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  2. group birthday card
  3. Birthday countdown

Birthday countdown.
Days to go.

Type the birthday and the page counts the days to the next one, on your device, from today's date. Add the year they were born and it says how old they will be.

If the number is under fourteen, start the card now. It takes people about a week to get round to writing in one.

Create a cardRead a sample card

Everyone's words in one card.

Updated

Marker lettering. Happy birthday. First round's on you. "us" is crossed out and "you" written above it.

Pick a design

  • A cake. Happy birthday. Second slice is allowed. Third is between you and the fridge.
  • A birthday present. Happy birthday. Open it before the tea cools.
  • A mug. Happy birthday to the one who knows how everyone takes their tea.
  • Lino-cut lettering in a printed band. Happy birthday. Tea's on me.
  • Half a biscuit over a mug of tea, the other half gone in, and the words one, two, three, four. Happy birthday. Try not to go soft.
  • Marker lettering. Happy birthday. I got you a card. "present" is crossed out and "card" written above it.
  • Dinner together. Table for two, cake for one. The birthday rules.
  • A party hat. Happy birthday. The hat is not optional.
  • A pair of socks. Happy birthday. It's socks. You knew it was socks.
  • A family holding hands. Hand in hand, same as always. Happy birthday.

The question

Each writer gets a question.

One at a time, about Sam. They answer in their own words, or write without one.

Who they are to you
  1. Something Sam did this year that you still think about.
  2. Words of Sam's that you have caught yourself using.
  3. A day Sam made better just by turning up.
  4. Something Sam taught you without meaning to.
  5. A small thing about Sam that nobody else would notice.
  6. The story about Sam you tell most.
  1. The moment you knew you had a proper friend in Sam.
  2. Something Sam did that only a friend would.
  3. A thing you still laugh about together.
  4. The time Sam turned up when it mattered.
  5. Something Sam knew about you before you said it.
  1. Something Sam did for the family that went unsaid.
  2. A habit of Sam's that you have caught yourself copying.
  3. A memory of Sam from when you were younger.
  4. Something Sam put up with from you.
  5. Something Sam taught you, mostly by example.
  1. A small thing Sam did that you noticed and never mentioned.
  2. The moment you knew.
  3. Something Sam did this year that made things easier for you.
  4. A thing about Sam you would not change.
  5. Something Sam carried that was yours to carry.
  1. The thing you go to Sam for.
  2. Something you picked up from working beside Sam.
  3. A bad day at work that Sam turned round.
  4. Something a new starter should be told about Sam.
  5. Something Sam did that made the job feel worth doing.

Or write without one.

How many days

The birthday in, the days out. The year is optional and gives their age.

Counted on your device from the dates you type. Nothing is sent anywhere and nothing is saved.

What to do with the number

By how far off it is.

  • More than a month

    Nothing yet. Put the date in your calendar with a reminder two weeks before.

  • Two weeks

    Start the group card and send the link round. The first three people write the same day and the rest need chasing.

  • One week

    Chase the people who have not written. One message, by name, works better than a reminder to the group.

  • Two days

    Check the card reads well as a whole and that nobody has written the same message twice.

  • The morning

    The card opens by itself. Send them nothing else until they have read it.

Which day it falls on

The result says the day of the week, because a Tuesday birthday and a Saturday one are planned differently. A weekday birthday is usually marked the weekend after.

For a birthday on 29 February the page counts to 1 March in a year with no 29th, which is what most people do in practice.

Ages are counted at the next birthday, so someone born in 1990 shows as turning 37 in 2027 even if you look it up in 2026.

A card that opens on the morning

Everyone adds their own birthday message. It opens for them on the day.

  1. 01

    Add the date.

    The birthday. The card opens that morning and not before.

  2. 02

    Choose who to ask.

    Family, friends, the group chat. Each gets one link and writes once, in a browser.

  3. 03

    Everyone writes their own words.

    Signed with their name. The birthday person reads it on their phone and keeps it.

Create a card

Questions

How do I count the days until a birthday?

Type the birthday into the box above and press the button. The page takes today's date from your device and counts to the next time that day and month come round.

Does the countdown include today?

No. If the birthday is today the page says so, and otherwise it counts the full days from tomorrow to the birthday.

Can I count down to my own birthday?

Yes. It is the same sum. Put the year in and the page tells you the age you are about to be, which you may or may not want.

Does the page save the date?

No. Nothing you type leaves your device and nothing is kept when you close the page. If you want a reminder, put the date in your calendar.

Part of group birthday card.

More guides

Somebody has a day coming up.

Create a card

Everyone's words in one card.