To all the Moms and Mr. Moms, we have THE hardest job in the world but you are appreciated each and every day. Today is a special day just for YOU so I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing Mother’s Day surrounded by family and all the love you can endure from your devil’s spawn in one 24 hour period before you want to ring their little necks like a wet towel and ship them off to the pits of hell with a no return policy.  You deserve it!  Happy Mother’s Day!

The new tree is about 6ft, so I plan to donate the 8.5 ft tree that we used in our house.  It was way too much work to put up, decorate, and take down – and the box took up unnecessary storage space in my little apartment.  So this new tree was one of my birthday gifts and I prepared a spread of finger foods and snacks for my friends while we decorated.  After several drinks and lots of laughter, this was the final result:

According to German legend, the pickle brings good luck. After all the other ornaments are hung on the tree, the pickle ornament is hidden somewhere within the branches. Legend has it that the observant child who finds the pickle on Christmas Day is blessed with a year of good fortune…and a special gift.  In present day, the pickle tradition encourages young children to enjoy the many ornaments on the tree before checking to see what Santa Clause brought them. [source]

Charlie Brown aint got nothing on me, yo!

After decorating the tree, we delivered several unwrapped gifts to the teen that we adopted for the holidays.  Lawd, did they go overboard with the gifts!  But it’s all love and in the spirit of Christmas.  Now, I’m back home in my fleece pajamas and drinking a cup of Swiss Miss French Vanilla hot chocolate.  It’s been a great day!

Today marks the beginning of my birthday season – a time when I celebrate being ME for an entire month.  I’m so special that one day just won’t do. LOL  During my birthday season, I plan to buy myself something new every week and party every weekend.  Yea baby!

The first item on my wish list is a B. Makowsky handbag.  The buttery-soft pebbled leather, satin interior lining, and gold hardware make it oh so dreamy!  Check it out.  I’ll have to think really hard about my other birthday gifts to ME.  I’m on the prowl for a tropical holiday vacation deal, but I don’t know if I can pull that off at the last minute.

My first party is this Saturday.  I’m having a tree trimming party with an assortment of desserts and light hors d’oeuvres (read: get other people to decorate your tree and buy you ornaments).  Next weekend, I’m having a game night party with a gift exchange (read: extra birthday presents for ME!).  Then, I plan to crash a few holiday parties and handle grownfolkbidness. *wink*

At each event, I will rock a birthday tiara, a flashing birthday girl button, or my T-shirt that says “Kiss Me, It’s My Birthday!”  Read: T-R-O-U-B-L-E. LOL

Happy Born Day to All of the December Babies!!

[I want this sign on a T-shirt!]

There are so many things I am thankful for, just to name a few:

My faith in God. He has proven time and time again that He will never leave me nor forsake me.  Lord, I thank you for carrying me through some very difficult things this year!

My health. It isn’t the best, but I know how to make it better and I’m well on my way.

My BabyGirl who will be soon referred to as CollegeGirl.  She is so beautiful (inside and out) and I have enjoyed watching her blossom into a young lady.  I feel blessed that God chose me to be her mom.  Side Note: She came to me yesterday and said “Mom, I’m glad you raised me as a single mom. When I think about my father’s life, I believe you made the best decision for us considering the circumstances.”  And then, I heard the angels sing. LOL

Unconditional love and support from my family and friends.  I’m an introvert and not much of a people person, so I only have a few close family and friends.  For those who are able to penetrate my outer shell, I treasure our bond with everything I have in me and I’m ride or die until the end.

Common sense and intuition. I’m a force to be reckoned with, thanks to a balanced life of hard knocks, 18 years of formal education, and 8 years of extraordinary opportunities. But my common sense and intuition have helped me to avoid many common pitfalls.  It’s a shame, but there are many people who are smart as a whip (book sense) but dumb as a box of rocks (life).

My career. I love what I do because it fits my personality.  The opportunities are endless, every day is different, there is always a challenge to overcome or a fire to extinguish, and everyone thinks their problem is the most critical of the moment.  Basically I get paid to pacify very important people, argue persuade people to do what I need them to do, and spend lots of money.

