Happy Birthday to - ME!

Greetings and salutations!  Well, it just so happens that while I am waiting for my house to be clean (HA) so I can take pictures and introduce you to our dwelling, I got old.  :)  Thought I would share some pictures from the day (or more accurately, evening).

The day started out nice and lazily.  I should mention something I will probably elaborate on more in another post - our water had to be turned off the night before due to a leak in our kitchen.  So, we truly weren't sure if we would have running water in the house, or if it would be a few days before it was fixed.  As with most things here (and in life in general), you may be crabby for a bit, but you just accept it and deal with it.  WELL, my first birthday present was Benjamin being able to do a temporary fix and get the water back up and running by about 10:30.  Yeah!  I get a shower after all!!!  Probably one of the best presents.

A good friend from FL who is working in an orphanage a few hours away came on Sunday to celebrate my bday - she wouldn't let me do any dishes, even though we had extra to wash from not having water Sunday (why isn't it my bday every day???)  Anyway, A is a sweetheart and always a privilege to have around.  She lives in our guest room while she is here.  We recently bought a clock and some mirrors to put in there.  I told her she needed to help me decide where to hang them since she is the one who stays in that room the most!  But I digress... (SHOCK!)

So, we painted our nails and did a little bit of pampering.  I was able to talk to Aunt Angeline and Pastor Tucker for a bit, then we had a late lunch of grilled cheese (YUM!) and a salad.  Later on, I was privileged to be able to talk on Skype to multiple family members.  You guys made me late for my surprise tea thing!  Well, actually, I had to wait until after the water was back on to turn on the hot water to heat it for a shower (hello - winter here, not takin' a cold shower unless I HAVE to!).  So, I had a later shower and with this and that, mom was online by the time I was just going to take my shower.  So, I basically threw on sweats and figured I would get ready later.

I didn't know about the surprise tea thing - but we were planning on going over to K and C's to have dessert with them and their kids, and another family who were then going to take the kids so we could have an adults only dinner out at a newer restaurant.

So, I lost track of time a little and by the time I got off of Skype with people and got ready, we were about 30 min late.  Oops!  I seem to have a bad habit of being late for surprise parties!  Maybe if people told me about them ahead of time, I would be better prepared!

So, we went over to K and C's and I was met by a bunch of friends.  Here is a pic of the ladies who were there.  All but two of them work with SIL/ Wycliffe in different ways.  We are privileged to have a large number of expats in the area b/c of the Bible translation etc.  It was a really nice time.  We had tea/coffee and dessert together, then went our separate ways.  One of the gals thoughtfully gave me a 30's survival kit (just to let me know what was coming...).  It's pretty funny/insightful, so I will list what she wrote in the card.

  *An eraser for those mistakes we sometimes make

  *Gatorade for that energy we sometimes lack

  *Sports tape for those little niggles and aches

  *Raisins in case of tummy trouble

  *Post-its for the things we forget

  *Chocolate desert to make all things right again!

Wow!  She must be a 30's pro! :)

K and C's daughter used her rest time to make me some cute thingy's to stick on my shirt.  You can see the heart pin thingy in the picture below.  She will be turning 8 soon and loves to be artistic.  She also colored a Happy Birthday sign for me and drew a lot of really pretty flowers.  Wish I knew how to draw like she does when I was that age!

After everyone else left, we headed out to a newer restaurant.  It was quite nice.  The flowers on the table were dying and it smelled like old mop water, but after they started cooking the food, you couldn't smell that and we moved the flowers so that all would be right in the world.  Actually, as far as the restaurants around here go, it was probably the nicest one I have ever been in.  AND (here is a REAL bonus) they actually have REAL ketchup - not the nasty pink stuff that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole.  Side note - we actually brought ketchup from home with us, just in case.  I really enjoy fries, but enjoy them much more with some good ketchup.  Restaurants here can be exciting or challenging or just plain really bad.  We don't go out to eat much, but I think we will probably repeat this place sometime.  Also, the price was pretty good - comparable to most places around here.  Including sodas and the tip it was just under $40 for all 5 of us to eat out.

K, me, and A here - we took some pics while we were waiting for our food.  These ladies are great - they help my sanity bunches and we have lots of serious discussions and good times together.  K and I are trying to get together to work out regularly.  It seems like we get in a good groove, and then we get thrown off threw various and sundry things... but it helps to have someone to exercise with.  Below is a pic of us with K and her hubby, C.  The four of us get together once or twice a week - it just depends.  We have taught them Rook and now they are addicted, so it is fun to go there and play that together.  Unfortunately, their kids have taken an intense dislike to the game.  Often little N will say, 'Oh no!  You're playing THAT game AGAIN?!?'  Give her a few more years, she will probably be joining us. :)

Finishing off my first post ever, here is an adorable pic with my beyond wonderful hubby.  I think we actually look cute!

Well, hope you enjoyed your look into my day.  I will try and get some pics of the house soon - give you a virtual tour and all that.  Still trying to get the hang of this posting thing, so let me know if you have helpful suggestions!

~Audrey