so this is 40

Well it is clear that old age has settled in because I've started and forgotten this post so many times that I can't recall what my original thoughts were and my thoughts probably weren't that original. I think I had wanted to provide some great insight in to what it meant to be 40 but I have nothing really. I don't know that it is much different than any other year with the exception that I think with every other decade turn the thought was about what is yet to come and with this one I find myself not so focused about what is yet to come but appreciating the now.

A quick birthday recap. I was treated to some fun afternoons and evenings out with friends before and after my birthday. I was surprised by flock of flamingos on my yard the day of my birthday. And yes there are 40 flamingos. This little flamingo stunt has alerted basically everyone in Pflugerville to my new age and I've been stopped at the grocery store and at school and wished a happy birthday (because "I saw the flamingos").

This past weekend, I got to sneak away with some good friends for a quick Girls Getaway to Fredricksburg. It was fun times. I am probably not supposed to share the details but needless to say we laughed, we ate and drank too much and really we just got enjoy each others company without the distraction of life and kids. It was quite the treat.

Here is my deep thought for turning 40. Again nothing original but more some thoughts on moving forward and where I hope to place my energies as I work through this next decade.

Wakan Tanka, Great Mystery, teach me how to trust my heart, my mind, my intuition, my inner knowing, the senses of my body, the blessings of my spirit. Teach me to trust these things so that I may enter my Sacred Space and love beyond my fear, and thus Walk in Balance with the passing of each glorious Sun.  - Lakota Prayer

Birthday Eve

Deep thoughts on the eve of a new decade.

Hello February

And just like that January is over and we are jumping in to February with the super bowl (known over here as an excuse to eat a lot of delicious and not-good-for-you food) and most importantly the biggest birthday ever!

This month has been some of the coldest most miserable raining weather that we've had during our time here. Last year we had the ice, which made the cold bearable but this year it was just plain ol' yucky. I know I can't complain, I am not in Boston dealing with a stupid amount of snow but when you are used to seeing the sun most days the cold and wet start to bring you down.

Kid update...
We still have 4 of them although I often offer the girls up to anyone in public who gushes over their cuteness.

JT - he is cruising along in middle school and knock on wood, seems to be doing fine. He and Rick spent an insane amount of time working on his science project, a Rube Goldberg machine. All the kids in pre-AP science had to create one and this past week we went up to school to watch the videos from all the kids. It was really quite amazing. Just this week, I also got an email from JT's science teacher that he got a 100% on his most recent test. And what would the end of January, start of February be without an announcement that baseball season is starting up. We've out in our uniform and fan gear order adn we will have our first practice next week.

Zach - have I ever mentioned that Zach has an amazing memory? Obviously he doesn't get it from me. He put this skill to the test by participating and winning the GeoBee at school. We attended the UIL competition to watch Zach compete against all the Pville school winners. The audience got to play along and I have to say, I've never felt dumber than answering random geography questions. Since he won for his school, he took the Statewide test and we will know by end of the month if he is attending the State competition.

Chickens - I don't even know where to start with these two. There are days when I just look at Rick and tell him that I think it is amazing that we survive a day. They have so much energy, such strong personalities, and they know our weaknesses. They know we are too old and tired to fight them. The other day I was wrapping up work but could hear a lot of commotion in the kitchen, I asked JT to check on it and he returned with a container of M&Ms that I had tucked way up high in the pantry. When I confronted KitKat (who had pulled one of the barstools over to the pantry and climbed up to my hiding spot) she told me that she wouldn't have stolen the M&Ms if I would have just given her chicken. They are super cute though and I am always amazed with how their interests range from princesses, to horses, to teenage mutant ninja turtles. Lulu is oddly interested in Valentine's day, which we never celebrate so we've been putting up hearts around the house.

So here we are in February. We don't have big plans for the birthday celebration but a night out next weekend and I am running away for a night in Fredricksburg in a few weeks with some friends for a birthday celebration.