PARTY!

It's my birthday, so feel free to treat yourself a guilt-free piece of cake today.

We partied as a family yesterday - Sunday being more convenient - but today I'm going to treat myself to a movie (Becoming Jane) and go out to lunch with a dear friend. Technically the semester begins today, but I don't teach on Monday, so I consider that my gift from the college.

Here are some things I consider highlights from my party yesterday:

GEEKIEST (read "coolest") GIFT:

Sorry to the rest of the geeks in the world. You will just have to be TOTALLY jealous! (For those of you who are non-geeks, the word is "Ni," which rhymes with knee. It is not "Hi.")

SWEETEST GIFT:

A harmonica "purchased" for me by my youngest son Caleb. He used tickets he won playing games at Papa John's Pizza to get this gift for me. He used his prize tickets for his mom. Totally sweet!!

GIFT FROM GREATEST DISTANCE:

A cool wooden mathy game from Mike and Amy in North Carolina. THANKS GUYS!

MOST ANTICIPATORY GIFT:

Magazine subscriptions to "Mental Floss" and "GAMES" - to find out I was getting these I opened a small gift which turned out to be a container of dental floss with the titles of these magazines written on the back. I can't wait to get my first issues!

TRUEST MOMENT OF JUSTICE:

I was the winner in the Rook game. It is MY birthday, so it's only fair, after all, that I win the game!

FUNNIEST MOMENT:

One of my sons - who shall be nameless (but who is one who has taken physics) was trying to light my candles - just two of them representing the digits of my age. He came close to burning his fingers before he had them both lit. He was holding the candle flame-down, and thus the flame was burning up the matchstick toward his fingers. He actually had to use 2 matches. When he had successfully lit both candles he was in such a hurry to blow out the match that it was still right next to the candles, and he blew them out too! All his work was in vain! (Well, it was funnier as it was happening than it is here in writing.) Perhaps, like his mother, he should stick with the theoretical rather than the applied sciences.

FUNNIEST MOMENT RUNNER-UP:

Our youngest son looked across the table at his Dad and said, "That word is spelled wrong on your shirt." My husband was at a Christian Men's conference earlier this weekend and today was wearing a T-shirt he received there for being a monthly contributor or "partner" to this group (which also shall be nameless). The word "partner" was spelled "parnter." This organization has certainly given out thousands of these shirts at conferences all across the nation. I wonder if they are aware of this but are just hoping people won't notice since it would be too expensive to change. Too bad their proof-reader didn't catch what a 10 year old did.

THANKS FAMILY! THAT'S MY KIND OF PARTY!

Special thanks to David for the yummy barbecued chicken meal and the homemade chocolate cake and chocolate frosting! :-)

PS HAPPY BIRTHDAY NETHE!! PARTY ON!!