Countdown to my 41st Birthday

My birthday is in 10 days. There, I said it.

Birthdays are a big deal to me. They always have been. In my classroom, we celebrate everybody's birthday. The Man Beast started a tradition four years ago when I started my teaching gig. On each student's birthday (and lately, each adult's birthday), he makes homemade cupcakes to celebrate each birthday girl/boy's Big Day. During the years when I have a large caseload and multiple birthdays in a month, I choose one Friday out of that birthday month to celebrate.

This might sound a little ambitious to other teachers, but in my classroom, we celebrate life. In my classroom, I TELL my students I love them on a daily basis and mean it because there is no guarantee they will come back to me the next day. This is a heartache I choose not to dwell on for long. So, instead - we celebrate!

I will celebrate birthdays as long as I'm able. And in 10 days, I'd like you to join me in celebrating mine.

I have friends and family from all over the world (literally!). I enjoy reaching out to them through Facebook and Instagram. I enjoy seeing pictures posted and stories shared. I enjoy celebrating through technology. I would like to encourage you to celebrate with me.

Our local humane society is currently raising money in order to renovate their shelter. The Okefenokee Humane Society helps, on average, 2,000 animals a year. They boast (and rightly so!) that they are a no-kill shelter. This means that they do not euthanize animals to make room in their shelter. They do not euthanize healthy animals. In short, they do everything in their power to give animals a second chance at life to a Forever Home.

This shelter holds a special place in my heart. Seven years ago, we adopted a shelter kitty after my daughter's cat died in our pool. Last summer, our family fostered a mama cat and her EIGHT kittens. I'm not sorry to say that we are, indeed, foster fails as we kept Rachel and one of her sons, Tobi Wan Kenobi (Toby, Toby-Toby, Tobias for short). With five animals in the house, we're unable to foster this summer. I will miss it. Fostering isn't for everyone, but it despite the hard work, it is definitely rewarding.

Mittenz

Rachel

Tobi

So, how do I want you to celebrate? I want you to donate to Okefenokee Humane Society's Restoration Project in my honor. How do I want you to donate? Right here. (If you're local, feel free to donate in person). I want to take this challenge to the next step. (Women-of-a-certain-age get this luxury.) I challenge you to donate $41 if you can. Think about it: if just 10 friends/family donated, the shelter would have an additional $410. That's a lot of paint! If 20 friends/family donated (or got THEIR friends/family to donate) we could raise $820 for the shelter. (250 people would get them to their goal. That might be stretching it. But hey! This is the interwebs...stranger things have happened.)

I encourage you to take this viral. (Let's spread some decency for a change!) Animal welfare is something everyone can get behind regardless of which isle you sit, who you worship, or (!!) how old you are.

Thank you for considering this worthy project. Happy birthday to me!

Until next time,

PSA for all New Moms: Do NOT Use Black Frosting - Ever!

Okay, so first, I'd like to apologize for the quality of this picture. For starters, it is 13 years old. Second, it's a picture of a picture, courtesy of my wonderful MIL who keeps everything (good thing, too, because it's obvious that up until recently I sucked at keeping anything!) TMB took this picture while he was helping his mother move into her new place...which reminds me, I need to get over there and help her!

Anyway, about this picture: This is The Boy during his first birthday. His favorite *thing* at the time was the WalMart smiley face.  You remember, right? Well, anyway, as a new mother, I got the stupid bright idea to make the cake and use black icing for the eyes and mouth.

This is a bad idea for so many reasons:

1. The picture. First birthdays are notorious for being messy; why add to your clean up misery?
2.  Black frosting stains - a lot! (See Point #1).
3. Black frosting tastes disgusting! It is bitter and not the least bit palatable. I think The Boy's birthday guests were secretly glad he demolished it so that they'd be spared eating something that is supposed to be edible, but clearly is not.
4. Is there anything less joyous than black frosting? Black frosting is reserved for unpleasant things, not first birthdays.
5. Using black frosting for your eldest first birthday gives your extended family ammunition for years to come. Every birthday, every time a cake is served, my wonderful family is very quick to point out my baking faux pas.

I have since learned my lesson. I have made  21 cakes since that dreadful day and none of them have had black frosting on it. My cakes now have a lot of white on them.

So, please let this be a word of caution to all over zealous moms (and dads - no sexism here): USE BLACK FROSTING WITH CAUTION. You have been warned.

Until next time...

Happy Birthday To Me!

I celebrated my 35^th birthday on Saturday. It doesn't shame me to "out" myself on the internet about my age because I'm quite proud of my age. Every year I have a birthday is another year that God has allowed me to stay above ground (Thanks for the insight, Billy!). It makes sense to me!

