Diary of a Staycation~Days 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9

Day 5~Nothing, and it was blissful. I slept, watched movies, ate, did some laundry. Then I vacuumed and took another nap......or two!

Day 6~It's my birthday, it's my birthday!!!! Oops, internal "plumbing" problems didn't seem to care that it was MY special day. All those visits to the bathroom interrupted my naps! Bummer. But I did manage to squeeze in a movie (District 9) and I received a lot of birthday phone calls.

By 5:30 pm I was better and my parents arrived to treat me to dinner at Tip Top Cafe where my dad and I indulged in Chicken Fried Steak with cream gravy, plumbing be damned! Then we drove around Woodlawn Lake and surprised Serina, Gigi and Cameron as they were eating dinner on their porch. Finally we returned to my apartment and I opened a few presents before they left and I took another nap. Who knew staycations were so exhausting?! ;-)

Day 7~April Food's Day dawned a little too early for me and I made Zeus go back to sleep until 10:00 am, no joke. I didn't have anyone to fool, but Laurie pulled a great prank on her kids. She made blue pancakes for breakfast and told them that her flour must have been moldy, they were completely grossed out!

At noon Serina, Gigi and I met at Bubblehead Tea and enjoyed green tea smoothies. WOW, I had NO idea they would be so good. If you go, try the mango smoothie, you won't be disappointed. We'll definitely be going back for more. Next we made our way to La Frite and were joined by a new friend, Erin. We all enjoyed food, fellowship AND dessert (chocolate tarte) and left quite satisfied. It was a nice, relaxing day.

Day 8~Good Friday was restful as well. I took Zeus for a short walk and then watched a movie before, you guessed it - taking a nap! My nephews arrived at 3:30 pm for a sleepover and we headed to the video store and Blockbuster to stock up on junk food and movies. I made a quick detour to pick up my birthday gift from Lane so I could enjoy it over the weekend. (Thanks Lane, I love it!!) And then I cooked frozen pizzas for the boys and introduced them to Ghostbusters. We laughed and I danced a silly dance to the theme song before launching into "All The Single Ladies" in a chipmunks voice, which completely scandalized my nephews. It was WELL worth my own humiliation to see the looks on their faces!

We finished the night by watching "Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs" and I decided that spray-on shoes are a pretty good idea. By that time I was exhausted because I didn't get my 3rd afternoon nap so I went to sleep. The boys stayed up ALL night watching infomercials and "Lord of the Rings". I remember when I was young enough to recover from an all-nighter, it was a long time ago...

Day 9~Saturday morning we visited Bistro Bakery and picked up fresh eclairs, donut holes and kolaches to eat at the park. Zeus happily sniffed every blade of grass while the boys devoured the food and we enjoyed the cool morning breeze. We went home to gather their belongings and then I stopped by Pasha to pick up some Persian food for my brother and his family. My sister-in-law grew up eating Schwarma in The Netherlands and missed it so I was happy to surprise her with a taste of her childhood.

The evening rolled around and I enjoyed a great movie and Indian food with one of the funniest people I know. It hit the spot, every single spot I have! For those of you who haven't seen "Crazy Heart" let me just say that it was a really touching movie. I was completely engrossed in the story and was really rooting for the characters. The themes of grace and redemption were powerful and the acting was stellar.

All in all I enjoyed rest and relaxation mixed with fun and fellowship and I feel good!

