Sweet 16

The golf birthday cake is a tradition in my family. It doesn't matter how old you are, or if you even play golf, when birthday time rolls around you better expect a golf scene atop your birthday cake.

Only two members of my family are excused from the golf cake -- my cousins Michael and Donna. They're both in the military and have served in war. My grandparents pay tribute to their hard service with a dessert desert war scene, complete with tanks and troops. Yeah, it's a little crazy.

Last night, Taylor's birthday was all we expected. A nice family dinner, followed by Guitar Hero, the golf cake, a few cards, a little cash, another year passes, right? But there was more in store for my younger bro. After blowing out the candles on his cake, my stepmom asked him to take out the trash. He walked out the door, trash in hand, and sitting in the garage was his first car.



It didn't take long for Taylor to get behind the wheel. We loaded up in the car and backed out of the driveway -- going a little faster than I was comfortable with. We were still in reverse, and we'd almost hit my stepmom's car and the shed. That's when Chris and I buckled up in the backseat. With my dad in the front seat, they fumbled to turn on the headlights and to figure out the windshield wipers. My dad reached to flick on the dome light and instead opened the sunroof.


"Man, this car is getting the best of you guys," Chris joked from the backseat.


Once we got rolling forward, the ride was fairly smooth. I'm sure Taylor went to bed excited. However, judging by today's weather, I doubt he'll get to test his new wheels out on the road.