Why I like being a leap year baby

Monday is Feb. 29, also known as Leap Day. To celebrate this leap year, some Coast residents shared their thoughts on what it's like to have a true birthday only once every four years.

Becky Seymour Gatian, Ocean Springs, 56 (14 in leap years)

I was blessed with having perhaps the best family one could have. I celebrated birthdays every year, but on a leap year, my Daddy made sure I had very special birthdays. I got crazy gifts like at 16 when I got a diamond ring he designed and at 20, a trip to Saltillo to work in the mission. I am so blessed to have a husband who has carried on the tradition that my family started. On leap years we celebrate my birthday for three days: Feb. 28, 29 and March 1.

Maranda Bennett, Pearlington, 20 (5 in leap years)

My favorite thing about being a leap-year baby is it is pretty neat whenever you tell someone what your birthday is and their response is "That is awesome. I have never met anyone born on that day." Not very many people can say they are born on a day that comes only every four years or that they graduated high school when they were only 4 years old. Plus, whenever I turn 52, I can tell everyone that I am finally a teenager.

Shana Marie Rolkosky, Ocean Springs, 28 (7 in leap years)

My favorite thing about being a leap-year baby is my birthday set me apart, and to some extent, I built my identity around its uniqueness.

For most of my childhood, I touted my rare birthday as my defining characteristic. As a middle child in a family of two sisters and a brother, being born on Leap Day made me special by default.

Erin Miller, Pass Christian, 32 (8 in leap years)

My favorite thing about being born on leap year is having an excuse for being immature.

-- Jeff Clark

This story was originally published February 27, 2016 at 8:45 PM with the headline "Why I like being a leap year baby ."