Happy Birthday to Me!

Many years ago, when I was an anesthesiology resident, my birthday was on a weekend and I was on call that Friday and Sunday. That was 48 hours spent at the hospital on my birthday weekend. I swore then that I would always request not to be on call on my birthday. In the last few years, I've also requested to be off on my birthday. This year, however, we had someone new doing the December call schedule, and I didn't want to request anything unless I absolutely needed it. The result was call on the day before my birthday, which meant that I was on call last night.

I knew that I was asking for trouble because I wanted to get sleep and nothing invites being busy on call more than wanting/needing to sleep due to planned activities the next day. In addition, it was a full moon last night. Luckily, it didn't turn out too badly in the end, but I still didn't get much sleep (but it was my fault for not going to bed early).

Maybe I was motivated to do things just because it was my birthday, but with only about two hours of sleep, I was able to stay up until after lunch. The first picture above was the Spicy Lamb Meatballs Pizza that Patrick and I shared for lunch. This second picture is a piece of the Dark Chocolate and Nutella Torte that we had for dessert. Yum!

After that yummy lunch, I took a shower and that created the perfect conditions for a nice afternoon nap. I woke up after Natalie got home. When I called to Eric, he came in and wished me a "Happy Birthday" as did Natalie. They both gave me nice hugs, even while I was still in bed. Loved it!

Natalie didn't go to swim practice tonight so we could go out for dinner. Alex still had soccer practice after school, however, so when Patrick left to pick Alex up, Natalie and Eric and I went ahead to the mall so we could meet them there. Natalie wanted to do a little shopping for Christmas gifts for her friends. We proceeded to The Cheesecake Factory when Patrick texted that he had Alex so that we could get on the list, if needed.

There was no wait for a table at The Cheesecake Factory, so we waited for Alex and Patrick to arrive. Eric was goofing off and I took this picture. After I took this picture, he asked if I would be able to turn him into a Minion on my phone. At first I was thinking that he must have heard of some new app where you could turn yourself into a Minion. That explained the goofy expression on his face in this photo--he was trying to look like a Minion!

We were so full after dinner (they have such large portions) that we took our dessert home. Alex was very happy with his pasta dish because he liked the taste and because they gave him a huge "Alex-size" portion. He finished all of it and he didn't have to order a second entree, which is something else he's been doing lately when we go out to eat.

Alex doesn't usually order anything at The Cheesecake Factory, believe it or not. This time he decided he would get the Banana Cream Cheesecake. He put Dulce de Leche ice cream with it and shared it with Eric. They finished almost the whole thing, but Alex said that he liked the ice cream more than the cheesecake and didn't think the banana taste went well with the cheesecake taste.

Eric also had a little of the Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake with Patrick and Natalie. Natalie would have wanted her own piece, but we went ahead and bought a whole cheesecake for when Anthony gets home on Friday. I had wanted to send him one for his birthday in October, but as of earlier this year, The Cheesecake Factory stopped shipping their cheesecakes. That will be a nice homecoming dessert to share with my oldest son.

My sister Cynthia called on Face Time to wish me a "Happy Birthday". As we talked, her family started doing things behind the chair she was sitting in, and she took a picture of them. The way Face Time works usually puts your photo in a small box in the corner, so I took some screen shots of my phone to send to her. We talked a little about my blog post last week about how her husband John had brainwashed the girls (including Natalie) into liking his alma mater Texas A&M University. He said that he calls it "enlightening" instead. It's always fun to hang out with Cynthia and her family--despite the subliminal brainwashing. ;)

My new laptop arrived today!!! I was actually the one who signed for it when the package came to the door. I didn't know it was coming today, but when Patrick saw it he said, "You were supposed to be asleep." The package came in the morning before my nap. :)

I bought my own birthday gifts, for the most part, except for the laptop. Patrick wasn't going to buy me a laptop without okaying the specs with me first. I bought this cool laptop cover that makes my laptop look red. The kids even remarked that the you can even see Apple symbol light up through the translucent case. Natalie asked why I bought myself my own presents (which Patrick wrapped so I would have stuff to open). Patrick told her, "So she knows she'll get what she wants." I have to say that even though I knew what was in the packages, I was still excited about opening the presents and getting to use them! I'm using my new laptop now to type out this blog post--awesome! I also got a bluetooth earphone set.

I also received a package from my parents today with pajamas. Yay, I can always use another set of warm PJs. Cynthia sent me a package as well, with a beautiful handmade card. She got me a Starbucks gift card and a scrapbooking desk calendar--cool!

I totally didn't get any Christmas prep stuff done today, so that will be on my agenda for tomorrow. For today, I couldn't ask for a better birthday--a loving family surrounding me and giving me hugs, a delicious lunch and dinner with yummy desserts, beautiful weather outside (even though I didn't get to enjoy it), and even birthday phone calls from my sister and her family, and one from my beloved son who I haven't seen in four months. Happy Birthday to me!