hello, lovely

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KATYBUG!!
[even though it's officially the 12th. Auntie Manda's a spaz, and didn't post this earlier. *lol*]

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today was a blast. i woke up and immediately threw laundry in the dryer and waited impatiently for the clothes to dry. after that, i went out an did my shopping. I managed to get presents for my sercret pal, gas for my Sophie (uh, the car), a magazine holder thingy & a gift card for Katy [i couldn't find a toy that seemed perfect enough. they all seemed to "old" or too "young", and i didn't want her to end up with 12 of the same exact thing, and i didn't want to buy her all clothes, so i figure this way, she can get whatever she wants, and they don't have to mail or carry it on an airplane back to Colorado. lol], and the biggest card of the party (seriously. and it was a Strawberry Shortcake card-which was the theme of the party- and was about the size of an 8×10 piece of paper… actually, more like 6×10 .. perfect, much?).

after the party, we all split up for a couple of hours. i went to the mall, flirting with the idea of getting my hair cut at the spiffy hair salon there. it’s too expensive, and I didn’t really know what I wanted done. actually, that’s not even really true. i want them to cut it like I always get it cut when I cut it. *lol* because that’s cute. but i don’t maintain it. but it’s cute. lol since i didn’t do that, i went home and uploaded the pictures, and put them on a cd for dina.

i left about 6:30 to meet everyone at Cheddars at 7, and we waited and waited and waited. our group ended up getting split up for a good portion of the time (company policy against putting more than 2 tables together or something?? whatever). i think we ran a foursome off at one point too.  after dinner (i had 2 drinks–a mudslide martini? and a strawberry margarita–but no dessert…how do we go to CHeddar’s and not get the Cookie Monster?!), we all left the restaurant so we could go to Main St., and I had to detour for a bit, but I finally made it out there. So I was fashionably late… so what? I was the first one to Katy’s bday party! I had to make up for it somehow! eheheh  I just kind of stood around. Dina tried dancing with me a few times, and I played along once, but really I just had to laugh.  I like to dance in the privacy, and I do stress the word privacy, of my own home.  i finally bailed about 12:40 or so. John and April were leaving, so I took that as my cue to leave too. I was really tired at the time, and I didn’t want to walk out alone, but now that I’m home, I’m kinda awake. *lol*

The one bad thing about 3 day weekends is it really effs up my sleeping schedule.

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Dina:  All joking and guilt trips aside, it was soooooo awesome to see you again. I shouldn’t speak for everyone, but I know that we all love you sooooooo much, and we miss you a TON. Which is actually sort of funny, since we see you about the same amount now that we did when you were here [or at least I do, ahah], so really it’s kind of the same (give or take a 1000 miles. eheh). It’s that we KNOW you’re not a few miles up George anymore that makes it harder.  We’ll have to get on planning that Spring Break trip.. ;)  ROAD TRIP!! muahah.

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Tomorrow Today’s schedule includes lots of DVD watching and lots of knitting. I really have a bug up my butt to clean, but now that I’ve said that, it probably won’t happen. Now? I’m off to crash.

For those of you who don’t stalk Flickr, you can view my birthday pics here:  http://flickr.com/photos/hellolovely/sets/72157594350178650/  The “weird” pictures are when Teresa had custody of the camera while we were driving down to Waxahachie.

Stacy’s birthday pics are already up, as well. I haven’t named and done all my little comments on them yet, but you can look at them at least, here: http://flickr.com/photos/hellolovely/sets/72157594363372341/

Anyone else excited about Friday?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STACY!!!!!!!!

See you tonight, girlie.

… and I would love to GIVE you birthday details, but *I* am so busy with work being busy and taking Joe to the airport and leaving a bit early and all that, that I had to bring work home today. And I’m about to get going on that. But really? All I want to do is go to sleep.

