Another Year Down - still kickin'

So in the Tag I just answered on Saturday I didn't put my age down and then yesterday I realized how dumb that was because of course most of you know my age, and some of you ARE my age!!! Silly Silly Silly. So now I'll state it plainly: I turned 51 years old last week. Still can't believe it. But hey, you've heard the new addage: "40's are the new 20's, 50's are the new 30's, 60's are the new 40's, etc." It seems to be true, yessir.

I really enjoyed my birthday last Wednesday - it was much quieter than some in the past but suited me just fine. And I felt loved and remembered, which is the important thing, right? Well that and the fact that I celebrated another year of life (the alternative isn't so attractive, eh?). The last couple of years I've felt especially grateful for this, and in my morning prayer I tried to make it a prayer strictly of gratitude, offering thanks for everything good in my life that I could think of. I did end up with a few requests at the end, but hey I'm not perfect ... yet. :-)

I decided to go into work a little later than usual (worked late on Tuesday so I had the comp time) and I made myself a birthday breakfast (rare, because you know how much I don't cook):

Buttered whole wheat toast, an omelet with onions and tomatoes, and grape juice. I forgot to add some basil from my plant - oops! I was going to try a little lemon verbena from my other herb plant too but forgot. Hahaha, the age thing was REALLY kicking in.

The work day was pleasant and not too stressful (yay!) and then I had the opportunity to go out to dinner with my 3 sissies, Nancy, Sue and Ruth (I consider Ruth my third sister). We went to a place we'd never been to before: a little Mexican restaurant in Lehi (just near the Saratoga Springs/ Harvest Hills crossroad) called "Cafe El Lago LLC." I picked it (birthday girl had to pick) and I based it on some rave reviews we read online. Okay, I have to admit the raves about their chips & salsa were dead-on ... they were REALLY REALLY good (hot, homemade and tasty) but everyone's main dishes were "good but nothing to rave about." I think Sue, Nancy and Ruth all had the taco salad and I had Nachos (of course!). But it wasn't bad food -- it was just good food -- but not "rave about" food. Does that make sense? Our waitress was darling (extremely helpful) and the atmosphere was pleasant and I so enjoyed spending the time with my 3 sissies. Here's our mug shots:

Nancy ...
Sue Bee ...
Ruth ...
(Ruth hates to have her picture taken but she succumbed since it was my birthday)

and Me!

And how did I end the day? Hahahaha - sorting beads so I could get back to making some bracelets!
I had a divider tray of different kinds of beads open up in my storage bag recently and they had a jolly good time combining themselves into one big mess. I'm too anal to allow that to remain, so I began laboriously dividing them back into their individual piles. Ack.

Along with a terrific dinner with my family, all during the day and evening I heard from my mom and my dear friends (via e-cards, phone calls, e-mails) and several people in the ward, and my poor brother tried to leave a message but our message box on our phone was full. Sorry Scott! I'm so fortunate to have such good people in my life. I didn't expect my other brother, Dave to remember and that's okay. :-) I often forget his birthday too, I'm mortified to say. But I know that we love each other anyways. My birthday has continued on for a few days, as Ruth and our good friend Wendy-Lady went to breakfast on Saturday morning (here she is - such a great person):

... and my friend and co-worker Margaret made a FABULOUS orange cheesecake with chocolate swirls and brought it in for everyone to share, today:

Talk about GOOD -- oh my. Margaret's cheesecakes are legend here and I swear she could rival the Cheesecake Factory, if she wanted to. Thank you Margaret!

I was blessed with some gifts too, though I'm so embarrassed because I told my sissies and some friends "no gifts please" and then I completely forgot to tell others! (Ack, it's that short-term memory thing going on again). I'm delighted with them though:

A lovely necklace from Debbie ... the pendant is hand ... hmmm, what do you call it when the design is carved into metal? This on-line designer has wonderful designs, you should check her site out (http://lisaleonardonline.com/).

The bird has special meaning ... it's to remind me that I should always think of the tag line I have on my blog ("life is a song worth singing"). And it IS, isn't it? Thank you Deb!

And Wendy gave me a beautiful opal pendant that matches some earrings we (she, Ruth and I) bought at a recent gem faire we went to in Salt Lake:

I'm afraid you'll have to look closely ... I should've had Wendy zoom the camera closer so you could see the pendant better. It's a lovely opal blue. Thank you Wendy! Hey ... I actually like this picture of myself - haha! I'm missing my glasses because I was trying to read the menu and I can't read with my glasses on. HAH! Can hardly read with them off, either.

Along with the good experience of my birthday, I've been doing some reflecting. I had a rather disconcerting experience in church yesterday -- my first "age-related terror moment" I think. I was in Sacrament Meeting and smiling over Karla's little girl who was offering a flirty smile to Adam's little boy (they were in the pews in front of me) and the thought crossed my mind, "Those kids are going to be so cute when they get into Young Men/Young Women, and maybe they'll even date each other." And THEN my terror moment ... my mind moved on: "Oh wow. I will be almost 65 years old when they DO get into YM/YW!!!!!!!" It absolutely horrified me ... not because I think that 65 is terrible but because I DO NOT want my life to end!!!!! I want to keep living and living and living. But, nor do I want to experience the possible illnesses many people face in their older years, either. And that's where my mind went next ... the potential for really difficult illnesses. My mind said, "I can't get old because I am ALL ALONE!!!" (translation: I am without a man). That makes no sense whatsoever because I know the Lord takes care of all of us, but it's what came unbidden to my mind. I have to wonder, do other single women my age have this same worry? Do the single men?

Well I didn't expect to have such a strong, freaky feeling overtake me but I pushed it back and resumed listening to the talk being given. It haunts me a little, but there's no stopping the clock, is there? It means I need to remember to NOT take one day for granted. Each day lived is a gift.

And on that note, let's end with something lighter and perhaps a bit of silliness, shall we? I found my very favorite poem from when I was a teenager -- it completely reflects my feelings about this amazing earth-ride (and it's what I wrote on the vellum page across from my high school graduation picture):

I am a child of God
I am in love
with life;
I live for today ...
I am today;
I love beautiful things.
I touch the dawn, and reach for the dusk.
I see sunbeams
I touch warmth
I hear music
I smell freshness
I taste happiness
I love my friends;
they make my life sing.
Life itself -- it's beautiful
Live!
I am alive -- and I love it.
(anonymous)

And one I've always loved, that also reflects some of my experiences (or maybe the tantrums I've thrown):

Old Tree,
How many storms you
Have withstood
While I,
Frail creature,
Find myself dismayed
By one.

And then let's show you what MY 50's look like:

Okay, I'm being silly ...

But Pretty Darn Good for an OLD LADY, eh?

I could go on and on but you'd go crazy, yes? (And this is getting a little narcissitic).