Friend and neighbor, Julie
This morning I got to sleep in a bit, then went downstairs to gifts from my fam. Ashlyn was more than happy to give me her sweet card {one that plays a song…which will inevitably become HER card to listen to over and over} that included a gift card to one of my favorite cheap/trendy stores. Kyle had made me a card with a poem he had written about our last year {love his poems!} and another gift card. Yes! Ash informed me {stage whisper} that Maguire’s card contained a 3rd gift card. WOOHOO! However, Maguire was insistent that I not open his card until I was eating birthday cake. That’s what you’re supposed to do; that’s what he did.
After breakfast we got in the car and headed west a bit {but not before using part of my Starbucks card, of course} to join my mom, my friend Ang and her kids for our “usual”. Our “usual” is most parents’ nightmare. But we love it: Chuck E. Cheese’s! Honestly, where else can you go and, for under $25, enjoy lunch and 3-4 hours of adult conversation while your kids run around FULLY entertained? Ok, maybe there are a few other places, but we seriously love our regular CEC “dates”. We have found that Tuesday mornings are usually pretty dead around there. And we’ve been there so many times over the last 2 years that the managers know us by name. They now help us find the best coupon codes, sneak our kids extra tokens and tickets {Mac calls one manager “Sneaky Tony”}, bring special treats for them…it’s our own personal kid-friendly Cheers! And ok, I have to admit that Ang and I have a favorite game we like to play whenever we can sneak a few tokens ;) No cake was consumed {I’m trying to actually complement my working out by sort of watching what I eat}, but Maguire agreed to let me open my card {another musical one, of course} over my birthday pizza {I said “sort of” watching what I eat…}, especially since I was opening my gifts from Ang/Izzy/Jud.
So many favorites in this photo! <3
After a fun and full day at CEC, the kids and I headed back home just in time to pick up the house a bit before the babysitters came over. WARNING: you’re about to be totally jealous. Our two neighbor girls {ages 12 and 14}, who our kids adore, babysit FOR POINTS! Yep, for about half the year they don’t accept money for babysitting. Their church has a point system where the kids earn points by doing things like taking notes in church, shoveling {yes, we’ve been on the receiving end of that one too!}, babysitting, and other forms of helping. If the kids earn a certain number of points, the church will pay their way to summer camp in full. It’s awesome! So…after our super-sitters arrived, another friend dropped over to bring me yet another of my comfort food staples: Diet Dr. Pepper! Not only that, but a new tube of lip gloss. I’m a little more than slightly obsessed with lip gloss and I LOVE trying new stuff. Perfect little birthday surprises! Kyle and I headed to the mall to do a little bit of shopping before our dinner reservation. Once at the restaurant, we ran into not one, not two, but THREE sets of friends! Two sets were celebrating birthdays today as well. Kyle and I enjoyed a delicious dinner, I had some incredible wine and a cute little birthday dessert. And even better–we used our GROUPON {if you haven’t checked it out yet, you need to! Click here}, so it was half price! Oh, how I love saving money :)
Isn't it cute?!
Now here I sit, so grateful, a heart full of love and toasty warm in my University of Michigan Snuggie {another gift}… Amazing how when we lower our expectations, they’re almost always exceeded! As my mom says, We need to raise our expectations of God and lower our expectations of people. People will let you down, but God never will. Right on, Mama; right on…
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