Birthdays are important to me... and that's why I don't let those around me forget it from about a week before it is the day. (This comes from having it forgotten for a long time and telling myself I don't care about it but I actually did care)

So, now I remind people, I refer to it, and I shamelessly tell them not to forget.

In life I've learned that some people react to embarrassment with defensiveness or even anger. Not a great reaction by far, but it may be an explanation?