Birthday as Mommy

This post is a week overdue, but honestly, work has been busy and mommyhood has been busy. But I wanted to take a moment to write a post about my first birthday celebration since becoming a mommy.

Well, my birthday was August 20, which was last Wednesday. So, basically, it was not an optimal day for celebration. But that didn't stop me from having a great birthday. I had told Cliff earlier in the week that one of the things I wanted for my birthday was to have lunch with my daughter. He made it happen. He arranged with Nanie to come to the mall near my work so we could all have lunch together. We opted to eat at The Cheesecake Factory. The meal was good, although the service was very slow. That's ok; it just means I got even more time with my husband and daughter.

I was a little sad that my coworkers forgot my birthday. Well, not all of them. I got an Amazon gift card from my work mom, Lynn. And one of the admins gave me a nice birthday card. Not to mention that lovely Facebook messages I received from several other people who work at my office. But the people who work with me in Accounting forgot (although, they made it up to me that Friday). I kept waiting for something, but around 3:30 p.m., I asked Cliff if he thought I should stop and get myself a cake since I didn't get one at work. He volunteered to get one for me on his way to get Tiny Dancer. Look at what he got for me.

And that wasn't the only surprise when I got home. My mother-in-law had gotten me a few gifts, including the gift I really wanted for spending time with my girl while running: a jogging stroller.

We tried it out on the Greenway, although we only walked this time.

I also got some gifts from my mom, including my favorite new kitchen gadget: a veggie spiralizer to make healthier meals.

Stock image; I'll have to get an action shot at home soon.

But my favorite things came from my little family. My husband and daughter had each gotten me cards. No pictures - the words inside are only for me. But Cliff had helped Tiny Dancer scrawl her name inside the card. It was so precious. He also got me a family ring, which I now wear in place of my wedding ring because now we are a family, not just a married couple. It seems only fitting.

Emerald for Cliff, Tanzanite for Tiny Dancer, Peridot for me

So, it was a great birthday. We extended it a bit by having a day date last Saturday. Nanie watched Tiny Dancer, and Cliff and I enjoyed a lovely lunch at the Yardhouse and a movie.

It was a pretty funny movie. At first, we had contemplated waiting for the video release instead of catching this in theaters. But it's a Marvel movie...we have to see it on the big screen. Those are really the only movie theater indulgences we do since we had Tiny Dancer...Marvel and most likely, Hunger Games (which have only two remaining).

Anyway, it was a nice birthday, a very nice day date, and many nice regular days otherwise. I'm enjoying these things called "Marriage" and "Family".