What I learned in 2009

As is blog tradition, here are some things I learned in 2009. I'll try to keep it simple and short.

1. With some things, no matter how much you plan for them, they're just not in the cards for you. Or at least not at this time.

2. With some other things, you don't even have to plan for them. They just happen and you find that in fact, you are ready.

3. When stuck in a rut of a situation, figuring out what you learned from it is a very good way of beginning to get out of that rut.

4. With some people, you just have to take what you can get and be happy with that.

5. Recognition for hard work is an invaluable thing.

6. The more I bake/cook, the easier and faster it is to perfect a recipe.

7. Faith and your love for God are some of the most wonderful things you can share.

8. There are no words to accurately describe the phenomenon of crossing items off my "Life To Do List" (some call it a Bucket List, but I prefer to keep it focussed on living life rather than dodging death).

9. I've become a fan of delayed gratification, especially the kind that is delayed 9 months or so.

10. Some activities are better enjoyed after years of not doing them.

Christmas 2009

I had a llllllong draft all about the holidays so far, and I decided that it might be better to do it with pictures. Here goes...

We had our office holiday party at The Sultan's Tent. This is my boss with the belly dancer.

With some of my work GFs

Then we had our annual Christmas party with our friends. Here are some pics of our super-fun Gift Card Yankee Swap.

Linda started -- which is the worst thing in a Yankee Swap. BUT, she did happen to pull out the envelope with the CASH instead of a gift card!

Dee picks out my gift card...to Anthropologie!!! (I was so tempted to steal it!)

Mr.S' turn -- he steals the cash from Linda...and then even though it's all the same, I stole the cash from him.

Miss L2B gets Mr.S' Toys R Us card...They ended up swapping later on (for a Tim Horton's card) because well, we're really the only ones who could use a Toys R Us one right now!

Linda picked up a Best Buy card, had it stolen, re-picked and ended up with an Esso gift card. I think she's the only one of all of us who does NOT drive.

Then came time for the annual get together with my BGFFs (best girl friends forever haha!). We did pot luck again, since, well, we're all pretty gifted in the kitchen!

Our buffet (clockwise from the top): baked mac & cheese, caesar salad, veggie lumpia (is there an actual name for this? lumpiang gulay maybe?), lumpiang shanghai, naan, beef pot pie, butter chicken, potato salad, inihaw na baboy (pork BBQ). MIA: mini quiches, stuffed mushrooms, red velvet cake, truffles, chocolate-covered cheesecake poppers

The Gals, armed with our accessory for this year, antlers. We all go back at least 12 years.

Miss H2B and me, sporting our matching feather head bands.

Christmas Eve was held at home, as usual. I didn't go overboard this year with the baking, and instead devoted my time to cooking, both for our dinner and the various potlucks we'd be having at family Christmas parties over the next few days.

Our Christmas eve dinner -- I made a mean clam chowder, I have to say. I think it's so good, I'll add it to my list of "potluckable" dishes. Also here: Mr. S' scallopped potatoes and my baked spaghetti (which was actually fettucine because my brother boiled too much fettucine earlier, so I decided to just use it)

Us, by the tree.

And now, some pics of our gifts...

Mr.S with his stocking stuffers.

Baby brother likes to wrap gifts in mysterious shapes to throw us off. This is how he does it. (It was actually a pair of what will soon be my favourite pair of pants.)

Baby brother and his gift from Santa for his new hobby (that I hope, hope, hope he doesn't end up loving...geez, he likes dangerous things!)

I was good this year. Santa got me a Dutch oven, which has been on my wishlist for.ev.er. OMG.

My gift from Mr.S. Ally McBeal is my most favouritest show of all time. This is what I'm doing with my spare time while on maternity leave. (Can "spare time" and "maternity leave" even be in the same sentence?)

Mr.S with his gifts from Santa -- a Jack Johnson package, which also came with an autographed poster!

My gift to Mr.S -- for timing his runs (as in running, not diarrhea). This also came with a video game.

A cushy cushy blanket from Baby Brother for the Baby.

My very first gift from our baby. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. Needless to say, I cried...and cried and cried when I opened it.

Mr.S' gift from our baby. A fetal doppler to hear his heartbeat.

Then came Christmas day and parties with our families.

With my in-laws, we decided to do Kris Kringle this year, which was an excellent idea!

Then we played a game, sorta like Hedbanz. I was so disappointed -- I didn't guess mine :(

Mr.S, on the other hand, got two rounds because he and our cousin were so good (and I didn't help him cheat).

