Joyeux Anniversaire à Paris!

i turned 35 this month.

35.

where did the time go?  i'm still 24 right?  i still feel 24 anyway.  it's so strange to think back to when i was actually 24 and how i viewed 35 year olds...think about it.  think about the age that you are now and bump up 11 more years!  seems like a LONG way away, doesn't it?  but yet, we look back 11 years ago and it doesn't seem so far away.

age is just a number, right?  that's what we tell people who might be sad about their age.  but i'm not.  i'm really proud to be 35.  i've accomplished a great deal and i know that i still have a lot of "umph" left in me to accomplish so much more.

35.

i turned 35 this month.

for my birthday, we decided to go to Paris!  i mean, it's only a short little hour flight, so why not!?  (i still can't get over how close all these cool places are around here!)  we flew out the day before my birthday and i was so excited to know that, not only was my birthday going to be the big 35th, but that we were going to be in Paris....AND my birthday fell on friday the 13th this year!  sweet!  my favorite birthdays are on friday the 13th.  my lucky number is 13.  i was thrilled!

after pulling together a major list "dos and don'ts" for the children over the weekend, i set off to the airport to meet heath.  he was flying in from the states, it had been one week since we'd seen one another.  romantic?  yes.  weird?  yes.

no children.

no diapers.

no sippy cups.

no complainers.

let's just take a moment to celebrate THAT!

okay, so we met up, talked about the weather, work, children.....yadda yadda and then it hit me.  we are alone.  i had a split second to tear up a bit and then i became really excited!  WE ARE ALONE!  


to all the moms out there, i will not let you down on this one.  i will appreciate if for all it's worth, i promise!

once we landed and we were driving in the cab.  i looked out at this amazing city that so many have talked about.  so many movies made from here.  it was crazy to think that i was getting the chance to be here.  i looked out the window and thought about the children, the upcoming weekend, my birthday....my birthday.  how fun.  i kept forgetting that it was my birthday!  i thought about the things that i wanted to do on that particular day.  i wanted to see Moulin Rouge, i wanted to try escargot, i wanted to get some uninterrupted sleep and....i wanted to call my mom.


 here is my thought about birthdays.  they are really anniversaries for the moms out there.  think about it.  we don't remember that big day, do we?  thank goodness, it would be shocking to come out naked, cold and screaming and then have a memory of it!  i, for one, am glad we don't remember it.  but our mothers do.  she remembers every last bit of it.  she remembers what she was doing that day, what she felt like, her fears, her excitement, the anticipation....she remembers.  so as much as we think this day is so special for us, i dare say that it's just as special, if not more, for our moms.

so when friday the 13th, my big day arrived, we took a private tour of the city, i ate and LOVED escargot, not only did we see Moulin Rouge but i was called on stage to perform!  (don't worry Daddy, i did not go topless!) and yes, i called my mom.  and i cried as i spoke to her.  she sounded so close but it was strange to think how far away she was at that moment.

35.  you just don't ever grow up too much for your mama.  she'll always be Mama.

she told me that she and daddy were reminiscing about the day i was born.  what they were doing, how they felt, the weather.....it was so nice to know they were celebrating her anniversary.

you know, i looked up Happy Birthday in french and "Joyeux Anniversaire" came up.  joy? anniversary?  pretty close.  maybe the french have it right.


one day, when i am much older.  i want to know that my children are enjoying life, that they are working hard and living hard and loving hard.  i want to hear about them doing fun things, exciting things.  i want to hear when they are bored or sad, excited, scared or confused.  i want to know.  i also want them to call me on their birthdays.  because no one will appreciate that day more than me.

there are three days that go down as three of the best days in my 35 years of existence.





one of those days, the birth of our twins, Reese and Maddox.
2 premature babies born way too early. six weeks too soon.  i was scared, confused, nervous, excited, tired, hopeful....
"these look like tiny squirrels!"

one of those days, the birth of our Zane.
a big ole bouncing baby boy born just as planned.  i was calm, easy, fun and funny, making jokes along the way.
"he looks like he's been in a boxing match!"  "what a beautiful baby."

one of those days, the birth of our Echo.
...in another country, so far away.  some amazing mom had thoughts of her own.  she gave her baby life.  and then gave her away two months later.  to have a better life.  for this little child, i don't need that one "birth" day.  because i get all of her other days.  and i get her phone calls when she turns 35.  lucky me.
blessed am i.

                                      Happy Birthday in Paris!  Joyeux Anniversaire a Paris!