B-day

Thanks everyone for all the happy birthday wishes this weekend! I had them coming at me from all directions--email, Facebook, blog, mail, in person and phone. I feel so loved. I love having my birthday but feel silly being the center of attention. It's nice having a day all for me where I can do what I want, however, and that's exactly what I did on Thursday. I got the three older kids off to school then lounged around in my nightgown for a while while I checked out things for work on the computer. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I didn't have any transcription work that needed to be done so I had the day off! I also took the day off from the treadmill. I was only going to do exactly what I felt like on my birthday, and the treadmill was NOT one of those things. So instead I lounged around some more, played tic-tac-toe with Christian, watched a little Good Things Utah, then eventually got myself ready for the day. I knew Ryan would be taking me out later and didn't want to be a TOTAL bum, so I thought make-up and a cute outfit were in order. Once I got Christian on the bus, I decided to go into town for a little bit. I browsed TJ Maxx and found a couple good kitchen items, then I went to Jamba Juice and treated myself to a Strawberry Wave Rider, the biggest size they had. It was very tasty. I then went back home to a completely quiet house, grabbed my book "And Only To Deceive" (really good by the way--very similar to Silent in the Grave series), found the softest blanket in the house and snuggled up in it on the couch and read, read, read! I even cranked the heat up to 70 degrees (I normally keep it on 68 or 69) but I thought, it's my birthday and I'm freezing from my Jamba Juice and I'm going to do what I want! Silly, I know. So I thoroughly enjoyed reading all afternoon. My book was at a really good part of the story and I loved every minute of it! But then before I knew it the sound of the school bus filled my ears, along with kids yelling, laughing, and carrying on, and my quiet afternoon was over. But that didn't mean my reading had to be over. Call me lazy if you want, but I stayed right on the couch when the kids came in, talked to them, asked them how everything went at school, told them to grab a snack and get their chores done, then proceeded to read. And since it was my birthday I even let violin slide and didn't make the girls practice, because I really didn't want to have to get up and do that with them!

Now, there's one thing that I absolutely love the kids to do, and that is to play with my hair, brush it, rub my head, the whole sha-bang. I also love for people to "draw" on my back with their fingernails. So I had told the kids that that was all I wanted for my birthday--for them to play with my hair all day long. So once they were done with their chores, they each took turns brushing my hair and rubbing my head. It was heaven, and all this time I was still lounging on the couch reading my book and eating See's Candy that our primary chorister had brought me. I stayed this way until about 6:00 when Ryan came home. It was great. So Ry came home early from school to take me out to dinner. I was so happy! He hasn't been home on a weeknight this early since the beginning of January! So he took me to Texas Roadhouse and we had a yummy dinner together. I had never been there, and didn't know that when it's your b-day you "get" to sit on this saddle they bring to you and they do some cowboy chant and a "yee haw" really loud for all to hear. Kind of embarrassing but funny. After dinner we drove home, but not wanting to face the kids yet, we sat in the car in the driveway for a while just talking. After a while, we finally decided it was time to go in. We put the kids to bed, and I was very happy to have my quiet house back. So what did I do? I slid back into my nightgown, hopped into bed, continued reading my exciting book, and thought to myself..."This is the life!" My day was nothing totally out-of-this-world exciting, but it was the perfect day for me. I sat around eating bon-bons (the See's Candy) and enjoyed every second of it! I love birthdays even though it means I'm getting older. I'm enjoying my thirties a lot. Anyway, we stretched out my b-day through the whole weekend as Ryan and I went out again Friday night (temple), Girl's Day on Saturday and dinner with my in-laws, and b-day dinner at my Mom and Dad's on Sunday. I was pampered by all and it made me feel so good.

Oh, and Ryan bought me something that I have really, really wanted for a very long time. It's the most meaningful gift I received, especially since the Salt Lake Temple is where we got married. I often like to think back on that day and this picture will definitely help me do that more frequently. I am also hoping it will be a constant reminder to my kids of the importance of temples. Thanks Ry.