Janice Gibbs of Greensboro wanted to have a memorable birthday so she waited a couple of weeks to claim her $110,000 Cash 5 jackpot.

“I wanted this to be the big ta-da!” she laughed. “I’m having a great birthday.”

Gibbs bought her lucky $1 Cash 5 ticket from the Fairway One Stop on South Elm Eugene Street in Greensboro. Her ticket matched all five numbers in the Dec. 23 drawing to win the jackpot. The odds of matching numbers on all five balls are 1 in 962,598.

“I checked it and I knew right away that I won,” Gibbs recalled. “It was an unexpected blessing.”

Gibbs knew she won because she chose her own numbers for the drawing.

“I played some family birthdays,” Gibbs said.

She claimed her prize on Monday at lottery headquarters and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, took home $78,929. Gibbs said she already has plans for her winnings.

“I’m going to do something special for myself,” she said.

Cash 5 is one of six lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying their tickets at a retail location or with Online Play through the lottery’s website or the NC Lottery Official Mobile App. Tuesday’s jackpot is $130,000.

For details on how $31.6 million raised by the lottery made a difference for Guilford County education programs last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.