Happy Birthday To Me!!!

May 4th, 1975

Thirty-six years ago I came screaming into this world. Knowing me, I was probably cold, hungry, and cranky. My brothers would tell you that not that much has changed since then. LOL

Today has been an absolutely wonderful day. I feel so blessed because of the health issues that I had last year. Due to my health problems, we had to place our adoption on hold for months and we are only now getting everything back going. A few months ago, I remember my hubby asking me what I wanted for my birthday this year. I told him that I didn't really need anything and the only thing I wanted was our baby. Unfortunately, he was not able to work a miracle with getting me a baby but I remain hopeful and prayerful that she will be here soon by the Grace of God.

That being said, I thought long and hard about what else I wanted. This blog is all about my adventures in the kitchen trying out new recipes and making old recipes a little healthier. I completely forgot that two muffin recipes ago, the motor on my little hand mixer went out. She had served me well for about 10 years or so and I definitely got my money's worth a couple of times over. So, when the hubby asked me what else I wanted, did I remember to ask him for the brand new, shiny, pink, KitchenAid stand-up mixer that I have been cyber-stalking on Amazon for the past month? Nooo, I asked him for a bread machine!
LOL
A bread machine?
Yup, a bread machine.
I had been online looking up all the fabulous things you can make with one, so when he asked me what I wanted, that's what popped out of my mouth. Did y'all know that not only can you make fresh homemade bread, but you can also make rolls, pasta, pizza dough, cookies, cakes, and even homemade jam in these things? I didn't know all that and I definitely had to get one!
The hubby, being the IT guru that he is, decided to stalk the internet and got me the Zojirushi.
In our house, it's pronounced, "The Zooo-ji-ruuu-shi"!
Hehehehehe
I love my techie and my test kitchen lab rats are probably salivating wondering what goodies they'll be testing out soon.

It is so awesome and I cannot wait to make my first loaf of homemade whole wheat bread. Yumm yumm!

Ok, so back to the birthday...
I started off by opening my awesome presents and getting phone calls from my wonderful family. I had a free massage scheduled from my chiropractor's office. OH. MY. WORD.
What was supposed to be 30 minutes of tension-relieving bliss turned out to be 30 minutes of tense awkwardness (at least on my part). Why so tense you ask? Oh, I'll tell ya.

1. I've gotten massages before, but I have never gotten a massage from a man. Keep in mind that you are naked from the waist up lying in a dim room lit by aromatherapy candles covered by a sheet but it wasn't Helga smoothing the kinks out of my muscles, it was Sven.
   
2. I've never gotten a massage by a man who looked like he could go audition for the doggoned Chippendales. Yes, ladies, you heard right. To quote my cousin, that man was "swole". So there I am lying on my belly, naked from the waist up and all I could think about was, dang, my rolls are showing. Should have had a few less muffins. LOL!
3. To quote Jodie Foster from Sommersby, "You are NOT my husband!" LOL
   

Afterwards, the Chippendale told me that I had a lot of tension in my upper shoulders and neck. Out loud I replied, "Yeah, those are the spots that always tense up when I'm stressed."
In my head I said, "Dude! You are a dude and you are not my husband! Do YOU know what you look like???"
Aarrrggghhh
Never would anything that ridiculous have happened to me when I was young and nubile and single!
LOL
So after I got over the fact of this strange man rubbing down my fat back, I spent the second half of the massage wondering if he was single and if he would be offended if I introduced him to my single friend Traci. LOL!

So after my fiasco of a massage, I took myself to lunch at one of my favorite Chinese restaurants and had a yummy meal of Garlic Chicken with Stir-fried Veggies (my favorite from this place).
Then, I went to the Riversong Spa & Salon for a pedicure and an eyebrow waxing. After my spa treatments, I went shoe shopping!

Ahhh, it doesn't get any better than that.

Check out my new toes and my new blinged out sandals!

Last but certainly not least, I had a romantic dinner date with the hubby. We went to this nice restaurant here called the "Sapphire Bar & Grill" at the penthouse level of the Double Tree Hotel here in JC. It was really nice and offered a wonderful view of downtown. The meal was pretty good (if a little bland) but the view and the ambiance was wonderful. I also got a piece of birthday cheesecake. A wonderful end to an awesome day. I am so blessed.


So, while I had a few sad moments thinking about the baby who isn't here yet, the rest of the day was full of fun times, good food, and great shopping! Hopefully by this time next year, I will have a chubby baby to kiss for my birthday.

Peace and blessings!

May 4th, 2011

On another note, our Etsy store that we opened online is moving along. We are raising money for our adoption fund and are selling cute bracelets. We've sold two bracelets in two days, so I think that's awesome! Check it out!