monday morning mumblings....

So yesterday my oldest "child" turned 30, Happy Birthday to Emily! I already gave her a pair of warm gloves and some adorable knee socks last week, but yesterday I stopped into Price Chopper for some whipped cream to go with the berries Kim gave me from Liz's baby shower, Liz being my brother Tom and his wife Kim's daughter....I went to the shower, (Liz looks adorable pregnant!), then realized it was Em's birthday, and remembered that oh yeah, she was coming for dinner. So I scurried toward home...

At the grocery store I found more birthday gifts...a cool knife, As Seen On TV, some facewash, Organix shampoo and conditioner that smells so heavenly, a pair of tights, and some Burt's Bees lotion. Oh, and a bag of Starbucks' Blonde roast coffee.

We watched Downton Abby and had popcorn. The good kind. Margaret and Jonathan got out the cookbook and made Em a birthday cake, even though I brought home some yummy 3 layer lemon-strawberry-orange cake from the shower, which the kids loved. Margaret just wanted to bake, I think. They made a vanilla cream cake, with fluffy cream cheese frosting. So now, this fine Monday morning, there are the remnants of two cakes calling to me. And today, I am not answering. Nope.

The kids have no school because it is Martin Luther King Day. The four teenagers are still in Ohio. Margaret and Jonathan are going out to lunch, and I am going on a quick trip to the small city with Kim, just because. Joseph is going to keep an eye on the princesses and their cousin Danille, whom was brought home from the shower with us to spend the night, much to the princesses' delight. We stopped at Redbox and got the movie, "Malificent", which Dani hadn't watched yet. Oh joy, they were happy. Those girls just play and play and play. They turn their bunk beds into a snuggly house, they set up Barbies, they sing and dance and dress up.

Our weather is moderating here in the northeast. Just regular snow, and cold, without being sub-zero. Yesterday it warmed up to a bit of rain, in fact.

Paul is back at work today. His a-Fib is still gone, thankfully. He has a little device that he holds to his chest every day, then telephones the dr. office, and they get a recording of his rhythm, which is totally magic, isn't it? He is supposed to do that if he feels it start racing, but hopefully it won't.

It's hard for me to see him slowed down by health. I don't know what it is, but I love him more and more. Seeing him in that hospital gown, all vulnerable and hooked up to the I.V., oh dear. He is so true, so genuine, so kind and responsible. He can still look at me and raise his eyebrows and make me just smile.

Ah well, I have things to do. After making a nice dinner last night, and washing lots of dishes, imagine my joy and happiness when I walked into the kitchen this fine Monday morning and discovered how many of the dishes didn't get washed...the popcorn pan and several bowls, one of the chicken pans, the frosting bowl from the cake, and an assortment of silverware, cups, and mugs. My first reaction was...well,never mind. I don't like housework, and I never will, but that doesn't mean I have to be miserable.

And now I need to really get going....