STILLWATER, Okla. — We just celebrated my 19th birthday in Catamarca, Argentina, and it was unlike any birthday I’ve ever had. This year, I had fun celebrating for three days in a row.

Birthdays are always celebrated at midnight and because of this, parties or barbecues are usually the night before your birthday. As soon as it becomes 12 a.m., everyone breaks into the Spanish version of “Happy Birthday,” “Cumpleaños Feliz.” Glasses are raised and every guest gives the birthday girl a kiss on a cheek. In contrast, a boy’s friends will surround him and give him cheerful slaps on the back after singing the birthday song.

If there is a pool nearby, the person celebrating a birthday will most likely be pushed in fully dressed. I spent the eve of my birthday eating dinner with my best friends, and I just barely escaped being pushed into the pool.

On the day of my birthday, my host dad called me from work to tell me that even though the choice of food for the day was given to me, the birthday girl, he had already purchased noodles so we could attempt to make an Argentine version of my American favorite, macaroni and cheese. It was delicious, but I couldn’t wait for dessert.

I invited over a few friends, and they gasped as I crushed up the Oreo Cookies my mom had sent me from the United States. I then mixed the cookie crumbs into vanilla pudding. As soon as I added the gummy worms to my ever favorite “dirt pudding,” my friend from Germany exclaimed “This is SO American!”

They were skeptical as I scooped them each a bowl, but as my friends started eating, they quickly came back for seconds and thirds.

The night after my birthday I had a party in the backyard. When I returned that night from spending time in the center of town, my host mom had set up the tables and chairs outside, my host dad was grilling hamburgers, and my host sister was blowing up balloons.

The first guest arrived at 10:30 p.m., and we started blasting music. We danced to music not just from Argentina, but from the United States and Europe as well. My host family owns a mechanical bull, so of course, that was the highlight of the night — and the source of the most laughs.

When they brought out my giant chocolate cake, I learned that although most birthday cakes in Argentina only have one tall candle, you get to make three birthday wishes instead of just one.

However, I couldn’t even decide on one wish, let alone three. My Argentine birthday made me so happy that I couldn’t think of anything that could possibly be better.

Thanks for reading, and check www.brennapaxton.blogspot.com/ for pictures, videos and more stories about my life in Argentina.

Brenna Paxton, Stillwater, is a Rotary International Youth Exchange student in Argentina.