I’ve got birthdays on the brain.

Most people are probably thinking about Christmas, wishing it were New Year’s Eve already so they can just drown their sorrows in some sweet and tasty beverage.

Not me. I'm planning a gigantic moving party for a soon-to-be five-year-old who wants to usher in her last months as a preschooler rolling around a gigantic skating rink with a minimum of 30 of her closest friends.

Total cost $350.

Really? For a child's birthday party?

Yup. Said so right there in the contract.

"Includes: rink admission, skate rental, private skate for two hours, sheet cake, pizza and two choices of beverage."

It’s what some might call overcompensating for an original lapse in planning.

See, when we decided to have children somehow it never occurred to us that the baby would likely arrive nine months (give or take) after the proverbial rabbit died.

When the doctor smiled and told me Ittybit’s due date I realized my first mistake as a new mom.

A Christmas BIRTHDAY! Really?

Really ... says so right there in the calculator.