Poor Vader, our "nephew" just wanted some turkey.

Then it was off to my sister's house for the gathering with my side of the family.

We're BIG.

MAYHEM!!!!

Some of us were so amused by our gifts, we didn't even open them completely before we used them. (HAHAHA!! Sorry Lei, I had to...look at how amused Dad is by you!)

Then, when the night died down, it was time for marshmallows by the fireplace.

Then we were pooped.

We slept over at my sister's house and early in the morning, the Autobots (i.e. my brother, Mr.S and the brothers-in-law) went Boxing Day shopping. They came back with some awesome deals.

They're so pretty.

One of the boxing day deals: a guitar for my niece.

Nail central - where you get yo nails did.

Karaoke. Thanks to these guys, I dodged it this year. PHEW!

And that's all for now, folks. Just a few (even though I know it's a LOT). Hope your Christmas was full of blessings and love.

And here are some pics of my baking...

Here comes the torch!

One of our old friends from high school (and elementary school) was blessed to have the opportunity to be one of the Olympic torch bearers yesterday. Too cool!

YAY! JOANNE!

Happy Hallowe’en!

Happy belated Hallowe’en everyone! It’s one of my favourite days of the year because I love dressing up (and I’ve heard that apparently I’ve loved dressing up since I was a wee one).

This year was a little bit different and now that it has passed, I’ve come to realize that it was actually reflective of the changes in my life that have happened and are happening as we speak. (Who knew Hallowe’en would be such a day of reflection?!)

H1N1
I don’t think I need to explain what this is or what’s going on in the world regarding it. It’s something everyone’s concerned about and something many people are trying to get vaccinated against. Being a member of one of the high-risk groups, I got my shot and luckily didn’t have to wait in line. My doctor, and the other doctors in her office, happened to have a special day set aside at the hospital for her patients only. I went on Friday, got my name crossed off the list, and before I knew it (literally) the nurse was calling me in. How awesome! This was just another one of the perks of being pregnant (in my case), in addition to close parking spots, my husband doing the laundry (Hahahaha!! Just kidding, Mr. S!) and other such things.

There’s another side though to this vaccine story. I had to finish sewing the costumes for my husband and me and I hadn’t had much time to work on them. Being that Hallowe’en was on Saturday and my sister had a party we were going to that afternoon, I REALLY needed to get them done. I had planned to finish them on Friday night so that I could do other stuff on Saturday morning (like attempt to sleep-in). That did not happen. On Friday night, I was a drowsy, miserable mess.

This was me: on the floor, looking like Humpty Dumpty, round with my legs sticking out (I should have been him for Hallowe’en); with fuzzy fabric all over the floor, bits of it in my hair and on my clothes; frowning at the fact that I didn’t have time to do this properly by drawing up a pattern and was instead drawing directly on the fabric, willing Silvia (my sewing machine) to do me this one favour and finish these for me. While I was now immune to the H1N1 virus, it was doing its number on me…so I let it, gave up and got up early the next morning to finish the costumes.

The Costumes
As I’ve zilla’ed about this already, being pregnant has made my clothing choices a little unflattering. The same goes for my costume. I always say Hallowe’en, for some women, is the only day of the year where they can dress like complete skanks and get away with it (no offense, ladies), not that I usually dress skanky or anything for Hallowe’en. But I mean, as I said, I like to dress up.

This year, I was a kangaroo. I figured that I might as well make use of this cute little pouch I have, so what better than an animal that actually has a pouch?! The other costume idea I had was Juno, which, let’s face it, isn’t very creative. I had come up with other ideas earlier this year, but they’ll have to wait until next year. I’m excited for next year already!

Parties
Other than my sister’s party, I didn’t party hard (i.e. go to a club or anything like that). The thought did cross my mind though. I realize that I’m not exactly in the state to partay. I also realize that my friends realize this and either invite me because they always invite me or don’t invite me because they know I don’t really know if I should go. Now, while usually I already know I shouldn’t be out at clubs and stuff, the whole Hallowe’en thing got me thinking that maybe this time could be an exception.

Had I not been all H1N1-drunk, maybe I would have seriously considered it. But knowing how clubs are, especially at Hallowe’en, I think it’s better that I didn’t go. Even though I know I wouldn’t drink, there are things I can’t control, like the crowd or the sneaky-sneaky who manages to get in with a cigarette or dooby or two (or three or four).


