64 Birthday ideas to celebrate in new, fun ways.

• Ask specific family members to plan different parts of your birthday celebration.

Maybe your daughter picks the menu and your spouse picks the decorations. Count on Dad to make the announcements.

• Schedule a family photo shoot on your birthday.

Whether you go to a studio or have a photographer meet you, a family photoshoot is a sweet way to commemorate your birthday.

• Have a cookie decorating party (and bring in an instructor if you’d like).

• Pick something nostalgic that you and your family used to do (but haven’t in ages) and do it.

Was it Monopoly? Did you take family bike rides? Make the time to do it again.

• Have a game night — but with new games you haven’t played before.

• Put up birthday decorations and prepare your birthday meal together as a family.

• Pick one sincere birthday wish, like, “I wish we could spend the whole day together.” Ask your family for that birthday wish to come true.

You can put a birthday wish in writing in a letter, or an announcement.

• Get out photo albums and look through them together.

If your family photos are digital and spread out across devices, create a folder in cloud storage where everyone can load their favorites. Look through the folder together on your birthday.

• Plan a trip with them.

Either take a trip with them, or (if they live out of town) plan a trip to see them — or invite them to come see you.

• Pick an activity venue and make a day of it.

Activity venues like arcades, bowling alleys, and miniature golf all guarantee a good time.

• Have the weirdest theme party you can think up.

Maybe your friends all come over with global cuisine from just as many different countries. Or maybe you host a spooky lunar party. Whatever theme you choose, don’t forget the thematic announcements.

• Go to a concert together (even better if you have to road trip to get there).

• Ask your friends to surprise you (with the promise that you’ll go along with whatever they plan).

• Have an old-school slumber party.

Don’t forget the comfy pajamas with extra-stretchy waistbands for all the junk food.

• Get together for a spa day (a true classic).

• Record a short movie together.

Brainstorm the script ahead of time, then spend the day acting it out and capturing the scenes on someone’s phone. Then, sit down for the viewing together (and prepare for a good laugh).

• Book a room at the fanciest hotel and enjoy a relaxing overnight (and don’t forget to splurge on room service).

If you had a certificate for this one, it would probably read: permission to relax like royalty.

• Take a road trip together without setting a destination.

The trip is the best part, right? Get your playlist ready and hit the road for a weekend away.

• Spend a day going wherever your partner takes you (without you knowing what’s planned).

• Get dressed up and go out, even if it’s just to grab pizza or frozen yogurt.

• Rent your dream car and spend the day driving it around.

• Sit down together with a list of questions about the past year and the upcoming one, then you both write answers and compare.

Do you have similar perspectives on what was great about last year or what’s exciting about the next one? Stick both your written answers into a card and seal it until your next birthday to review again.

• Have a staycation (at home or renting a neat place in the part of town you love).

• Have a phones-off activity day.

Your phones aren’t necessary for movie-watching, boardgame playing, or snuggles. You can see the birthday messages on your wall later.

• Go window shopping with someone who knows a lot about brands and products.

The conversation will be as interesting as the contents behind the windows.

• Schedule a virtual show-and-tell.

Send a letter to friends and family asking them to send videos “showing and telling” about something that reminds them of you, or schedule a live session by video conference.

• Find the places that give you free stuff for your birthday and sign up for all of them.

Company loyalty programs from your favorite establishments might offer freebies on your birthday. Why not check in and see?

• Make a photo calendar for your next lap around the sun.

• Rent movies or books from the library and make a day of watching or reading.

• Block off time for a long hike.

• Set up a dance party at home.

Send the announcement to family and friends and let them know they need only their dancing shoes and to be there.

• Hit the dog park with man’s best friend.

If you don’t have a dog, you can go anyway and introduce yourself to some owners and their furry friends.

• Have a theme party based on the decade you were born in.

• Check something big off your bucket list.

If you don’t do something big by this milestone birthday, when will you? If you haven’t written your bucket list yet, do so now.

• Have a bring-your-own decoration party.

Instead of heading to the hobby store to buy decoration themed for your milestone, ask guests to each bring some. The first task is putting it up when people arrive. It will look random instead of Pinterest-perfect, but that’s the point.

• Turn your milestone number into an activity or theme.

Could it be a day of 50 flavors? How about a 40-minute race around a track to see who runs farthest? Or maybe you can make playlist of the 30 best songs from the decade you were born in.

• Document your big day with a photo class.

Hire a photography instructor to come in and give everyone a quick lesson on how to take the best cell phone photos. The day will be better documented for it, as will the next 30, 40, or 50 years.

• Make a memory scrapbook using only photos that people bring.

• Don’t just go to karaoke — rent a whole room at the karaoke bar.

• Recreate a favorite memory.

Maybe you and your family used to go to the theme park together, or maybe you and your friends always went to a certain restaurant. Pick a memory and recreate it with those closest to you.

• Pick the fanciest restaurant you’ve ever fantasized about visiting and make the reservation to go.

Even if you have to schedule a month in advance or travel to get there, make the whole experience your birthday treat.

• Hire a chef to come in for a privately cooked meal.

Instead of a full-out catered event, hire a chef to cook for you and your family (or any other small group you celebrate with).

• Make your birthday cake as a group.

• Prepare your favorite childhood meal.

Maybe you want it to taste exactly the same, or maybe you plan to make some tweaks for an adult palette.

• Go out to a restaurant and order nothing but appetizers and desserts.

This doesn’t mean eating less. You can get as many apps and desserts as there are people and spend the whole night sharing.

• A meal at a restaurant you’ve wanted to try but haven’t made the time for yet.

• Host a potluck.

Potlucks aren’t just for work parties. Send an announcement and have your guests bring all the food.

• Learn to cook something totally new — and get others to help in the kitchen.

• Plan a meal at a restaurant that you can get to by way of adventure.

Is there a place you can get to by bike, on foot, or by boat? Better yet, is there one you can only get to that way?

• Rent a food truck for an outdoor birthday event.

• Plan a movie night at a drive-in theater.

If there isn’t one nearby, who could you take on a road trip to get to one?

• Have a picnic in the biggest nearby park or on a beach.

Don’t just pack the picnic basket, plan to enjoy an outing that really plants you in the center of nature.

• Wherever you set up your party, add a photo booth.

Set up a photobooth at your venue and include all the props you can find.

• Plan your own alternative to bar hopping.

If staying out late at the bars isn’t your thing, could you go pastry shop hopping?

• Plan cocktails at one restaurant, appetizers at another, dinner at another, and dessert at another.

The cool kids call this a “progressive dinner.”

• Plan an outing around an event that’s already a party, like a themed 5K or an event at a local bar.

• Take a solo trip somewhere.

This birthday idea is also popular for those who don’t want nearby friends and family insisting that they “do something” for their birthdays. This elusive move is technically “doing something,” so no one can complain.

• Buy yourself a gift (and don't be cheap).

• Reflect on your past year in a journal.

Going through old photos can help get your thoughts going.

• Redecorate a room in your home.

Maybe it’s your office, the living room, or your bedroom. Pick whichever really needs a “refresh.”

• Write a time capsule letter to yourself.

Include details about your day-to-day and your hopes for the future.

• A secret “yes” day.

Without telling anyone, decide you’ll spend the day saying “yes” to everything...and see where it leads you.

• Write out your bucket list and decide which items you’ll do before your next birthday.

Stuff your list in a birthday card to yourself and open it next year to see how you did.

• Spend the day volunteering for an organization devoted to something you feel is important.