My 30th Birthday
Woke up at 6:20am to my 2 year old crying Mommmmyyyyy from her room. I take her into bed and attempt to not give in to her insistent cries of MIWK since my rule is she only gets one feeding in the morning. She begins to writhe and screech so I quickly give in. It's just too early, and it's my birthday so I want to sleep a little more. I breastfeed her and she goes to sleep again. I freeze in an awkward, half-uncovered position, hoping not to wake her. I'm just dozing off again when my shoulder is really cold, so I shift slowly into a more comfortable position. She wakes of course and demands MIWK with whiny screeches. It's 7:20 now. The thought of getting sucked on again is just not doable so I try to reassure her with petting that the miwk is all done, she already had some. Crazy crying ensues, my husband tries to intervene, then leaves the room, escaping to the guest bedroom. I put the toddler in her crib and close her door, lying down for a few minutes just to give up my morning. I attempt to snuggle with her again, then give her one minute on each boob. Massive upset ensues, so I give up the bed entirely and we get up.
I dress her and she gets very upset that I don't have shoes to put on her immediately. I get them from the next room and she calms down with sobs. She stands idly by while I brush my teeth & wash my face. I want to take a shower but she gives me the big eyes and climbs into my arms. "Mommy wants to take a shower." "Noooooo. Outside?" So we go out to the living room and I put on the Wonder Pets show. Then I fold a basket of clean sheets that's been sitting there for a week. Then I get the clean diapers from the laundry room and I put the 20 diapers together.
It's breakfast time so I jump on S and demand breakfast tacos from the place just out of our neighborhood. He says he was going to surprise me with them anyway! He & M leave to go bring back breakfast. I recapture my morning by snuggling in bed for a pleasurable few minutes, then jump into the shower and use the very last of my favorite pink LUSH shower creme. I get out to a delicious breakfast of egg, cheese, and bacon breakfast tacos. I feel properly Texan for a few minutes. M sweetly wishes me Happy Birthday Mommy throughout the morning.
After breakfast, I enjoy my coffee while checking my emails & online places. Then it's time to go for my pedicure and manicure appointment at 11am. I enjoy a couple issues of trashy celeb magazines, an amazing back massage from the high tech pedicure chair, and some pale pastel pink polish on toes & fingers. My parents call during the manicure and sing me a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday on their speaker phone. I chat for a minute, then end when the beautician needs my other hand.
I drive home and arrive to an already napping baby. Go, husband! He leaves for some errands. So I lay across the couch and get into my newly received issues of BUST and The East Village Inky. I finally succumb to drowsiness a few minutes before Moooooommmmmyyyy comes on the monitor. I get the little rascal up and, at her wish, install her in her stroller in the living room, where she happily sits rearranging her 12 Care Bears in the tray while narrating a long story. In the meantime, I take care of the putting away and washing of dishes. We eat some crackers and applesauce together.
When dada gets home we all go play outside! It's a perfectly gorgeous day in the mid-70s with a clear blue sky. He fulfills my 30th birthday hot tub dreams but tackling the emptying, cleaning, and filling of the long-unused hot tub on our deck. M & I water the garden, eat fresh baby tomatoes off the vine, and hang out by the sandbox and water table. She busies herself with giving all the sandy toy jungle animals a bath in a bucket, and then a shower with the hose. I help as needed, and lounge about reading my EVI.
Finally the sun starts to go down and the temperature starts to drop. M is soaked up to the elbows, so we go in and change her clothes into a little party outfit. She wears a pink dress with white polka dots and a big sequiny flower, white tights, and a green sweater. Mommy's birthday outfit, by the way, is low rider Lucky jeans, a long soft black tank top, and a bias cut red tee with a white bonsai tree on it. I sit on the couch to relax for a bit, when suddenly M toddles up to me with a giant beautiful bouquet of big lilies! She says Happy Birthday Mommy as she gives it to me. Awwww.
We have a snack of an apple, some nuts, and juice. I run around and pick up toys from the living room and clear off some tables, since family is coming later. We get ready to leave for the Indian restaurant The Clay Pot. We have a fun drive listening to
Rockosaurus Rex the whole way. We are met at the restaurant by MIL, FIL, BIL & GF. We have a delicious dinner; I have Korma curry with shrimp and veggies. The curry sauce is divine; creamy coconut, almond, pistachio with a hint of lemon. M is not exactly her usual docile self. She's literally climbing out of her chair, but foods manage to distract her just at the right time. I spend a little more time wrestling with her than I would have imagined, but realize I can't give up the usual parenting completely just because it's my birthday. She really enjoys drinking her sweet lhassi yogurt drink. Mommy really enjoys her wine. She also enjoys peekaboo just like a baby, as well as the wall mirror we discovered behind my side of the table.
We all drive back to our home and arrange ourselves in the living room. S discreetly disappears while we chat. I'm looking at M, and suddenly her eyes totally light up and get wide, looking over my shoulder. Everyone starts singing happy birthday as S approaches with a cake blazing with 30 candles! M starts her hilarious blowing attempts, "FFFFFFFFFFFffffffff," and I make my wish and blow out all the candles, timed with M's blowing so it seems to her like she did it. We eat the delicious Coldstone Creamery cake; A Cheesecake Named Desire, my favorite, with yellow cake, raspberry cheesecake ice cream layers, and raspberries.
Then I tackle my pile of presents with the enthusiastic help of my toddler. She directs me to open the cards while she goes for each present. I have a good haul of delicate girly presents. The manicure & pedicure & flowers were my first presents from my husband & daughter, along with some delicious lemon verbena soap, strawberries & cream sparkly bath stars, vanilla lotion, lavender bubble bath & salts, fluffy soft white socks, and two sweet cards. From my mom there were some gorgeous green silk dragonfly placemats with chopsticks & napkins, and chocolate covered cherries. From BIL & GF there was a lavender satin robe from VS, and a massage certificate for a spa. MIL & FIL brought me a perfect little table for my sewing machine (well that wasn't really for my birthday, since they often have great random furniture to give us,) and for gifts I got a goody bag of girly stuff: lavender lotions & bath stuff, a pretty skirt & top, a soft knit hat, two fancy flower ponytail holders, a metallic belt, a velvet wide headband, and an earth toned sequin purse.
By now it's way past M's bedtime so we say goodbye to MIL & FIL, and I take her in for nursing. She passes out in less than 20 minutes. Finally the moment I've been waiting for: hot tub time. Bil, gf, dh & I get into bathing suits, and I pour out some wine. We all get into the toasty 101 degree hot tub. I have my extended moment of gazing up at the stars and trees, cigarette and wine in hand, with hot water bubbling and friendly relaxed faces all around. We hang out for an hour, shifting positions to try out the different bubbly corners. By the time we get out, we are all like limp noodles. I get to snuggle in bed with dh, who goes to bed at the same time I do. We fall asleep in minutes.
The end.
