, it was like fuel to the fire, and the dancing got even wilder. I stayed on the sidelines, taking photos and laughing as my husband got dragged onto the dance floor by a parade of tipsy aunts. The look on his face was priceless!

As the night wore on, my brother, the designated driver, threw in the towel around 10 p.m. I promised my parents I’d drive them home when they were ready, but an hour later, my dad tapped me on the shoulder saying, “It’s time. I’m done!” Once I got them home, I turned around to see them pouring another round of whiskey in the kitchen. “Weren’t you done drinking?” I asked. My dad just shrugged and said, “Hey, I’m home now. Bed’s right there!” 😂

In the end, it was one of those beautiful family days you can’t help but cherish. Family is everything, and having two big, loud, happy ones makes life so much richer. Here’s to celebrating every chance we get and to being a part of this big, crazy family. Cheers to that! 🥂

“The memories we make with our family is everything.” –Candace Cameron Bure

With love, @tinabrezpike ❤️