Maria turned 9 and as she was living with us we got to inflict the traditional candles on one's breakfast routine on her. She didn't seem to mind. There was much partying and many, many bears. We also had the amusement of showing the kids how to change a tire as Grandma's car had mysteriously developed a flat. As this is one of the many skills we feel everyone should know and is on our list of skills to impart to our children we did our best to turn a nuisance into a teachable moment.