It’s My Birthday!!

Or rather, it was a week ago. But I reckon that as long as I’m getting cards and/or presents it’s still my birthday. And since I got a card today (from Jesus no less), it’s still my birthday.

I’ve had a delightful birthday. I should tell you that I am very much like a child when it comes to my birthday. Years ago I bought a tacky, plastic crown that has plastic jewels and says “Birthday Girl” on it at St. Vinnie’s for a whopping 99 cents. I wear it on my birthday. I buy frosted animal crackers and hand them out all day, saying, “It’s my birthday! Have a cookie!” Weird? Yes, thank you.

I also love getting cards for my birthday. Gifts are nice, and I enjoy them. But I adore getting cards. I save them for quite awhile and enjoy them over and over. They go in a basket that becomes my prayer list. I have cards that have been in that basket for over a decade. So, if you want to make sure that you get prayed for, send me a card. Hint, hint.

This year my birthday fell on a Monday, which coincided with my hiking group day. Instead of a hike, we took a field trip to the Hinsdale Wave Research Lab at OSU. It is a world class wave research lab, the largest in the United States, and we got a personalized tour. I was mildly disappointed that the basin was empty, so no big waves. But they were doing wave energy research in the large flume. It’s a narrow channel that’s REALLY long. This picture was taken from somewhere near the middle and it really doesn’t

give you a good idea of the scale. It had been set up to have regular sine waves to learn about collecting wave energy in the deep ocean. It was all VERY interesting.

See the crown?

Then it was off to visit my grandbuddies for the real celebration. So. much. fun. I am biased, but I think objectively they are fabulous children. Ask anyone who knows them. They were quite happy to see Yaya, but asked where my “dad” was. I guess Dan being Henry’s dad made him my dad as well? Three-year-old logic. We had pizza and yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting (my request), and then we spent a good deal of time reading book after book to various combinations of children. Evelyn tried to convince me that she could wear my shoes and I should wear her daddy’s boots because they were “big.” That is true. They are size 13 1/2! But eventually she was convinced that my shoes were “just right” for me.

This past weekend, I continued the celebration by going up to Portland and spending time with a friend from high school. Two new cookbooks, a funny card and delicious red velvet cake were all part of the celebration. We also went to the biggest Asian market I had ever seen. I was looking for tamarind paste and kombu seaweed for a ferment I want to make. But I was totally overwhelmed by aisle after aisle of products, some familiar, most totally new. I did buy myself a purple sweetpotato and a passion fruit. Because there they were, and why not!

If you are one of those people who doesn’t like their birthday, I urge you to rethink the whole thing. You are missing out on a lot of fun and joy. It is a total blast to play it all up. Everyone smiles at you and wishes you a happy birthday. It’s really a way to have a delightful day. So, whenever your birthday is, Happy Birthday!!