Thirty-four years, young...

I LOVE birthdays. All birthdays, not just mine. It's a day we get to celebrate, LIFE..and that is definitely something worth celebrating. Maybe I love birthdays so much because my mother did. And her mother did. They always made really BIG deals of the day. Homemade birthday cakes, birth stories, and our favorite meal for dinner...and that meal could be anything. Like the year my brother Joe, decided he wanted tacos and cranberry sauce...and that is exactly what he got. As a mother now myself, I understand the importantance of a birthday...in all of its many forms. Every year for as long as I can remember, my birthday begins with a story from my mom. And this is no ordinary story. No my friends, this is MY story....my birth story. It always begins the same way, "(Insert age) years ago today..." and on it continues. And although I know the story by heart, I love to hear the happiness and excitement in my mother's voice as she tells MY story...the story of the day she became a mother, how I made her a mother....and there is nothing more beautiful than that. I was completely caught off guard while at work on Tuesday, when my work family threw me a surprise birthday party. and even my two favorite little people were present to celebrate... Then my actual birthday arrived on Thurday, and I was home with a sick little boy who had a fever of 101.8. After a long day of rocking, holding, and medicating a very clingy baby, my husband arrived home with this little piece of fabulousness: What can I say, the man knows me and has GREAT taste? Then Peekie arrived to play with and love on her grandbabies while Steve and I escaped for a few hours together to celebrate. And despite feeling that ever present, nagging feeling of guilt we mothers all carry (especially when leaving a sick baby at home), I was very, very happy. The month of June is a BIG celebration month in our family. And on Friday, we celebrated five of the six birthdays that take place this month. And despite a flat tire on I-95 in the middle of Friday night rush hour traffic and then an even flatter spare tire that Steve and his mom encountered on their way home from Miami, there was much celebrating going on. What would a birthday party in June, in S FL, be without a pool party with cousins? And just so you know...Real men ride pink bikes.

There were so many reasons to celebrate this year. Reason #1: After a long 19 months of battling lung cancer, Steve's mom continues to do well with treatment. She had every reason to smile as she celebrated 68 years of LIFE... Reason #2: Todd (Steve's brother-in-law) celebrated his 40th birthday this month. And in celebration of this milestone, Todd and Steve will be heading to NYC next weekend for the Red Bull Air Races which are taking place around Ellis Island. I think that Todd was pleased with his present, but you be the judge... Reason #3: Steve is the most loyal and hardworking man I know. Not only does he work two jobs (JetBlue and the Navy), but he also manages to be an amazing son, father and husband. He ALWAYS puts everyone else first, no matter the hardship or sacrifice it places on him,and he almost never complains. And because he rarely, if ever, takes the time or spends the money on himself, we (his parents and I) made sure that this birthday he received something he REALLY wanted (and deserved)...the iPad. And from the looks of it, he was pleased... Yes, life is worth celebrating. If we don't celebrate the little moments in life, then what exactly are we living for? "The thing about real life is that important events don't announce themselves. Trumpets don't blow, drums don't beat to let you know...Usually something that is going to change your whole life is a memory before you can stop and be impressed about it". (Edith Schaeffer) Instead of waiting for the BIG moments to happen, I am learning to appreciate and enjoy all of the little moments. We never know what today will bring, and we are never guaranteed tomorrow.

And that, my friends, is how my thirty-fourth year has begun. And I think we are off to a very good start. Looking forward to the many opportunites that await, as I begin the next chapter of....OUR LIFE.