Despite how different Hallowe’en was for me this year, I still enjoyed it, and I’m not just saying this because I have a half-eaten pile of candy sitting in front of me with plenty of empty candy wrappers in the garbage bin beside me.

Things I'm thankful for - 12:42PM

• Sleeping in. I managed to sleep for around 12 hours, which is especially good for several reasons. One, I haven't been able to sleep in for pretty much the entire pregnancy. I've been waking up earlier than 8AM on days that it's okay to sleep in, mostly because I feel the need to eat. Two, I've come down with a cold and cough (BOOOOOO!!!) and I could use the rest
• My waistline. I found myself laughing at my new "waistline" this morning while I was brushing my teeth. Sometimes I can't even feel that I'm as big as I am and for a brief moment, I feel slim and then I look down and just laugh at what has become me + 1.
• Groggy goodbyes. I've been off work since Thursday and that morning, Friday morning and this morning, my husband has still had to go to work. Before he left, he said every morning before leaving "Have a good day, Love!" to which I responded, "You too!" which would then make him frown...because what he was really saying was "Have a good day off!" OOPS!
• The availability of good hair cutting scissors. I'm going to finally fix my stupid hair today. No more looking like I have droopy dog ears.
• The Office Marathon. I cannot get off my arse because they just keep airing episode after episode and the commercial breaks consist of one commercial.
• Pies. I didn't get to make any pies for this Thanksgiving because I don't think people need to eat my germs. So I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a good sampling of pies today and that makes me happy. AND, I just remembered I froze one of my apple crumble pies...which I think I just might make my lunch. j/k
• Fall decorations. I must find my wreath hanger. My big fall wreath doesn't look as nice sitting on the floor.

A Different Kind of Autumn

Fall’s here! Hello Fall! You’re my favourite season of all the seasons, but don’t tell the others!


So yes, autumn is my favourite time of the year. It goes by quickly, it seems because of Indian Summers, Jack Frost’s impatience, the end of DST…things like that. But it seems that this autumn will be a different one for me.

Yes, I won’t be able to wear most of my fall clothes or jackets or even my closed-toe shoes with slight heels that have been itching for the light of day. My interest in fall fashion is simply a dream due to the fact that I can no longer fit nor wear the pieces out there. Nonetheless, it’ll be a beautiful season. I’m not lamenting.

TV shows start up again. Businesses get back to the grind. Kids get back into the study groove. Our duvet makes its glorious return back to our bed along with our darker linens. A/Cs get their breaks.

And here I will be, enjoying my last autumn before I begin my new life with a New Life.

VMAs

Not all the buzz from the MTV VMAs should go to Kanye's misbehaviour. I thought the Michael Jackson tribute was VERY WELL done.




Even though I'm sure a lot of people would have liked to see more of Janet in the tribute, I think her part was awesome.

P.S. What's with Lady Gaga?!

To my Favourite

Happy Birthday Love...

You're the best thing for me in the whole wide world and I'm forever grateful for you and all you've given me. 

Love,

Treeh

Rainy Days

We’ve had a very wet summer. My sister, who lives on the west coast said it seems like we’ve switched summers since they’ve had a very sunny (and HOT) summer so far. I’m starting to wonder if our summers are going to be like this from now on. From what I recall from last year, it was a little wet too.

But you know, I don’t mind the rain so much. It’s actually kinda nice. I don’t have a garden or yard yet, but I imagine it’s kinda nice to not have to water the grass as often. I love walking in residential areas and seeing that the flowers are full and lush, grass is a beautiful green and food gardens are yielding plump fruits and vegetables. The rain's good for something!

I remember when I was a kid, sitting out on the porch with my brother and sisters, watching the rain fall. I liked watching it from a sheltered area, especially when it was raining hard and the sun hadn't quite set yet. It was really peaceful and so I guess now, that’s why I enjoy watching it rain.

I've also noticed that we've had a lot of rainbows this summer too. There was even a day or two when there were two rainbows at the same time. It was beautiful!

1 year down, forever to go

***Videos should work now!***

We celebrated our first anniversary for over a week. It’s just nicer that way. Now that I think about it, we rarely do one-day celebrations.

It’s much easier to talk about the festivities in a photopost, so let’s do that.

Enjoy!

.

The password is my maiden name, all lowercase.
Don't forget to watch the videos! (Watch them after the pics)

They conned us. They got our money and then didn't do the trick. We saw them performing every day that we were there and we felt sorry for the crowd every time! Other than that, they were pretty good though.