I will tell you this, though - I had a lovely birthday. And thank you for everyone who commented and/or emailed and/or called and/or came to dinner on Saturday. THank you to Teresa and April for coming to Screams with me. THank you to my mom and Charles and my sister for dinner on Sunday. Thank you, most especially, to my darling Joe for somehow managing to survive a dinner with my friends, traffic, and haunted houses on 2 hrs sleep in almost 2 days and for sitting through Marie Antoinette - I’m sorry it sucked.

♥

FINALLY! It’s finally here!! I”ve been 26 years old for exactly 3 hrs and 20 minutes. (I was born at 6:37am. by the time this posts, it’ll be after that… but when I started typing, it was 9:57!)

I love my birthday. I love all birthdays, actually, but mine… well, it’s mine. *lol*

My birthday actually started on Monday when I received a package from my October Birthday Swap Pal. I tried to be good, but well.. how do you do that when you have a big box that you know is filled with all kinds of goodies staring at you, mocking you?

Tuesday night, my sister took me out for a birthday dinner to Tin Star. I’ve been trying to get her to go the last few times we’ve hung out, but we ended up not, so she emailed me while we were at work and was like “sometime this week, i’m taking you out for a birthday dinner.” It ended up being that night, which was great, because I didn’t want to miss the get together at Shoemaker and Hardt (where we meet every Wednesday), or my TV on Thursday. After dinner, we went to Cold Stone Creamery for some ice cream.

Wednesday, I made it to S&H for the knitting get-together, and it ended up being a good thing because Becky has a present for me!

The yarn is from http://handspunanddyedtoo.etsy.com, and it’s gorgeous!!! Not sure what it’s color name is, but it’s been dubbed Sunset by moi!

Thursday, I received a card from my aunt which I was good enough not to open. I love the cards as much as any present…but I’d set the mail on my table and never went back to it. Oops. So I opened it a few minutes ago, and it’s HILARIOUS My aunt sends the coolest cards. ehehh On the front it says “THINGS I’VE LEARNED: A universal remote control does not, in fact, allow you to control the universe.” On the inside it says, “I did not get you a universal remote controle for your birthday because, believe me, you’d just be disappointed.” Thanks, Aunt Barb, for sparing me the disappointment. It’s the greatest gift of all.

Friday, I ended up getting to open my present from Dina at work! A day early! Since I’m now the new party planner person of the group, she figured she’d help me get organized w/ a Franklin Covey organizer, and some other fun stuff.

Her card, so far, is my favorite of all of them. It says “Fire!” on the front and has a picture of a fire extinguisher. When you open it up, it says “Oh, sorry, it’s just your cake!” lol In the picture is my new organizer (pretty pink and brown!), some pens and mechanical pencils and stamps & an ink pad and some stickers. One says Rock Star, the other says I ♥ Me, the other says Over Achiever, and the last one says FRESH w/ a pic of a Lemon on it. Teresa said I should post the OverAchiever sticker at work. *lol* I’m like, I’m not an over-achiever!! TC put Dina on speakerphone while I opened my presents, and she got to meet half the office via speakerphone. So thank you, Dina!

I was also hoping to come home to a package from my Sockret Pal, but it wasn’t there, so I’m hoping it shows up today. She really wanted it to get here for my bday, so we’ll see if she made it. I did, however, come home to birthday cards from my grandparents and Bev, the runner of the October B-day Swap. My grandparents’ card was really sweet. It says “Granddaughter, got you something special for your birthday …” Then you open it and it says, “But how do you mail a hug?” AWwww There was also a bit of yarn birthday money in there, so thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for that! Bev’s card was really cute and says “Happy Birthday” on the front, and when you open it, it says “Today, may your little part of the world be perfect.” How sweet is that? Don’t worry, it will be!

Today has been all about phone calls. Joe called me (while I was sleeping, and I didn’t get it..oops) and sang Happy Birthday to me on my exact-minute birthday. How cute is that? I sure do love him. eheh My mom and my sister also called and wished me a happy birthday!

