1) Saturday, June 14, 9:12 p.m. Happy Birthday wishes from my husband, it already having turned to June 15th in the country where he is away on business. (Yes, bad timing, but we made the best of it.)
2) Sunday, June 15, 5:37 a.m. A happy birthday text message from an early rising good friend that set the tone for the whole day by wishing me a day of wonderful surprises. The day did not disappoint. (Note: I did not discover the message until somewhere after 8:00 a.m., a more civilized hour!)
3) The cats let me sleep in until 9:00 a.m....not!
4) Songs from the universe DJ who inhabits my iTouch shuffle (and at times, my car radio). The first three of the day: "No One in the World (can love you like I do)" by Anita Baker, "I Believe in You" by Luka Bloom (an Irish folksinger my string quartet used to open for during my college years), and "Bad" sung by Luka Bloom (but a cover of a U2 song), which doesn't sound birthday-ish until you hear the refrain of "Let it go...surrender" -- one of my go-to mantras.
5) Big bowl of Greek yogurt with fresh blueberries (my favorites!) and honey for breakfast.
6) Wore my birthday present to myself -- a new favorite shirt!
7) Unable to find the keys to my car, I drove Paul's to church, only to discover that he had left an interior light on which would have eventually drained the battery.
8) Front row parking at church even though the lot was crowded.
9) Wink from the woman I sat down next to in church -- and wishes to have a great day as we left.
10) "For God so loved his only son..." gospel reading, followed by sermon all about LOVE.
11) Free doughnuts and coffee after mass (usually the first Sunday of the month).
12) Universe DJ, this time in the car, plays Pink's "Perfect."
13) Traffic light karma -- greens all day long.
14) Found a planter of those flowers that look like mini-petunias and verbenas, normally $20, on the clearance shelves at Lowe's for just $5 (such a great discount, the cash register could not compute.) They already looked happier this morning.
15) Universe DJ strikes again -- in car -- Katy Perry's Happy Birthday song.
16) A late lunch with my Godmother, her husband and a couple of her choir friends on her front porch.
17) Serenaded with "happy birthday" in beautiful two-part harmony as dessert arrived (see #18).
18) Homemade gooseberry tart (with berries from her garden) topped with schlagsahne (that's German for real whipped cream). Yum!
19) Perfect weather all day long -- sunny, low humidity, blue skies -- aaaahh! (Thanks, Mother Earth!)
20) Birthday Skype call from my husband, who...
21) ...revealed where he had hidden a card and presents before departing.
22) Voicemail birthday message from my brother and his family...and later a conversation with them.
23) Cards and presents from family, including...
24) ...a beautiful scarf -- in our wedding colors (light green and lavender purple) -- from my sister.
25) Ice cream for dinner. Birthday rules. Haagen-Dazs swiss vanilla almond. How did I used to eat a whole pint in one sitting in college??? (H-D, you can thank me for this shameless plug with a free year's supply, hint-hint.)
26) A boatload of birthday greetings and wishes from Facebook friends and family!
27) Happy Birthday/Father's Day call with Dad and Mom during which they shared memories of the Father's Day afternoon decades ago when I first entered the world.
28) Put my feet up and watched Chronicles of Narnia. Can I have my own personal Aslan?
29) Gemini b-day Horoscope highlights: "Reach for your dream by working hard at your job and developing goals during the next 4-6 weeks." Exactly what I plan to do. Full immersion writing period coming up. Time to crank out some serious words!
30) One word: Flow.
As midnight approached, I didn't want the day to end. But as I tweeted last night, if Day One of this new year was any indication, it's going to be a splendid year!
Thanks again to all of my friends and family who made my special day enjoyable, memorable, and filled with love!