Fireworks on the Fourth...or "the Fawth". This is the finale, I believe. There was this kid who was watching near us and he just kept yelling "THAT'S SICK!! THAT'S SICK!!" and then he'd yell the colour of every firework that appeared in the sky. It was pretty funny. I think you can hear him a little bit.


Whale watching 1


Whale watching 2


Whale watching 3 - We saw a Mama whale and her calf, who we pretty much owe our trip to since she/he gave us a real show :)


Cordova, the fur seal, and her signature song.


Cordova? My brother and my husband tried to make Cordova's sound -- they didn't know I was recording while we were in the car. Hahaha! Please excuse my passenger seat driving and excellent lying skills. Haha!


Fur seals


Frog feeding. Ew.


This is the big tank in the middle of the aquarium where all sorts of fish, big and small swim round and round.


A turtle!


Take me out to the ball game!


Sweet Caroline! Some fans knew the whole song!

Thanks Michael!

For me, this is one of those times when you remember exactly where you were and what you were doing. I had no idea that anything was even going on since I was at work all day and then chose not to listen to the radio in the car and instead hooked up my iPod.

I was at Bulk Barn shopping for ideas for the next phase of my baking binge. I was checking out fondant packages when I heard on the radio that was playing over the sound system in the store that he had collapsed and there was word that he had passed on in LA.

It's amazing, the first things you think about when you hear that a celebrity has died. For me, I remembered the good things about him, all his music and how influential it was, how I didn't watch the Thriller video from beginning to end until I was in my twenties because he was so successful at making it so scary, his very unique sense of style, that he was able to share this gift he got with the entire world. I couldn't imagine what it would be like for future generations to live in a world without Michael Jackson, and I am so thankful to have lived in the same time as this man who changed music forever.

I prefer to think of him the way I did and I think that's the way we should think of him-- always remember the good things. I think life could be even better if we choose to remember the positive.

Michael Jackson, The King Of Pop
1958-2009

It's scary outside

In the spirit of dark and scary weather, here's the new trailer for 2012. It looks pretty crazy.



For more information about what is allegedly the end of the world, click here.

Father’s Day

We went to bed late on Saturday. It was Sunday morning actually. It seemed to be a 3:30AM-bedtime-weekend. In our half-asleep-tired-ramblings that usually consist of I love yous and Good nights and Thank yous and Is the window opens and Do you have a glass of waters…I came up with,

“Happy-one-day-you’re-gonna-be-a-Father’s day!”

Then it was followed by more Thank yous and Hmmms just at the nice thought. We slept deeply.

Another movie!

This one looks pretty interesting, and I'm glad that even though it looks like one of those movies that is about all the negative things about the food industry, it also takes a look at the positive and helps to yield change for something better.

Jon & Kate Plus 8

I've managed to stop crying after about 20 minutes of viewing the finale. Maybe I'm just overly emotional or something, but was that not the saddest piece of reality TV you've ever seen? Here's this family we've been watching for 5 years, who've fallen victim to paparazzi and the tabloids AND they're falling apart.

For those of you like me who've refused to believe all the stories and believed that they were able to brush this all off, are you as crushed as I am? It's like finding out about Santa all over again. You tell your classmates that the stuff they've been hearing about Santa not existing is crap and you believe and believe and believe...and then someone tells you the dirty truth and you just wanna shake it off. It's heart-breaking, no?

Perhaps what really breaks my heart is the statistic that Kate mentioned -- that couples with multiples have a higher divorce rate. I know I don't have kids of my own yet so I don't fully understand, but it makes me so sad to know that with these kinds of parents, the fact that they have more kids at once shakes their marriage rather than solidifies it. To be honest, it scares the crap out of me to know that this is a reality.

The romantic and optimist in me hopes that Jon and Kate find their way back to each other, but perhaps I'm being foolish and I'm hoping this for selfish reasons -- I always need a happy ending. Perhaps in the end, it's best they stay apart. I don't know. I don't know them personally and it's none of my business. Ugh, but wasn't it touching to see that Mady and Cara were stepping up to help Kate just when she needed it? And wasn't it heart-wrenching when Kate was talking about their last family picture? And just a few nights ago, I was watching their home video from that Christmas years ago...Oh garsh, I'm gonna start crying again.

I'm not sure what to do with myself. And my poor husband is sitting here trying to watch the NBA semi-finals while trying to figure out how to comfort his wife who is all emotional over TV. I hope I can sleep tonight.*

*Something about TV and a good night's sleep -- I couldn't sleep after the Private Practice season finale because poor Violet was stuck, paralyzed on her living room floor while her formerly-pregnant patient began performing a c-section to take her baby...

