Twenty- Nine

Today is the first day of the last year in my twenties.

My hospital picture - 1983

I seriously cannot believe I turned 29 yesterday. I thought all year long that I was turning 28 on May 3. It wasn’t until I said something a couple months ago that my Dad informed me I was ALREADY 28 and May would make 29 for me. In my mind I guess I’ll always be in my early twenties and I will never remember getting old enough to vote, much less be married and have kids! :)

When I was younger, my brother always said I was spoiled. I’ll never forget my BFF telling him I was in no way spoiled- I was just “very, very loved.”  :)

And loved is definitely what I felt this year on my birthday.

The celebrations started with Carrie and the kids on Wednesday. We met up at the mall for lunch and a little shopping. I MIGHT have felt my age and season of life that day, since we did forego the usual birthday lunch at an actual restaurant and parked our double strollers at the Chick-fil-A in the food court! :)  Any time we get to spend with our friends is always fun, and always colorful. We have two three year olds, it has be. :)

That night, DW and I had a date! We don’t go out alone very often and it was such a treat. Uncle Adam & Aunt Nen were so sweet to offer to keep the girls for us. We went to the Izzak Walton Lodge, which happens to be where we went on our second date over ten years ago. It’s on the water and a whole lot has flowed through there since that sweet second date of ours. We would have never imagined where our lives would take us that night 10 years ago, but I am sure glad it’s taken us together. We couldn’t be that close to the gulf and not drive down to see it.

AB was so excited it was my birthday! I couldn’t believe she remembered first thing yesterday morning. When she woke up, she didn’t wish me a Happy Birthday, but she did tell me she needed to call her Grammy to make sure she had the cake for my “Paw-ty” that night. AB LOVES dessert. We know exactly where she gets that from. :)

That evening, we had a literal seafood fest at our house with my parents and in-laws. Dinner was great, but the most exciting part was my cake. I couldn’t believe it when my Dad got there carrying a Dairy Queen Ice cream cake. I asked WHERE in the world they found a DQ around us that made cakes only to find out that him and my Momma drove all the way to Cross City to get it. Even better than the gesture itself, was when someone said, “Yall drove ALL the way to Cross City to get it?” and my Dad said, “Well, sure. It was for Annie.” :) I remember eating DQ Ice cream cakes in Georgia in the summers I would spend up there. They were my favorite, but I never got one here for my b-day because we didn’t have a DQ. I hadn’t had any in years, but it was just as good as I remembered.

Dr. Gary Chapman would be blown away, because ALL the five love languages were represented extremely well that night. ESPECIALLY my top three, which are “Words of Affirmation, “Receiving Gifts” and “Quality Time.”

After yesterday, I KNOW Carrie was right all those years ago when she told Beau that I was “very, very loved” – but I am thinking he may have been, too. I definitely feel very loved and very spoiled. But above all, VERY blessed and VERY thankful.

Bring on 30! :)

~amw~