Observations From The Top Of The Hill

►I now qualify for that creepy "end of life" insurance
♥ I'm considering a move to "Cougar Town"
→Mammograms are mandatory - squish, squish!
☺I look MUCH worse but I care MUCH less.... :-)
→↓ I still feel 26.....
....until I look in the mirror, sigh
→↓ Single at 40 is harder AND easier than single at 26....
....but I never get carded anymore
►Acne? Seriously?
→I often hurt myself by the sheer act of........SLEEPING
►Retirement planning suddenly seems much more important
→Life before computers, Internet, DVDs, cell phones, iPods, texting and TIVO was less complicated
☺Under eye concealer is my friend
•Migraines are not my friend
►I watched MTV kill the radio star when I was 11
→↓ I don't really care so much anymore about what others think of me......
.....as a result self-confidence is much easier to embrace
☺I'm worth the occasional pedicure
►Gray hair is more wiry than black hair
♥ Innocence is beautiful
☼Beauty is innocence
→One piece of quality clothing beats five pieces from Wal-Mart
►Fresh flowers are worth every, single penny
☺Money is no object when it comes to comfortable shoes, even if they're ugly!
→ Travel really does broaden your horizons
►Honest faith is better than religious perfection
♥ I know that my redeemer lives....
♥♥ I know that I am loved ♥♥

39 and Holding

As I find myself staring down the last year of my thirties I wonder how I got here. How did I become the girl who no one loves? This birthday is hitting me harder than I thought it would because, even though I have a year to go, I've accepted the fact that one of my biggest fears is imminent:

I will be single when I turn 40

Gulp. It may not seem like a big deal to anyone else, but it is the death of yet another dream, my most cherished one in fact, and it has shattered my ability to hope. Last year was unkind to me and all I want to do now is crawl under my covers and stay there for a really, really long time. I don't want anyone close to the gaping hole in my heart because it's too painful. I already gave up my dreams of children and a family to call my own, and even though it isn't the end of the world, being an Old Maid is not something I aspired to.

But hey, at least I can hog the remote, spend my money how I choose and set the thermostat where I want.....those are the "positives" my married friends point out to me. Yeah, FYI that's NOT helpful. I do, however, have Europe, and even though I often travel alone I enjoy people watching while sipping tea in an elegant cafe. I also love seeing art that I never see here, and glimpsing history that was left out of World History 101. It's a pleasant break from my life of boredom and I'd rather explore this beautiful world than not, even if I have to do it alone. Do you think it counts if I turn 39 in a foreign country? Can I choose to stay 39 until I get married? If so, I promise I'll give up the remote control without complaining, but money and the thermostat will take some serious negotiations!

Chicken Scaloppine

Every year on or within a few days of my birthday I eat a serving of Chicken Scaloppine from Romano's Macaroni Grill. It's my favorite restaurant and my favorite meal full of carbs, fat and more calories than I should have in a week. And you know what? I enjoy EVERY last bite. I look forward to this day and as any of my friends can tell you, I talk about it for a long time before it actually happens. And that first bite NEVER disappoints me. It's always better than I remembered and makes me very, very happy. Today was the big day and it was almost enough to inspire me to do the "happy dance".......but not quite.

Perhaps more special to me is the tradition of enjoying my favorite meal with my favorite girlfriends. This year it was a smaller crowd, but included my best friend with whom I have not celebrated a birthday for 5 long years. It also included someone I've known for 18 years but not really let KNOW ME until very recently. What could be better than girlfriends dishing about life over Italian food, real Dr. Pepper and rich chocolate cake?

It's the relationships that mean the most to me, the food is just a delicious bonus. This year I celebrated with a lot of people, and boy did my party start early! Last weekend I enjoyed time with my family. I cherish the handmade birthday card made by my 9-year-old niece, the wobbly signatures of my nephews and my 14-year-old niece being sure to sign her full name, in case my memory fails..... She really does think I'm that old!! I had lunch with my mom at a wonderful Greek restaurant and enjoyed a yummy strawberry cake from my staff. Saturday I enjoyed the company of some other really special friends and then dinner with a close girlfriend 2 nights in a row. Although I think she invited me over tonight because I cried last night at dinner and she was worried!!! Today I received many birthday wishes from friends scattered throughout the country - feeling special and cherished is not familiar to me, but this week I felt both in spades.

All in all I can see that through my relationships God is answering my heartfelt prayers for community and intimacy. I can see everyone's fingerprints all over my life and I'm not trying to wipe them away, I've come to love those smudges. And I'm enjoying knowing and being known, even when it rocks my world.