Journeys›Photograph

Celebrating a 35th Birthday in the Backyard

·Walnut Creek, California·#summer#bay area#family#birthday-party#backyard
An adult holds a birthday cake with "25" candles for a child in purple, with another child watching at an outdoor party.

This was for a 35th birthday, back in June of 2014. We were gathered out on the patio as the sun went down. It was one of those classic warm Bay Area evenings where you can just stay outside long after dinner is over.

The highlight for the kids, as it always is, was the cake. A simple white cake with red trim on a bright green stand, with two candles spelling out '35'. You can see the focus in their eyes as it's brought to the table, the little flames reflecting.

At first, they watched, letting the birthday girl have her moment. But blowing out candles is too tempting, and soon it became a group effort. A deep collective breath, and then all three of them leaned in to blow them out together. A simple, shared moment on a summer night.

An adult and two children gather around a birthday cake with lit 2 and 5 candles, plus another large candle, on a table outdoors.A child blows out "35" candles on a birthday cake while an adult and another child watch.A child blows out lit candles on a cake held by a person, with another child at an outdoor table.An adult and two children gather around a birthday cake with lit number candles, which one child is blowing out.An adult and a child blow out '25' candles on a cake, with another child watching.An adult and two children blow out candles on a birthday cake with numbers 2 and 5, at an outdoor table.A woman and two children blowing out "58" birthday candles on a cake, with another large candle nearby.An adult and two children blow out candles on a white cake with "28" candles, beside a lit orange candle.

More Entries