Financial security. This has less to do with dollars and cents, but more about sheer determination.  If I am blessed to see another 50+ years, I know that I will always be financially secure.  It isn’t that I think I’m immune to misfortune, but I know my source and I’m confident in my ability to rebuild from rock bottom.

This blog. How else would I be able to communicate with all of you?  We inspire each other!

Please share with us some of the things you are thankful for.

In the meantime, I hope you all are enjoying this day with your loved ones and creating memories that will last a lifetime.  Happy Thanksgiving!

I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to call her that. She’s officially a high school senior, and in one more year, she’ll be legally classified as an adult. *sigh*

Aside from the occasional slip of the tongue that often results in her mouth making contact with the back of my hand, I kinda enjoy this phase of her life. She’s growing into her own, becoming very independent, testing the waters, making a few mistakes, and mommy has been right there, by her side, every step of the way.

This past weekend, we had her 17th birthday party at the pool. I hired a lifeguard, we had an iPod playlist, a spread of food (sandwiches, wings, chips/dip, sliced fruit/veggies), cupcakes, juice, and plenty of bottled water.

It was her first co-ed party. Of the 20 kids invited, 15 returned the RSVP and 14 showed up – 9 girls and 5 boys. My mom and 4 of my friends were there too. With 15 teenagers and their raging hormones, I needed backup supervision! I think Mr. EC took his job too seriously. At one point, BabyGirl asked me to send him home. She said every time a boy came over to talk to her, he’d find a reason to join their conversation. LOL! I asked him to chill out (a little) and he said “no problem, I’ll just activate my supersonic ears.” *smh* Aside from him acting like a Secret Agent assigned to Special Project BabyGirl, the kids had a great time.

After the pool party, we had an after party A.K.A. a spa themed slumber party with 3 of her closest girlfriends. I made spa bags for all the girls that included a manicure set, toe separators, glitter polish, flavored lip gloss, sleep masks, and an assortment of bath & body products. One of my girlfriends helped them do facials, which were followed by 1,000 calorie ice cream sundaes. I also heard they had a ‘Stanky Leg’ and ‘Simon Says’ dance contest, and the only person in the room over the of age 18 claimed victory. LOL! I have no idea what time my girlfriend left because I was out for the count by 11pm. The next morning, everyone said they had so much fun and I missed the best part of the night. Oh well, I guess you can call me a party pooper.

On Saturday, BabyGirl continued the festivities with a graduation party hosted by one of her school associates. My mom chauffeured, BG partied, and then they both shopped – while I slept. Still can’t believe I missed a shopping trip…just goes to show how tired I was. My bones are old and I can’t drop like it’s hot the way I used to. Whenever I try, it takes my body an entire day to recover. I know I should just quit, but I’m convinced that ‘30 is the new 20′ – almost.

Anyhoo…

BabyGirl had a busy celebration weekend, and if she plays her cards right, her future will be much of the same and full of exciting opportunities. Today, she’s going away for a 2 week summer program at a University. We’re loading up the car for a 3 hour road trip so she can add to her repertoire of life experiences and happy memories. When she returns, she’ll join the ranks of the gainfully employed and complete a paid summer internship in my office for 6 weeks.

I consider that a jam packed summer, but she called it “down time.”  She said when cheerleading camp and marching band begin in August, SAT prep/test come around again in the fall, and college application due dates creep up this winter, she might feel “old and tired” like me.

*side eye*

See, that was one of those occasions when her mouth would have accidentally made contact with the back of my hand, but I let it slide – only because I was distracted by a wave of emotion. At that very moment, I noticed my BabyGirl young adult is a go getter – a little mini me.

Then I smiled and thought…

She’s growing up, just beginning her journey.

I’m getting older, almost at the peak of my journey.

She has so much to learn. I have so much to teach.

Whatever path she takes or however she chooses to get there, I will continue to be right there, by her side, every step of the way.  It’s a shame her father is missing out on all of this.  But alas, another year has gone by without him. *shrug*

First thing this morning, she climbed into my bed and gave me a big bear hug and a kiss.  She thanked me for being her mom and rambled about her weekend shenanigans.  I was half listening and half asleep until I heard her whisper…

Happy Father’s Day, Mom.

And that’s when I realized, no matter how old she gets, she will always be my BabyGirl.