Funds are bit tight here in the Turtle household. We are attempting to widdle down all of our credit card debt (it's not much) over the course of the year while I am still gainfully employed in order to prepare for my student teaching stint when I will not be gainfully employed. So, that being said, we have been cutting down on some costs (not all – I might go into that at a later time). So, instead of going to an expensive Japanese steakhouse that cooks your meal right at your table, The Man Beast bought two steaks and cooked them along with some roasted potatoes and broccoli. Originally, my dinner was supposed to be on Saturday night, but The Man Beast was unavoidably delayed at work so the dinner was subsequently delayed until Sunday night.

Dinner complete with wine

It was amazing!
 
I'm not a huge fan of steak. TMB and I were discussing this last night as I inhaled my steak that I swear to you melted like butter in my mouth. He came to the conclusion that the reason why I don't like steak much is because I haven't had any good steak (read: any of his steak). He could be right. All I know is the steak was amazing.

I said that already, haven't I?

When I reflect back on my life these past 35 years (because somehow hitting such a milestone requires the need for reflection) I think about how far I've come as a person. My mother called me on my birthday and we chatted a bit and inevitably, we discussed how we wouldn't want to go back and be a "kid" for anything. I know I wouldn't. For the first time in my life, I am comfortable in my skin. (Granted, I want to lose a few pounds and eat healthier, but as a person, I'm comfortable in my skin). I think this level of comfort is something that only comes with age and experience. Of course I have a lot more living to do (and a lot more mistakes to make, and hopefully, a lot more experience to gain). I'm not suggesting that as a woman of 35, my life is over or that I've learned everything there is to learn. I look forward to getting older if for no other reason than the experience and wisdom that comes along with it. It is a wisdom that cannot be read about in books – it must come from experience (and sometimes, that experience is very bad).

But I believe ultimately, we shouldn't think of our experiences as "good" or "bad" because it is what we take away from them that really matter. We learn from our mistakes. (It is important to note right here that some of us don't learn the first time we make our mistakes and sometimes, a good lesson isn't learned until we've made the same mistake several times. Flylady calls this a God Breeze – God teaching you a lesson quietly, in almost a whisper. I call it a Brick Upside The Head. God has plenty of them in His arsenal and they all have my name on them. If God has ever whispered to me, I didn't listen. Instead, I made the same mistake over again until I can only imagine The Father up in heaven, getting mighty fed up with His daughter, and finally chunking a brick in my general direction. Sure, it hurts. But the lesson is learned).

These are the best years of my life (so far)! I look forward to the years ahead as I imagine them in my mind. I am wise enough to know that the picture I have in my head is probably all wrong. What God has planned is probably much better – after a few more bumps along the road (I know I haven't stopped having those; but hopefully, I have learned to listen better so God can talk in a breeze instead of with a brick).

 

Can I Really Be This Old?

I should start by saying that I'm 'only' 32 years old. Many of my readers are older than me...a few are younger...and no, I don't feel old. And no, I'm not really old.

But my boy is! He turned 11 years old today.

And to show my love to my oldest, I was awake this morning at 5, baking cupcakes for him to take to school. Oh yes...can you feel the love?

Here it is past 8 pm and I almost didn't make it to post today. I almost missed that cut off. But I made it. And unfortunately, I don't have much to show. I'll take pictures of my boy tomorrow. And I might even show some pictures through the years of him...we'll start maybe with the one of him standing in his great grandmother's bottom drawer in her kitchen, big head, chubby cheeks with a look of 'What'd I do?' on his face. I'll save the birth pictures for a face-to-face encounter. I knew you wouldn't mind.

Until next time...

A promise is a promise

I come bearing pictures! Lots of pictures! I've included a slide show of Baby Gurl's 7th birthday...day. (It really wasn't a party. I should have gotten pictures at Ryan's and Claire's, but I didn't...)

Enjoy.

Pictures, Pictures Everywhere!

Well, soon.

I do have pictures to add that I plan on adding on Monday (after all, what else am I going to do? Sleep in? Spend time with the family? YES! But I'll spare a few minutes to add some pictures).

Baby Gurl's birthday was yesterday. She is now 7. I took some pictures of her opening up Granddad's presents (she loves them) but we're also going bowling, so I'll be sure to take pictures then, too. And I'll post them.

I have pictures of all of us (including the Man Beast and me) on the first day of school. I must upload those as well. I might actually get to those today, but first, I need to get off this machine and turn a few to dos into some ta das:

• Laundry
• Saturday Chores
• Get the oil in the car changed
• Get Baby Gurl's ears pierced (she's been asking for over a year - it's time. Yes, I'll be the dorky mom that brings a camera and takes a picture!)
• Grocery Shopping
• Prepare for tomorrow's Sunday School Lesson (tomorrow will be my first time teaching this group - pray HARD)

And with that...I must go.

Until next time...