A Great Birthday

I really have to hand it to my kids; they're terrific at stepping up and making sure I feel special. It isn't always the same one (or ones) who are able to be with me on my birthday, but usually at least one of them is. Two years ago, when I was still recovering from my second shoulder surgery and (perhaps insanely) decided to drive up north, I was with all three of them. They threw me a party, which I have no doubt was mainly organized by the eldest. Now that he has two kids, he knows what parents do to make sure their kids' birthdays are memorable, and he can understand better than his brothers how much effort I put into that for all three of them over the years. Last year, he and my oldest granddaughter made me a beautiful dinner and birthday cake, and we spent a lovely evening together.

This year, my middle one and his girlfriend came through big. I love that they wanted to whisk me away to an unknown destination (even though I had an inkling where we were going and it turned out I was right). They picked me up around ten this morning and off we went. I played along as if I didn't know, but I'm pretty sure they knew I had figured it out. We ended up in Fernandina, which is on Amelia Island and has a delightful historic little waterfront area. I call it "mini-Annapolis" because it looks very similar to the old marina area there. The weather was perfect for wandering and shopping, overcast with a light breeze. They treated me to lunch at a waterfront restaurant, bought me several gifts while we were there, and just generally delighted in how happy I was to be there with them. One of the reasons I thought that might be our destination was that I had mentioned recently not having been there for a long time and thinking I'd like to go sometime soon. Now I can't wait to go back.

I can't remember a birthday before this year when I actually cared about it being a big deal. This year it was important to me, and I'm feeling happy not only that it all came together, but that my sons (as well as other special people in my life) cared about making that happen.