I never in a million years thought that I’d be celebrating my birthday during a pandemic. If you’d told me before Friday that this was going to be my best birthday ever I would have laughed at you and called you an idiot. Sometimes it’s nice to be wrong.
My birthday celebrations started off Friday morning with the decision to put my mental health first. The Twins had been making me crazy for days. I’d lost all patience and my nerves were frayed. After asking for his help (something I’m awful at), The Hubs agreed to get the girls dressed, fed, and to his Mom’s house for me. I let myself sleep in then woke up and tiptoed around the house to keep from waking them while I got their clothes and diaper bag together.
During all of this a package arrived from my Meme. She’s the best at birthdays and this year she really outdid herself. She sent me some flowy hippy mu-mu dresses. She also sent me a beautiful opal ring that my Pawpaw gave to her for her birthday years ago. I cried and then got all dressed up for the first time in weeks. I put on jewelry and one of my new dresses. I even shaved my legs. *gasp!* I felt confident and sassy and, most importantly, relaxed.
That got me thinking about what I really wanted for my birthday. I wanted to relax and be luxurious. So I told The Hubs my plan and he made some arrangements. My Father In Law agreed to let him off for the weekend and my Mother in Law agreed to take the kids (all four, bless her) Saturday night and Sunday during the day. As the Hubs made arrangements, I headed to work. I was fortunate to have lovely views all day.
My team and I have been making DIY mask kits to give away for free to people in our community. The best parts of it are sitting by the road waving at cars and seeing how much people appreciate this simple thing. It’s just a ziplock with some fabric and string and instructions in it, but for some people this is a positive note amidst a sea of negativity. Others were super excited to give their kid something to do. So far our organization has given out supplies for over 600 masks. We’re shooting for 1000. So Friday my teammate and I sat by the road and waved at cars and spread joy while soaking up the beautiful weather.
Saturday morning I took it easy. We watched movies with the girls and snuggled. My Bonus Mom stopped by with a beautiful dress for me. No hugs (curse you social distancing!) but it was so good to see her. We haven’t seen each other since before this all started. The Hubs also gave me 500 worms for my compost bin. (Never thought I’d be excited about worms but here we are.)
After lunch we brought the twins to my in-laws where they’d get some Nanna and Pawpaw time and get to play with The Boy and Crazy Eyes who were already there. That’s when the real fun began. I went to Whole Foods and got the ingredients for my birthday feast. Wooo Buddy! I was a woman on a charcuterie mission! I had so much fun! I bought fresh berries, apricot jam, crackers, six cheeses, olives, pickled mushrooms, mixed nuts, pine nuts, flowers, and champagne. I even got chocolates and macaroons. I rarely splurge on myself anymore but the timing was perfect. I felt sassy and bougie by the time I left the store. I was giddy with excitement. What could be better than tons of cheese and tasty food?! Ummm I mean what could be better than a date night with my loving husband?! Haha! We feasted on fancy food while drinking champagne and giggling. My brother joined us via FaceTime and some of our other friends even made guest appearances via FaceTime as well.
Sunday morning I….SLEPT IN!! Miracles do happen folks! It only happened because the kids were gone and I’d had half a bottle of champagne but it happened! I woke up feeling rested and relaxed. I had a special breakfast of champagne and macaroons and spent some time in the garden. I even discovered our very first tomato!
After brunch, we took a ride on the motorcycle. As always, I looked like a little kid on the back, especially compared to The Hubs. I can’t look like a badass. It’s just not in me. It’s been a while since I’ve ridden and I forgot just how much it relaxes me. The weather was perfect and the traffic was light. We even went through the Dairy Queen drive through and then spread out in the parking lot and had a picnic.
Later that night after the Twins went to bed The Hubs and the big kids worked on building me a new fire pit in the backyard. Right before midnight we ate the cake that he made and they happy Birthday to me. It was so sweet. He’s never baked before or decorated a cake but I think he did a great job.
Today I took it easy with the exception of a couple work meetings. At some point last night three of the four kids ended up in bed with us and I ended up in the Twin’s room on their extra mattress with The Hun so I was exhausted. Sometimes when you have four kids life gets weird and they all decide to have bad dreams or not sleep at the same time. (Probably because the big kids ate cake at midnight.) My Mom and Bonus Dad brought me over a platter for my future cheese boards and a couple of cheeses to go with it. (I’m a cheese fan obviously.) My Aunt even took care of dinner and brought us Ramen from my favorite place. I’ve had calls, texts, and Facebook shout outs all day. My boss even remembered my birthday on our conference call.
Quarantine may suck, but I wouldn’t trade this weekend for anything. This has been the best damn birthday ever. I couldn’t have asked for more. I feel so blessed and cared for. My family and friends have shown me so much love and spoiled me rotten. I can’t thank everyone enough. I’m excited to see what the future holds even in these uncertain times.
Mom Van Confessions 