John Mellencamp Gives the Same Birthday Present to His Kids and Grandkids Every Year (Exclusive)
John Mellencamp always has his loved ones’ birthdays all mapped out, according to his daughter Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave!
PEOPLE recently caught up with the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 43, as she celebrated some special birthdays in her life — her oldest daughter Slate on Sunday, Oct. 6, and her rockstar dad on Monday, Oct. 7.
“We were in Washington, D.C., at our national horse competition,” the Bravo star tells PEOPLE of the family’s birthday plans. “That was my daughter’s birthday on Oct. 6. My dad’s on Oct. 7. So he flew in to watch Slate show and compete, and it was so nice. And, yeah, so Slate is turning 12.”
Unfortunately for the “Cherry Bomb” singer, Teddi can’t quite keep track of her famous father’s age.
“I can never remember my dad’s birthday,” she tells PEOPLE. “I’m like, ‘Are you 75?’ He’s like, ‘I’m 73,’ I think. I don’t know. But yeah, he’s in his 70s.” [Editors note: He’s 73.]
The mother of three, who also shares son Cruz, 10, and daughter Dove, 4, with husband Edwin Arroyave, explained that Mellencamp has stuck to a birthday gift tradition.
“My dad’s tradition is that our birthday present every year is that he pays you and the amount of dollars that you are,” Teddi tells PEOPLE. “So, Slate was very excited that she was 12 this year, because she got $12.”
However, according to the reality star, there are no multipliers that come with age — the dollar amount is always in singles for the exact year.
“Unfortunately, no [multiplier]. I got $43 this year,” Teddi revealed. “I do it sometimes back to him, and it’s now that he’s getting up there. It’s pretty pricey,” Teddi joked about continuing with tradition and gifting her father the same dollar amount as his age.
She also doesn’t see him switching up his style anytime soon: “He’s been doing it this way for so many years. I don’t think he’s changing.”
“Really, he’s John Mellencamp!” added Real Housewives of Orange County star Tamra Judge, who was also present for the conversation and joined by the rocker’s budget birthday gifts.
Both women tell PEOPLE that Slate is wise beyond her years.
“Slate is such an old soul,” explains Teddy. “I always say she’s like a 45-year-old trapped in a 12-year-old’s body, because the second that you talk to her, you feel like you’re talking to one of your friends.”
“She’s more mature than us,” Judge, 57, agrees. “She’s just so aware. It’s so weird, because [my daughter] Sophia is the same way. Maybe it’s something that we’ve done,”
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Teddi and Judge also shared their excitement about their upcoming TwoTscon live event for their Two Ts in a Pod podcast.
TwoTscon takes place on Nov. 1 at the iHeart Theater in Los Angeles. Housewives favorites Heather Dubrow, Dolores Catania, Cynthia Bailey and Marysol Patton will be special guests.
Tickets for TwoTscon can be purchased at veeps.com/twotsinapod.