i am another year older today. it's funny how our birthday wishes change as we age. when i was younger, i remember longing for a birthday during the school year so i could bring cupcakes to school.
during high school, i was away at different kinds of camps on my birthday for several years in a row. i don't remember it phasing me much that i was away from home for my birthday, though i would guess my parents felt a bit differently!
when i turned 21, i was across the ocean on a mission trip to scotland (where my friends jr and daisha are right this very minute). my birthday was on a sunday, and though my friends did a super fine job at celebrating my day, i remember standing in church, wishing i was home for my birthday.
six years ago, i was very VERY pregnant with ethan and could not fathom any other birthday wish than to get this baby out of my body.
and now, three precious children later.... what was my birthday wish? to sleep in.
yep, i just wanted to wake up at any moment past 6:45 in the morning. 8:00 would be a super huge bonus. so we booked a hotel room just a few miles away... and for the last several weeks, brian and i have been looking forward to our night away. the kids, of course, asked what kind of birthday i was going to have, and i told them, "a slumber party". they really had no idea what a slumber party was, but that didn't seem to bother them. a few days ago, they started asking questions:
ethan: who is coming to your party, mommy?
me: nobody.
ethan: nobody?
me: nope. just me and daddy.
ethan: THAT'S not a party!
me and brian, in unison: oh yes it is! (high five)
don't worry.... we told the kids that they were helping gram decorate my cake and that we'd celebrate when we got home. that satisfied the little party planning monsters i've created.
so my birthday weekend arrived. last night, brian and i had a nice quiet dinner at carrabba's (my favorite- mmm, sirloin marsala....), and then we headed back to the hotel for more quiet. it was strange to just carry in one little bag and to not have to set up anything or tell anyone to stop jumping on the bed. (we don't get away much, can you tell?) before turning on the cable tv (which we no longer have at home), we just took a deep breath and ahhhh, soaked in the quiet. for about 10 minutes. then a herd of elephants under the age of 10 ran screaming down the hall. we just giggled. they weren't our kids.
i have no pictures of us relaxing because, well, i was relaxing.
i really think i would've slept till 10 am this morning if the hotel curtains would've even pretended to block the blinding sunshine. the rays coming through the pathetic sheers might as well have approached the bed, saying "mommy, mommy!" because i awoke around the same time that amelia wakes me up every morning. this birthday morning, however, i relished the ability to roll over and go right back to sleep. i could shut my eyes to those morning rays. because those rays would not destroy my pantry or suck on markers or go through my wallet if i attempted to steal a few more minutes' sleep. (and wouldn't you know... amelia slept an hour later this morning, i was told. whyyyyy!??!?!?).
we had a wonderfully lazy birthday morning, and after a little shopping, headed home. the kids couldn't wait to show me the cake they made and to give me their cards. here i am with my little bakers:
the kids' envelopes made me laugh. ethan's is plain and simple- right the point. caroline's is slightly busier and more dramatic. hmmm, sounds a bit like their mom and dad!
oh! i forgot to say that brian surprised me with my birthday present a few days early.... a zooooooooom lens for our camera. i was a little excited. so i guess it's time for me to listen and learn a little about the manual features of our camera. but for now, all these are on auto.
two of my favorite things: photography and cake.
what do you give a girl for her birthday that loves cake? two cakes!
my sweet friend (and now neighbor!) tammy asked if they could celebrate my birthday with us. we weren't planning on having any type of organized party because it's just been a busy summer already for folks, and well, i got to sleep in, so i was happy. :) but gosh, i was so blessed when tammy and her family wanted to be a part of my special day! so they made a cake too and came over after dinner to celebrate! we pulled out a mixture of leftover plates from birthday parties gone by, and it was a party!
before we lit the candles, i had a little fun with my new lens and the cakes....
tammy's kids wanted to see me blow out 32 candles... we had to light them quickly!
that was some heat right there!
i had some help blowing out alllll those candles! (so not a flattering picture, but i love the shot of the kids helping... and really, who looks great with their cheeks full of air?!?!)
everybody's crazy for cake!!! (brian caught joseph changing poses, i think.)
did you catch the sneak peak at my dining room, with my living room behind us?? the fireplace and the railing are two of the things that sold me on this house!
amelia lingered at the table for more cake. i loved being able to snap away from the other end of the table. is she a stinker, or what?!
"noah, you've got a little bit of banana on your face. here, i'll get it."
"baby noah was such a mess.... mom, what did you say about the pot and the kettle?"
title of this picture: cake can freeze.
this precious friend helped make my birthday a special one!
it just hit me how fitting it is that tammy and her family were there for the first birthday party at our new house... she was probably standing in this same room when she called me back in february, saying, "i'm standing in your future house! you have to come see this house!" we are praying that this is the first of many celebrations in this house! as my birthday draws to a close, i am counting my blessings. it's been a wonderful day. and now on to father's day!
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