Birthday Snippets

Going backwards in time means starting with yesterday, the day after (do you follow?): Mom Jann and I met at the Spaghetti Factory for lunch and totally splurged on our entrees as well as extra garlic-cheese bread, their great side of broccoli, and ice-cream mud pie. Oh, and red wine, of course. Two redheads thoroughly enjoying each other. I really like Donica's mom! Thanks, Jann. (Can you believe I forgot the camera?!)

On the very day, the 13th: after I went to see Monster-In-Law, since I had just finished Jane Fonda's book (one of the best books I've ever read, seriously!), Mark and I drove down to Smith's Olde Bar (SOB--I love it) and met with Amy and her friends to see Westrin & Mowry perform as the first of three bands. Pete, my nephew, is the Mowry part, remember (March 12 post), and is just so sweet and darling and genuine and everything else you can imagine. He even remembered to give me a birthday card, which I'll keep forever. He and Brian (Westrin) sang Baby, You've Got It All in honor of my birthday. For that moment in time I really did have it all and felt like a Queen For a Day.

Eating beforehand with Mark and Amy with her friends--Justin and good friend Angie--was pure joy. Angie is just who Amy needs as a good friend. Thanks, Angie. Justin is one of those guys Amy can confide in. Thanks, Justin. Since I can't pick between the 2 photos, you'll just have to see them both!

The day before that (ok, tell me what day we're talking about now!), Amy had Mark and me over for one of her gourmet meals, cooking genius that she is. We always tell her we'll be her guinea pigs WHENEVER. And true to form, she outdid herself. Nicholas was in his goony element with Uncle Mark, rough-housing around. G'ma was snapping pictures right and left, of course. There's just something about family! Thanks, Amy, for your thought, time and energy; thanks, Mark, for all those movie passes.

That same day, but earlier, when he was with me for his sleepover, Nicholas had a quiet time of coloring with his new markers. "Are these Magic Markers, G'ma?" Well, I guess you could say so, since he made magic out of them. Because he is such a good colorer, I had bought him a set of 50 washable markers, "Way more than at school, G'ma!" He knows how to do birthdays. Thanks, Nicholas.

What/who was missing, terribly, was Donica (still in Germany), who had to be the proverbial fly on the wall during all these shenanigans. She hated not being here, but I reminded her a hundred times about Paris in April (7 and 9 posts) with Don and Ruth. She birthdayed me PAR EXCELLENCE bar none! And I did/do not forget! Thanks, Donica.

And to everyone else who remembered my birthday and sent me best wishes, THANK YOU! You can't get much happier than this birthday girl. Trust me.