Happy days

Every October, our Thanksgiving dinner is hybridized with two birthday celebrations, my dad's and mine. Then last year, my niece Hayley had the foresight to enter the world on my birthday, making Thanksgiving a quadruple occasion, condensing one holiday and three birthdays into one single event. Turkey was rarely, if ever, on the menu; instead, good old fashioned Chinese food is typical fare.


This year, I threw together some leftovers into a birthday cake and decided that the best way to differentiate between the three celebrants was not by name, but rather by Chinese Zodiac animal. Luckily, Hayley, my dad, and I are different animals; Hayley is the Rat, my dad is the Monkey, and I am the Ox. Yes, I took a little creative license with the Ox and made it resemble a Holstein dairy cow but isn't it much cuter than a plain old ox? Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Birthdays!