Jumping for Joy: Celebrating Leap-Day Birthdays

Four years ago, Barack Obama was president. Freese and Nichols had just 550 employees. Deadpool was the most-watched movie.

And that was also the last time anyone born on Feb. 29 got to celebrate on their actual birthday.

How rare are Leap Day babies? The chances of having a Leap Day birthday are one in 1,461.

We asked three Freese and Nichols employees born on Leap Day what it’s like, when they celebrate on non-Leap Years and their special plans for this year.  Here’s what they said:

Brian King, Business Technology, Austin

On non-Leap Years, what day do you typically celebrate your birthday? My mother always made the family celebrate my unbirthday in February – Feb. 28 to be exact.

What’s your favorite/least favorite thing about being born on Feb. 29?  The worst is that most state agencies, doctors’ offices, and/or hospitals do not include Feb. 29th in their IT systems. I often am assigned a different calendar birthday, even in 2020. I had to wait an extra day to celebrate my 21st birthday before going out on the town to celebrate with my friends. The best is that my daughter Anaïs finds my birthday absolutely fascinating. She informs everyone that she will be older than me next year when she turns 12 and can finally boss me around.

Do people give you a hard time about your age divided by four? Yes, when I was younger I got teased a lot. Kids would try to be funny, telling everyone that I really didn’t have a birthday that year. Through the years, most people tend to think my birthday is pretty cool. Of course, there is always that special someone asking, “… so you only have a birthday every four years?” I always laugh as I watch that same person struggle to divide my age by four in their head. Too funny!

Any big plans for your birthday this year? I will be hanging out with family and friends. Should be a great time.

Nick Landes, W/WW Treatment, Fort Worth

On non-Leap Years, what day do you typically celebrate your birthday? I force my family to celebrate on both Feb. 28 and March 1. I think this helps clear any confusion about which day is appropriate.

What’s your favorite/least favorite thing about being born on Feb. 29? My kids really think it is fun that their Daddy is only 9 years old.

Do people give you a hard time about your age divided by four? Not really, but I’m a really intimidating person and not many people give me a hard time about anything. 🙂

Any big plans for your birthday this year? My wife loves planning parties, so she coordinated with my parents to find out what type of birthday party I had when I was around 9 years old. Apparently I had a skating party. So we are having a skating party this year to honor the past.

Shelbie Tunning, Construction Management, Houston

On non-Leap Years, what day do you typically celebrate your birthday? My family and I celebrate on Feb. 28 and March 1. My dad says in 1996 I was not here on the 28th, so he refuses to tell me until March 1. My mom, on the other hand, says I’m worth celebrating both days.

What’s your favorite/least favorite thing about being born on Feb. 29? My favorite would have to be how unique being born on Leap Year is. All throughout grade school and college, that was always my “Interesting Fact.” My least favorite would have to be that when I turned 21 I had to wait until March 1 to technically celebrate.

Do people give you a hard time about your age divided by four? YES. I am the oldest sibling, and when I was growing up, my younger siblings would taunt me and tell me I was actually the youngest. Their favorite phrase would be “I’m the older than you.”

Any big plans for your birthday this year? My family and friends have planned a 6-year-old birthday party. I am not totally sure what all the party entails other than a bounce house and a miniature pony.