Lordy, Lordy, Look Who's Forty

As the old saying goes! That's Paul last night, celebrating the big 4-0. I had to post about it on Facebook and might have said something about being married to an "old man." So of course, Will zinged back, "March is coming and then he won't be the only OLD person in our house!" Hah!

I made Paul a fried chicken dinner, per his request. As I mixed the batter ingredients, I couldn't help remember my reading last week that MSG actually kills brain cells. Oh well... We had a nice dinner and then a little party for Paul. I also had the kids go around the table and list things they were thankful for in their dad.

Monday David and I had gone out to the Brass Armadillo, an antiques store in Ankeny. I had never been there before, but would have liked longer to poke around. Paul had mentioned some Tonka trucks he saw (but I couldn't find). But we got him a few things. David insisted on buying the John Deere sign for him with his own money. And Will had a John Deere knife that he had picked up at another antiques store some time back. Paul had admired it, so Will wrapped it up for his dad. I have such sweet boys!

We had gotten home Monday from shopping and Sam saw our purchases. David must have told him that they were for Dad's birthday. So that night when Paul got home, Sam announced, "It your bertday. We got you John Deere!" Paul turned to me with a bemused expression on his face and asked, "Is he supposed to be talking?" I guess David isn't the only one now who can't keep a secret!

Sam was pretending to be a lion the other night, running through the house, over and over, hollering, "Rawr!" Then I took him upstairs for his shower and he was running his fingernails up and down the shower stall and told me he was "sharpening" his claws! I told him his middle name (Leo) means "lion" but I don't know if he understood me or not.

I got a new collage frame Monday at Hobby Lobby. I am such a sucker for those things! I just love displaying family photographs, I guess. I was looking for something to fill my new empty space on my living room wall and I kept coming back to this gorgeous frame. It would just go so well because it has a reddish background and then underneath all the photo openings the word, "Blessings." But it was a $70 frame! However, I did have a 40% off coupon and $20 worth of gift cards from Christmas. So, I stewed and stewed about it. At one point, I had picked something else and was in line. But I got out of line because I just couldn't decide! I finally decided to go with the collage frame and, to my delight, discovered that it was already marked 50% off. There wasn't a sign, so I didn't know that. So anyway, after all was rung up, my $70 frame cost me only $17! When I got home I ordered some pictures from Snapfish to fill the openings and with a discount code I had with them and some credits to my account, my entire order, including shipping was $3!

So, I had to find individual pictures of the boys for the frame. I was able to get ones of Will, Ben, and Sam very easily, ones taken this fall. But I had the hardest time finding one of David! I couldn't believe it. I guess I just don't take enough pictures of him. Or the ones I do take, he's clowning around in, making faces. He does fancy himself to be a bit of a comedian. His latest thing is making up jokes about everything. But they aren't that funny. And then he gets offended when we don't laugh. Somehow, I just don't think his future is going to be found on the comic stage! So anyway, I had to go clear back to June to get a decent picture of him. And then it was one taken with his brother, whom I was able to crop out. So, I need to try to get more pictures of him, I guess.

Tomorrow will be a busy day for me. I have to go to the chiropractor's. Then, in the afternoon, I am going to a FEMA mitigation meeting with another council member down in Knoxville. We'll get back from that and there's a city council meeting at 6:30. I wonder if Paul will want to do a date night tomorrow. Don't know. And I also have to cook dinner somewhere in there.

Friday evening we are driving to Walnut (the antique "capital" of Iowa, they claim - but now that I've been to the Amanas, I'm not so sure they're right on that) and spending the night in a hotel. Then we're going to antique all day long on Sat. Then that evening we'll drive to Council Bluffs and celebrate his birthday with his family. And then on Sunday we'll visit our old church and then come home. It'll be busy, but it should be enjoyable. Paul needs these respites, I've noticed. He'll work so long and hard and then he just has to have a break. So we get one and then he's good to go again.

Speaking of breaks, Ben's Christmas one, and ours, will end next week. It seems like all the other area schools went back this week, but not Pleasantville. He needs to go back. I need him to go back. And I need to get back into the routine with the other boys.

My surgery date is March 8. We got that set up this week. I got my last Depo shot yesterday. Wow, those things are wicked. By evening, my leg was numb! But I'm fine today. I guess I'm kind of neutral on the surgery. I can't say I'm looking forward to it, but I'm looking forward to the results. I suppose that can be said of any surgery. Does anyone ever look forward to being operated on? Probably not. Then, my goal is going to be avoiding a hysterectomy. I've got some herbal things I want to do to that end. I'm going to be kind of unhappy if I go through this ablation and then still have to get my uterus yanked out down the road.

Well, I think I'm going to trot upstairs and take my shower. Do you know what I'm looking to most about this weekend? The bathtub at the hotel. Seriously! I have not had a bath since Aug. 6 and I want one! The thought of submersing my body in boiling hot water, covered by bubbles - about as close to Heaven on earth as you can get, I think!