38

It is 1:40 a.m. on January 23 and that means I am officially 38 years old.  Well, not exactly since I was born sometime later in the day, but close enough.  

For those of you who read regularly, you know that I love to write letters to my boys on their birthdays.  No, I am not going to go all narcissistic on you and write a letter to myself complete with bullet points on what I love the most........because that would be weird.  I will say that I unashamedly love my birthday.  I love getting cards, emails, and phone calls from friends and family.......I love getting to pick what I want for dinner.  I love how excited my children are to celebrate with me.  I love cake!!  I love that my very business minded husband never fails to get me a card with a very sentimental message inside.  I love that I can laugh in the face of the laundry goblin and walk away to do something fun with no sense of guilt.  I love that calories and fat grams don't count on your birthday and the only form of excercise I have to do is blowing out my candles......which burns more calories every year.  

It is way past my bedtime which means I am tired, which means I am overly reflective about this last year.   It was a good year with some very tough situations sprinkled through it to remind me who God is and who I am not.

I took Beth Moore's Bible study, "Breaking Free", and it was hard, painful, challenging, and incredibly rewarding.  Through it I gained a new friend, Joy, who has taken on a mentoring role in my life.  

I got to be with all of my siblings for a brief time in March while in San Diego.  That is a very rare treat.  

I got to go back to Camp Cho Yeh to work in the infirmary with my friend.......a very hard job, but it sure is fun to be back at camp again!  We had so much fun that we might not be invited back again this summer....heehee.

My family joined 2 other families for an incredible week in Destin, FL this past summer.  We proved that you can travel with other families, stay in the same house, and still be friends when it's all over.  

I got to spend some precious moments with my Grandfather before he passed away in September.  

I once again managed to overcommit myself resulting in some crazy, insane weeks. 

I experienced firsthand, the heartache of watching a child suffer in school....both socially and academically.  

I got to cheer on both boy's football teams, even though I can't watch when it gets too intense.  I watch my football friend, Sarah, and judge how things are going by her reaction.  She is wonderful and knows how quirky I am so she easily slips into the role of commentator while I hide my eyes.  

I got to speak, for some crazy reason, at a women's event and it was an unforgettable experience for me.  

I played paintball for the first time and almost died.

I got to move my 85 year old Grandmother to Houston from Michigan and have loved reconnecting with her.  

I got to celebrate 13 years of marriage with my man.  

I watched my friends come together to bless some very deserving women with new pajamas.

I experienced the painful separation from a dear friend to then experience the joy of reconciliation.  

I had my first mammogram........along with an "area of concern" scare to make it more interesting.......and thus my second mammogram all within a week.  

I have learned more about what it means to be a woman of God, a loving wife, a patient mother, and an understanding friend.

Do I like that I'm on the downhill slide to 40?  NO.............but it sure beats the alternative!