26 Ain’t Such a Big Deal . . . Or Is It?

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I don’t think 26 is supposed to be one of the “big years.” And nothing really crazy big happened on my birthday this year, but I did get lots of little celebration perks throughout the week and a whole lotta stuff that made it feel like a pretty big deal.

I think you’ll agree, but before we get started:

* “from” = I received the actual item from the individual.

* “courtesy” = I purchased the actual item with cash from the individual.

* “a la” = I enjoyed the actual item or experience due to the individual.

iPhone from Chris (Whoa, Baby!!!)

For the last month, Chris has been asking me, “What do you want for your birthday?” Apparently, I’m difficult to shop for . . . because I never have a wish list. Chris, on the other hand, is difficult to shop for because he always has a wish list . . . a super-expensive one. And he usually buys everything that we can afford right before his birthday or Christmas, which, by the way, are somewhat close together, which means I have to get creative twice in a row. The good news is, he’s worth it. But back to the b-day at hand, despite my inability to think of something “big enough” (as he put it), he came up with something. And, no, I’m not talking about the iPhone. He came up with something else, and he looked for it for weeks, right up until Friday, the day we officially celebrated my birthday, which officially happened last Tuesday. But he never found it. He found something kind of like it, but supposedly I “probably wouldn’t really like it.” I begged him to tell me what he had been looking for, but he wouldn’t budge. “What if I find it later and want to give it to you for Christmas?” he said. “What if you never find it and I never know what it is?” I replied. “Then you haven’t lost anything.” What?!? Does he know me at all? Knowledge is everything!

Anyway, we headed out the door 10 minutes late to get Caelyn over to the Bradshaws’ before we hit the theater, so Chris said I could open my presents in the car before dinner. In another attempt to save time, I decided to call Cristin with the verbal Caelyn Instruction Booklet, instead of giving her the low-down in person. I’d ask Chris to put my phone in his pocket so I wouldn’t have to keep up with a purse at the movies. He did. When I asked him to hand it to me so I could call Cristin, he gave me what I presumed to be his iPhone. I paused at the red rose wallpaper, “What’s this all about?”

“I don’t know. It’s just wallpaper,” he shrugged.

“Designers,” I thought.

Another pause, “Hey, why is Cristin’s the only number in your favorites list?”

“It’s not; I just picked her number because I knew you were going to call her,” he responded casually.

“Okay.”

Later, in the 30 minutes we had before The Bourne Ultimatum began, we decided to do presents and Chris pulled the same iPhone, MY iPhone, out of his pocket. Ah, geez. Yeah, I’m a little gullible, at least when it comes to the people I trust. But really, guys, I’m married to one heck of a liar. You should hear the charade he pulled off the weekend he went to ask my parents’ permission to marry me (without my knowledge), not to mention the proposal. It’s a good thing he’s an honest man too.

It’s also good that his “lies” ultimately amount to something really great for me.

(Look for a full, excited iPhone review in a future post. For now, just know that the coolness is almost too much to bear. And I might as well confess. I’ve been playing with it in bed, an act for which I’m sure I made fun of Chris not more than a week ago.)

Big Stack o’ iTunes Cards from Chris

(Album suggestions anyone?)

Real Simple Subscription from Chris

(Oh, how I’ve missed this!)

Women’s Health Subscription from Chris

(Well, I did ask to magically be in shape. I guess this is kinda close.)

Emerilware All-Clad 10″ Non-stick Skillet courtesy of Grandmom

(I use my non-stick skillets nearly everyday, so the ones from the very nice set we got for our wedding are pretty worn out. I’m exceptionally excited about having new ones. You should see the way these babies scramble eggs, and the clean up, whew!)

Emerilware All-Clad 8″ Non-stick Skillet courtesy of MeMa

(I’ll be ordering it soon.)

Cuisinart Red Cutting Boards courtesy of Grammie

(These aren’t really Cuisinart, but they are cutting boards. And they are red. And luxurious. Yep, you read that right. Luxurious. What can I say? I’m a mom with a pre-toddler. I chop endlessly. Or at least three times a day.)

J. Crew Thermal-lined Hoodie courtesy of my parents-in-law

(This one’s a little extravagant. But it’s also more than a little awesome and very long-awaited. The light-weight jacket is an essential wardrobe item in Texas, where the remnants of summer linger well into December. And my old one doesn’t really, um, compliment? my post-baby physique, not to mention it has gravy on the drawstring from Thanksgiving . . . two years ago.)

Old Navy Perfect T-shirts courtesy of my parents-in-law

(You have no idea how badly I need these. I didn’t name them, “Perfect Tees,” but, by golly, with actual length worth talking about and two-for-one prices, they might well be the most perfect things on earth. In fact, they’re so nice that I even bought some bonus ones!)

Miss Potter DVD from my parents

(My parents’ gifts came with explanations. This one, the story of Peter Rabbit creator Beatrix Potter, was to remind me that I have “the ability to create worlds with pens and paints.” Don’t get me wrong; that’s extra sweet. But I’m not sure when or why my family decided I can paint. Just a few months ago my sister asked me to paint something for Claire’s nursery. And now this? I promise; I’ve never painted before in my life. Doodle, yes. Paint, no. But who knows what the future holds?)

Emily Ray Hoopla Crystal Earrings from my parents

(The crystals on mine aren’t pink. They’re not really a color actually. It’s hard to explain. But I can tell you that they’re quite lovely and that my parents included these in my package because they wanted my day “to sparkle” and because they wanted me to know that I’m “beautiful inside and out.”)

Dressy Blouse courtesy of my parents

(This is what I was instructed to get. My mom even made a little construction paper blouse to demonstrate. I just haven’t found the real thing yet.)

Birthday Lunch a la Chris

(Hey, the magazine isn’t here yet.)

Birthday Evening DVD Watching a la Chris

Birthday Evening DVD Watching “Treat” a la Chris

(Again, the subscription hasn’t started yet!)

Birthday Weekend DVD Watching a la Chris

Birthday Weekend Apple TV Watching a la Chris

Birthday Week/Weekend Apple TV Watching a la Chris

Official Birthday Celebration Double Feature Part I a la Chris, babysitting provided by Andrew & Cristin

(Review forthcoming.)

Official Birthday Celebration Double Feature Part II a la Chris, babysitting provided by Andrew & Cristin

(Review forthcoming. In the meantime, check out what John has to say about it. I’m not as excited about the lovely females in the movie as he is, although they both did a good job, but otherwise we’re definitely eye-to-eye on this one!)

Official Birthday Celebration Dinner a la Chris, babysitting provided by Andrew & Cristin

(Cheddar biscuits! Caesar salad! Lobster pizza! Lobster! Cheesecake! Leftovers! Oh, my!)

Cards from Aunt Ellen, Uncle David & Aunt Mel, and Auntie Ann & Uncle Steve and a hilarious e-card picked by my two-year-old niece, Finley, and signed by the whole fam also helped make the week special. Phone calls from the David Johnsons, whose children sang the longest-ever version of “Happy Birthday” on my voice mail; my sister, who wanted to make me a carrot cake FROM SCRATCH when we were supposed to visit two weekends ago but didn’t due to Caelyn’s cold that’s still hanging on and who says she stumbled upon a massive deal and got me a present that she never would’ve otherwise (Jen LOVES a bargain), but isn’t going to mail it because that’s not such a great deal; both sets of parents; and my grandmom sure didn’t hurt either.

So maybe 26 is a bigger deal than I thought. Or maybe I’m just spoiled. Or maybe, just maybe, I’ve got the best family this side of the Red River. Make that BOTH sides of the Red River, and I think you may have nailed it.

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