That’s all for now - It’s now an hour after I started typing this up, so that’s enough time spent on this. I’ll post pictures of the cards later, and any other goodies I might end up getting! Joe arrives about 1:30, but I think I’m going to leave a little earlier and grab something to eat and pick up some thank you cards. I’m going to have a lot of people to thank!

I just realized what today is, and I don’t really know why I remember this birthday as vividly as I do. Maybe because he was the first born of the group… maybe it’s because his birthday’s a week before mine… maybe because he was a sweet little kid who grabbed a little piece of my heart and just wouldn’t let go, even though we only got him for a short time. Whatever the reason, today is his birthday… so happy birthday, little man.

Happy birthday to one of my oldest friends, Scott! Dude.. you’re OLD now. ♥ ya!

http://www.GlitterMaker.com/ - Glitter Graphics

If you want moving commentary about the events that happened 5 years ago, you need to go elsewhere.

While I feel for everyone who had to go through any one of those events, and lost their loved ones directly in the crashes or indirectly through the “War on Terror”, this isn’t going to be about that.

Today, I’m planning on celebrating the lives of people I know and love who were born on this same date, several years before the events that have left a black mark on their special day.

To my former co-worker and my serenading boss, I wish you a very happy birthday.

(Also, go see the inauguration of Teresa’s new sewing blog, Sew Happy. She’s turning into the Me of Sewing, except she has more toys to play with in her hobby. Mine is just sticks and string - she gets fabric and machines and stuff. ;)  )

It seems I’ve turned into a vampire, just like JessaBelle. I can’t sleep, and I know I need to. I, technically, wake up for work in 5 hrs… and I really NEED to wake up in the morning because I have to take a shower. Fun.

Anyway, went to Cheddar’s tonight for Dennis’ birthday (Happy Birthday, Dennis!!), and it was lots of fun. Stacy, Dennis and I kinda relived, and retold, about 100 times in the span of the 3 hrs we were all together, the story of the time the three of us went down to Deep Ellum to bar hop. It was highly amusing… at least to the three of us (Do you know where the reggae bar is!?!?.. hahahaah). I got home about 10:30, and decided to check my email… then I wanted to wind down with some tv while I knit. Bad idea, only because I decided to wind down with CSI on DVD.. and once I start watching it, I have to finish the whole disk. Soo.. that’s why I’m up now.

I think I talked to Joe for 2.5 seconds today while I was at the restaurant. I was making sure my phone was on silent in case anybody called (my ring is loud because I use it as a back up alarm, and I don’t want to change it everytime I go into a different environment so it’s always either on silent/vibrate or really loud) whiel we were at dinner, so I wouldn’t have to silence it. I miss him.. it seems like we hardly ever talk anymore. lol sure, I see him on the weekends, but during the week, we don’t ever talk, almost. ok, that’s not entirely true, but our schedules don’t mesh anymore like they did. i get home from work, with my phone still on silent, and i miss the 39782 calls that he’s made to me because my purse is in the other room or something. it’s frustrating.

I’m about to go to sleep, but I really don’t feel like it. Work’s kind of sucked and sorta been kinda funny all at the same time, but that’s really only because my boss cracks me up. I think I talk to him a total of 5-10 min a day, and sometimes less, but the calls always either start funny or end funny, and that helps.

OH! one more thing, then I’m really going to bed. I got my Secret Santa present from last Christmas today. I don’t even remember why we never got together to do our Secret Santa stuff, but This is what I get for rambling at 2am. Gah. *feels like a giant ass* Now I remember why we didn’t end up doing the Christmas Party. Dina was apparently my Santa, and she got me a corkscrew set because way back when… I was telling everyone how Joe and I bought a bottle of wine (haha. I typed whine. lol.. you can tell I love the stuff… ;), and we didn’t have a corkscrew, so he had to get out the screwdriver and try prying it out that way….. so now we have a corkscrew. It’s a bigass complicated looking thing, but I’ll take a picture of it tomorrow when I take update photos of my knitting. Christmas in July… woohoo!

Time for bed. ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz….