The big ONE

Well, folks, we made it. One whole year with our sweet Moo. Celebration was definitely in order--for all of us. It's a miracle any time we're given another year, but the first year especially. We're all kinds of grateful.

His actual birthday was on Friday, and Phil was able to be home most of the day, so we gave him his gift, a plastic Radio Flyer red wagon and pulled him around the driveway for a while. We even let him take his best stuffed friend Raffe on a wagon ride with him--a treat since Raffe usually stays in the crib. Based on this picture, I'd say he was a fan.

Then we headed to one of our favorite parks to slide, swing, play on the car-on-a-spring, and attempt a family self-portrait.

Did I mention this boy loves his daddy? Because he does.

We had his party on Saturday, and I prayed for good weather because we were having 30 people at a park and the rain plan was my house, which is a little too cozy for 30 people.

Side note: I used to make fun of people who had huge birthday parties for their one-year-olds, who wouldn't know the difference anyway. Chalk it up to one more instance where I eat my words about parenting. On top of having big families on both sides, we also wanted a few close friends to be there too; we wanted the "village" that helped us this past year to also get to celebrate with us.

Back to the weather, which was absolutely perfect--sunny, a little crisp, but not enough to even need a jacket. And no one else was having a birthday there that day, so we had the place to ourselves. Moo spent most of his time playing with trucks in the grass (no big surprise there). Despite his skeptical face in this picture, he really was having fun!

But he did stop to eat his birthday cupcake (big fan--thanks, Mimi!) 

And, of course open gifts. Here's one of his favorites:

I have lots of sentimental, I-can't-believe-it's-been-a-year-already kinds of thoughts, but for now, I'll leave you with one last picture from this morning. I love every single bit of it--especially the bed head. Like father, like son; those boys love them some cars.

Oh yeah. I turned 30.

My birthday was back in March, but somehow I forgot to blog about it. Probably because I'm so old now. Or because there was a tornado complete with hail, high winds, and threatened power outages that day. Seriously. Work was even let out early. After last April's tornados, Alabama doesn't (and shouldn't) take tornado warnings lightly.

photo credit

Because of those tornado warnings, Phil and I had to cut our birthday date short and just grab a quick dinner. Thanks to some sweet (and courageous) friends, we had free babysitting AND a free dinner at Brio. About 40 minutes into our meal, we heard what sounded like the percussion section of a band serenading us, but in a matter of seconds, the noise started pounding so loud that we couldn't hear each other talk. We looked out the window to see hail the size of softballs in the street and were thankful we had parked in a parking deck. Quite the birthday display...and the end of our dinner.


So, here's why I'm excited about being 30:
Thirty is having enough behind you to be confident in your own skin but enough ahead of you to still be excited about the future. Thirty is old enough to be taken seriously but young enough to still get carded every now and then. Thirty is established, but no where near "arrived" (if there is such a thing).

Remember my 30 before 30 goals? Yep. Most of them happened. But several of them didn't. I still haven't sung karaoke. Or snorkled. Or finished typing my grandfather's WWII letters. Or changed a tire. BUT, here's the thing. In my 20's, I would have berated myself for not finishing the list. Now, in my 30's, I'm learning to be okay with doing what I can, but leaving space for being human, for being imperfect. So I didn't accomplish all my goals. Big whoop. Since I was the one who made them in the first place, I'm pretty sure I can a) change them, b) extend the deadline, or c) choose not to do them all. No one cares (except me if I let myself).


For me, 30 is all about the freedom to be imperfect, to make mistakes, to give life all I've got and be okay if it's not enough sometimes. It's also about living thankfully. Think of all the things I have done that weren't on the list, like giving birth to Moo or starting (and somewhat maintaining) the Kitchen Challenge. So much to be grateful for that I can't even anticipate.

Sitting at the top of a new decade, the view is pretty nice. 

My sweet birthday

It was supposed to be an uneventful day. Work. Grade some #@% research papers. Go out for frozen yogurt with some friends tonight (Phil's on call). But today--my birthday-- has felt anything but blah, thanks to loving friends and family.

It all began last night when I got home from work. I walked in to a delicious onions-and-garlic smell and saw my sweet hubs standing at the stove. "What is this?" Phil had found one of my favorite recipes (will post later) for beef gyros, gone to the store to buy the ingredients, and had made them for me. Best. Husband. Ever.

But it gets better!

After dinner, he brought out a gift bag. Now, I'm pretty good at figuring out my gifts ahead of time, but I had no idea on this one. To my surprise, he had gone to Express and bought an outfit for me that was both cute and fit (see picture). Wow. I mean, I can't even find pants that fit for myself when I'm shopping, so the fact that he bought me pants that fit is a small miracle. I think I see a date night in the near future...

Today, I started my morning with a mocha frappe from McDonalds. Yes, I've taken up caffeine again. Headaches or not, it's the only way I'm going to make it through grading the research papers. AND, they're half the cost of a Starbucks frappuccino and taste like dessert at 6:50 in the morning. :)

At work, there were numerous renditions of happy birthday sung by off-key teenagers, a surprise batch of cookies brought to 3rd period by a student who shares my birthday, a surprise gift card to Panera from my co-workers, a lunch visit from my friend, Melissa (who brought me a huge slice of cake from Olexa's = delicious!), a surprise appearance by my sister-in-law, Ashley, who came bearing a dozen delicious cupcakes and precious handmade cards from my nephews, 75+ Facebook wishes, a few pieces of REAL mail (!), and more texts and voice mails than I usually receive in an entire week--or maybe two. Whew!

Suffice it to say, this girl feels VERY loved today. Thanks to all who spent any small part of your day making mine a happy one! Oh, and if you need a sugar fix, I have quite the stash now. :)

Birthday dinner tradition

In the Wharton household, there is a tradition that on your birthday, you have the privilege (and responsibility) of choosing the menu for your birthday dinner. I have a theory that this tradition only improves with age: while we used to have odd combinations of macaroni and cheese, fried ham, and chocolate milk, we are progressing to more tasty (and balanced) meals. So, my sister, Lydia, turned 12 on Monday and she chose her favorites: spaghetti casserole (the child had 4 servings!), bacon (a must-have for any Lydia birthday meal), separate plates of every fruit you could imagine, including mango, and homemade chocolate chip pie. Not too bad. My other sister, Hannah, turns 14 on Friday, and, true to my theory, her menu is even better: steak, twice baked potatoes, my homemade bread, broccoli..and some kind of chocolate dessert. And there is no Wharton birthday that doesn't involve sparkling grape juice. I mean, nothing says "celebrate" like a bottle (or five) of sparkling grape juice. My mouth is watering just writing about it. I have three siblings and a sister-in-law with July birthdays, so July is a pretty delicious month in our family.

The tradition was a bit of a problem in high school when my brother and I, who share a birthday, had to create the menu together, but we figured it out. And some members of my family never grow up; my dad and one of my brothers can think of no meal more satisfying that burgers, watermelon, and baked beans. Fair enough. My birthday isn't until March and I'm already thinking about the menu...sushi? grilled salmon? steak? steak and shrimp? It will definitely involve some homemade chocolate chip cookies.

At any rate, this tradition is one that I cherish and anticipate with every birthday, not just because of the delectable food, but more importantly because of how valued it makes the birthday person feel. Cheers!