The Late Twenties

I'm here. Late twenties. So far, I LOVE IT.

I do feel older and I do feel wiser. I know, I know, it's only another year, but I found myself very reflective on my life while celebrating my birthday.

With the Fam
It's no secret. I love picnics. I think it goes back to the days when I was little and it would be my parents, my party of siblings, me, a blanket and a bucket of KFC. Don't forget the colesolaw (yes, I meant to type it that way because that's how it was pronounced) and if we were lucky, an OOPIE!

I had a picnic with my family a few years back so I decided to do it again this year, but on a larger scale given that this time, my parents weren't on vacation, my sister was in town on business and, I now have in-laws!

It was fun and I found myself sorta just sitting back watching My Fortune grow...

I love my family. I've had conversations with my sisters about how much we love our family and I guess if you're in my family or your family is just as fortunate as ours, you completely understand. I like to think that eventually, all families have the potential to get to this point and better. When the kids are grown, the teen angst has subsided, the parent-child understanding has fully developed, the family is growing and the grandchildren are the spotlight, I think THAT's when things are at their best. Or at least, in our case, it is. I like to believe that we're bulletproof. It's almost like the scars we've got have made our skin so much thicker that we can survive anything. We're stronger when we're together, and I know for me, I feel strongest when I'm with my family.

We have a big family. Scratch that--a BIG family, and we don't stop there. I don't imagine that over the years, we'll grow apart or lose touch. We just don't do that. So, I imagine just how big our family is going to get over the years and I feel so happy. I'm a part of this and I belong here.

Running
I imagine that in my lifetime, I'll run a large number of races. I admit that I'm partial to the ones that have medals because I like the idea of having something cool to show for finishing. I know I said I'd go for at least one full and two halves this year, but if I'm fortunate enough to have things come up and push these races to the back burner, that's fine with me.

I started my birthday with a morning run with my best friend. We took it easy considering I had a big race the coming weekend. It was refreshing to take it easy, not bring my watch or iPod and just talk to him instead of what I'm used to -- running on my own, tracking myself, over long distances. I imagine me and us running until we're old, running with strollers, running with kids... I know I don't look like I was built to run, but I feel it. It's one of the things I do.

FREE lunch
My brother had the day off too so we all headed to Tucker's Marketplace so I could have a free lunch (and they could pay j/k). I'm not usually a fan of buffets, but I really don't mind this place. They always have good food, and it doesn't taste like buffet food and isn't buffet quality. It's good. I also wasn't forced to eat a free piece of cake (I'm not much of a cake person, I just make them) and suffer the embarrassment of sitting through a tone-def Happy Birthday To You, so I was a happy camper.

It was so nice to sit down and eat a meal with my favourite men who just happen to be my roomies too. I'm so blessed to have them. We don't get to all have a meal together often since we're all busy, we do our things, brother does his own things and when we do eat together, it's often in front of the TV, so this was nice.

Birthday Baking
After paying a visit to a new "mall" and picking up some ice cream (but of course!) we went home for a big and I decided to make my coworkers some cheese cupcakes. Some of them are my best customers, so I thought it'd be nice to share the treats and also save them of the usual grocery store white cake with sugar frosting we always have when it's someone's birthday. I also made some to keep at home and give to my girlfriends when we finally caught up with each other.

I didn't have time to sit down and make them pretty though, so I just made chocolate disks and put them on top. Not the prettiest, but still tasty, I hope!

Dinner with My Husband
After finding out that our favourite Thai restaurant seemed to have changed either their recipes or their chefs, we decided to go to the next best one -- it didn't disappoint. In fact, I'm craving it again now! As usual, it was good food, good company and good conversation. We talked about all sorts of things, things I like to talk about (i.e. Life)... So good, so good...


Overall, it was a great birthday. I would have liked to celebrate more with friends, but unfortunately, there just wasn't much time to partay. Pics can be found here.

Do you smell that?

My favourite smells of the season so far:

• New car :) (I'll elaborate later)
  
• Freshly cut grass
• Rain (not to be confused with wormy rain smell)
• BBQ
• My nephew, Mikey
• Post-run air
• My clothes after being outside all day (some would say it's "sun stink" but whatever)

What I'm Doing...

I've been keeping myself busy training for a half marathon taking place in 2 weeks. This is run #2 of 5 for which I've signed up. I'm not doing a big fundraising effort this year as many of you know, but I would still like to invite you to contribute to various causes.

