Waiting On The Red Robin Singers

You guys,  I had a birthday.  

A birthday on Easter which is pretty dang cool.  

I got peanut butter cheesecake and Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs all in one day.  (Do you see a theme here?)

And so I'm 37 now.  Which is apparently the age when people start saying "Really?  You don't look/act/seem that old to me."  

And to be perfectly honest, I wasn't too keen on turning 37 because, well, it's thatmuchcloser  to 40 and 40 is well, you know, forty. 

But then I read a quote that said something like this:  

Appreciate the gift of getting older 

as it is a privilege denied to many. 

And I got over it real quick.  

Because being 37 is pretty dang fantastic.  

It means that I've been a mother for almost 12 years.  

And that I've had nearly 15 years of marriage to the most amazing man.  

And I've seen babies be born and marriages begin.  I've had time to go to school and earn my degree.  I've worked as a teacher and  spent time as a Mama at home.  I've traveled a bit and learned a bit and had time to make mistakes and try again.  I've chopped my hair and had time to watch it grow.  I've swam with dolphins, jumped off cliffs and learned how to cook a mean meal. I've read books I loved and books I've hated.  I've watched Dirty Dancing more times than I should admit.  I've been poor and then not-as-poor.  I've learned that Diet Dr. Pepper is always a quick fix for whatever ails me and that  smiling changes everything.  I've turned into a runner, sort of, and actually kind of love it.  I know that exercise in the morning will have a bigger impact on my day than just about anything else.  Except prayer.  I've spent time giving every last ounce of myself to those I love and have grown to know there's a better way.  I've been the fun mom.  The over-protective mom.  The frustrated mom and the tired mom, but always, always the mom who loved on her kids like no one else could.  I've lost my cool and spouted off.  And then learned what I really should have done instead. I've felt the love of my parents who started me out on this 37-year journey and have always been my biggest cheerleaders.  I've watched the sun set and rise again.  I've felt the camaraderie of tremendous women who I call friend and know exactly why they were placed in my life.  I've danced on a stage.  Walked around the Statue of Liberty. Driven a moped along the shore of Oahu and have grown to know that the wanderlust that exists in me will always be there.   I've sometimes taken the easy road and missed the lessons that were waiting for me.  I've been stubborn.  And convinced I was right.  And then been humbled by those who know more than me.  I've had time to know that  a house full of people I love makes me incredibly happy and that for me, more really is merrier.  I've had the love of a remarkable man to uplift me.  Comfort me.  Support me and teach me and walk next to me, never in front and never behind.  I've had 37 years of early mornings, later nights and more love than one girl deserves.  

It's been the most amazing time. 

Thirty-seven already feels comfortable to me. Like I wouldn't want to be anywhere else.  I can feel it settling around my shoulders and offering me comfort, welcoming me gently to this new time in my life.    And it makes me smile to be thatmuchcloser to forty because, really, what else could be better than this?  

Except maybe more of the same.  

Happy Birthday to me.