Happy Birthday to Meeeeee

Yep. Today is my birthday. And it has been a really great day. What a total difference this year was from last year when I thought I'd been forgotten!

It started off at 12:00 A.M. with Hubby getting out of bed to come into the office and give me a hug and a kiss and deliver his rendition of 'Go Mama. It's your birthday. We gonna party like it's your birthday' (ala 50Cent) accompanied by a totally cute butt-waggy dance. He had me cracking up! And thanking God he doesn't own a speedo!

After he went back to bed, My Girl came out of her cave and gave me a beautiful card and this tealight candle holder from her and The Boyfriend.

It says, "Mothers are special and so kind... touching lives with tenderness, warmth, and love combined." I have seen these several times and always thought they were beautiful and secretly wished one of my kids would give me one. Yay for birthday wishes come true!

I was awakened this morning by a text message from my friend, Tanya, telling me happy birthday and offering to buy me breakfast.

Before Hubby left for work he gave me a wonderful card. As usual, it made me weepy. He always makes me feel like the most special person in the world, but on my birthday he finds cards that speak such love and faith that if they were all I got all year it would be (almost) enough. I am so blessed to have that man in my life.

For lunch, My Girl took me to Olive Garden where we had salad and shared a lucious piece of the heaven they call the Black Tie Mousse Cake. After lunch we spent a little time shopping. While we were at Kirkland's I admired this and she bought it for me!

Here's what it says up close:

Isn't that wonderful! I'd never heard that before. It so perfectly fits the way my life has gone that if she hadn't bought it for me I'd have done so for myself, but it wouldn't have meant nearly as much as having her spend her own hard-earned money just to put a big birthday smile on my face.

When we got home I had an email from Bug containing a gift certificate to Kiva which is a website where people can go to help out small businesses by lending them small amounts of money. It's called microfinance. Bug very thoughtfully gave me money to give to someone else. Isn't that the coolest thing! I just love that boy. He knows my heart so well.

Tonight, Hubby took me out to The Chart House at the Kemah Boardwalk. I am so glad Ike didn't blow it away! Otherwise I wouldn't have had lobster and key lime pie for my birthday dinner. Calories don't count on your birthday, do they?

Throughout the day I've received cards, emails, and text messages from all over the place. I even received a phone call from Lady T all the way from The Netherlands. Plus I just finished a call from Twig.

I must tell you, though, that the most welcome present I got all day long came from ME! I've spent most of the last month talking about turning 53 (or 40-13 as a friend of mine prefers to say). This morning I was thinking about how quickly the years have passed and how I don't FEEL 53 in my head when it dawned on me... I was born in 1956 which means I TURNED 52 TODAY NOT 53!! How much better can it get to gain a whole nother year to live. Now if I can just find the check-out girl at Wal-Mart who told me last week that I looked good for 53. I wonder if she'll think I look good for 52, too.

Peace, blessings, and may all your birthday wishes come true, too!