For the Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada

In support of paediatric research in arthritis at Sick Kids Hospital

For the Terry Fox Foundation

In support of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada (for Light The Night -- another page should be up soon for the marathon)

Remember, any amount helps and brings each organization closer to their goal! Thank you for your support!

Horror TV

Before I lived on my own, I was a huge fan of horror flicks. I actually enjoyed being scared while watching all sorts of twisted messes on a screen. These days, not so much...unless it comes to pregnancy.

I think I have a strange fascination with all things pregnancy-related. I've been waiting to watch a new series, "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant" on TLC. I've heard all these stories about women not knowing they're pregnant until their second or even third trimesters. Women having babies in washrooms, not realizing they're not taking a dump -- they're in labour.

This show, as strange as it is, is addictive. I watched almost 3 episodes tonight (of course, I had to take a break to tune into Sarah's Cottage!), and was forced to change the channel when my husband's facial expressions reached their disgusted-peak and his groaning got louder (even though he was laughing at my facial expressions). 

There were all sorts of reasons these women didn't know they were pregnant -- they were irregular, they were on the pill, they didn't gain weight, didn't have cravings, weren't swelling, felt no movement, no symptoms...until the baby came along. In most cases the babies were premature.

The entire thing was scary...but I realize now why I couldn't stop watching. It's the same reason why I don't stop the women in my life from telling me all the messed up things they've experienced throughout their pregnancies -- I want to get as close as possible to no surprises. I wanna saturate myself with so much knowledge about pregnancy, I want to be able to call all these women wimps. BRING IT.

I'm kidding about the wimp part.

But really, it's so important to be prepared, especially when it comes to bringing new life into the world.

Excuse me, I have to go the washroom...and who knows, maybe I'll come back with a baby!

26...and Aging

Am I older than I’m supposed to be? Sometimes I’m not sure.

Most people my age, judging from people I know, are either single, in a committed relationship or casually dating. They spend their weekends (and some weeknights) out and about, drinking, dancing, heck the whole lot and have concocted many a hangover-remedy. While I do have the occasional drink (notice, no use of the plural form over here) or on the rare occasion go out dancing or stay out late, I’m usually exhausted by 9PM (especially on a Friday night). If I know I’m going to be out late, I actually make a point to slip in a nap some time during the day. I sound like your grandmother. I don’t think my body or mind would be able to tolerate the typical mid-twenties lifestyle, but when I do step out of my laidbackness (it’s a word because I said so) and join in the mainstream mid-twenty fun, I enjoy myself.

I do realize that in many ways, I AM older than 26. Having been on my own since 23 (which isn’t that young – I know some people who claimed their independence at as young as 16), I think I’ve grown up substantially more than some people would in a 3-4 year span. Then, the first time I hung out with my friends after I got married, I FELT older, and I think many of them felt older too just being around me and/or my husband. People I’ve met since being married have adjusted their initial guesses of my age because of the wedding band on my finger. They usually say that otherwise, they would have guessed around 2 years younger.

My sister said the morning after our wedding that she felt that our family had gotten older, and indeed it had. I enjoyed bringing our family to another stepping stone in life. I enjoy now being part of and fully understanding all the married jokes, maybe even making my own, and finally feeling and appreciating all the things that my sisters and brothers have told me about how wonderful being married and having a marriage are.

I enjoy aging in case you can’t already tell. I love getting older. A lot of my friends and some of my family don’t understand how I could love getting older so much. I love it. I love birthdays, I love seeing the numbers get bigger and bigger with every passing year, I love going from early- to mid- to late- whatever-decade-I’m-in…I just love it. I want to get wrinkles and laugh lines. I’m curious about stretch marks and swelling, how saggy I’ll be or how much shorter I’ll get when I shrink. I look forward to spending on groceries for growing boys, getting my dream car – a minivan, shopping for a stroller or two (one for running, of course) and loading my purse with candy for secret distribution to grandchildren.

It’s another minute, another hour, another day, week, month, year of having survived in this life and looking back at the amazing things you have to show for it. Make the most of your time here and I promise you’ll enjoy the growing list of things to look back on – all the achievements and the failures and successes and the lessons learned as a result, all the life, the growth…there’s so much.

It’s all borrowed time and I believe the important thing is to realize now that that’s exactly what it is, so every day should be a step forward towards the person you want to be so you can be that person for as long as you can.

I’ll be 27 in a month. WOOHOO!