How did you celebrate your birthdays? Did you have parties?

Mom would make one of her wonderful cakes and cover it with lots of frosting(we stood in line to lick the bowls, beaters, spoons or anything else that had a taste of frosting on it).  After supper, she would put the appropriate number of candles on the cake, light them, turn off all other lights and lead us in the Birthday song.  We would solemnly make our wish and attempt to blow out all of the candles so we would have our wish granted.  The Birthday child would get the first piece with a scoop of ice cream.  Then the presents would be given.  The presents weren't big ones since there were so many of us and only one wage earner.  We didn't expect big presents either so we weren't disappointed.  We liked getting socks and underwear.  There would be a small toy or a book as we got older.
Neighbors didn't have big parties either.  Nobody had much money especially to throw away on trivialities like children's parties.  The extra money was saved for more important events like wedding, births, and funerals.  There were plenty of those.  I enjoyed the first two but not the third.  Mom would literally drag us to the third.  We hated it.  First, we had to be quiet and sit still.  Second, it was creepy to sit in a room with a dead person.  Third, there were certainly much better things to do.  I am writing this from my perspective at a much younger age.  I have a different view of the three now.  I have a greater appreciation now of the funeral process as a way of getting through a difficult time.