The snow is coming down like crazy. I don't enjoy Ohio weather. Here it is, nearly the middle of April and it's 36 degrees and snowing. Unbelievable.

I told Brent the other day that I want him to go to travel nursing SOON. I am so tired of the cold and snow. Anytime the mercury dips below 65 degrees or so, it's too cold for me.

Thankfully, in 23 days we will be in Florida where it is nice and sunny and WARM (I hope). I need a break from cold and wind and snow.

I cut six inches off of my hair on Sunday. I like the way it turned out, but I probably will grow it out again. I feel more feminine when my hair is long.

Brent bought me some sunglasses from H&M and I love them.

We have saved up enough spending money for our vacation.(YAY!)

We have two more park hopper tickets to buy, but my next check will be more than enough to cover them.

I need to buy some clothes for myself for vacation. I bought the kids stuff, and Brent has stuff. Only one pair of capris from last summer fit me, the rest are too big, so I need to buy at least one more pair. I have a few dresses, which is what I usually wear in the summer. I don't wear shorts. I don't even own a pair of shorts...wait I do have one pair of tailored, knee-length shorts that I might wear....maybe.

Okay, I started this entry early this morning and I've been typing (working) and distracted. I'm hitting the save button now before I get distracted again and accidentally delete it.

The wine tasting was WAY fun! I had such a good time and drank some really good wine. They had three different whites (white is too sweet for me) and three reds (more my taste). I was loving the red zin that we tried, and Brent bought the last bottle they had. We also were gifted with two bottles of Spanish red as party favors.

Amy's expression when we all yelled surprise was priceless. I thought her jaw would literally hit the floor. Some French restaruant catered, but I didn't eat any of it. Brent said the lobster bisque and the warm brie on baguette was delish. I stuck with wine. Amy loves my cheesecake so I made her a turtle cheesecake and we also got her a $50 GC to Victoria's Secret. Two fun, girly gifts. She was really happy with them.

Fun times, although I had some raging cramps by the time we left. Stupid uterus. I came home, popped 800 mg of Motrin and went to bed.

Today is freezing cold and snowing. Monday it was 80. Today it's 27 and snowing. Ohio has to have the worst weather in the US, I swear. I'm holding out for Tuesday when it's supposed to start warming up again.

We went to the Disney Store at the mall this afternoon and bought three out of five park tickets for WDW. I almost passed out when she told me my total was $750, and that's only for three of us. Luckily I have a couple more pay days to buy the other two tickets we need and I'm sooooo excited to go back I didn't mind blowing my entire paycheck in one place. Brent bought me a cute pair of sunglasses from H&M, which just opened in our mall.

Benign Birthday

I remember as a kid being so excited about my birthday. I would count the days for months ahead and mark them off on the calendar. Adding another year to my age was so exciting. The first birthday I remember being super excited about was my 13th. I could not wait to be a teenager. I thought everything would be suddenly so much more exciting. It was for a while, but then the novelty wore off.

The next milestone was 16. I wanted to drive so badly. Most of my friends turned 16 before I did and were driving their cars to school. I really, really wanted to be one of them. My mom took me to take my driving test. I passed both portions pretty easily, so she let me drive home. I remember coming up to a light and she said "Okay, now you need to turn left." I panicked and said "But I don't know HOW to turn left! I've never turned left before!" She calmly explained that I just needed to turn the wheel gently and then let the car right itself, just like a right turn. She didn't even freak out when I turned right in front of the oncoming traffic without yielding. She just (again calmly) explained that I needed to yield the right of way because I didn't have an arrow. I kept wondering what I had learned in all of those driver's ed classes. Whatever it was, as soon as I got behind the wheel for real, it left me.

Twenty one wasn't a big deal for me. I didn't drink and didn't care that I was legal, so that one was pretty uneventful in terms of milestones. I was married and about to give birth to my first child, so I was more focused on that than anything.

Yesterday I turned 37. Not a milestone in any terms, but another year of living and learning. This is the year I've vowed to be less shy and introverted. I'll be put to the test tonight when we attend a birthday party for a friend. This is the wine tasting thing I blogged about a month or so ago. I don't care what happens, I'm NOT swishing and spitting. So what was my birthday like? I worked a little, my kids baked me a cake, Brent bought me four pounds (yes pounds) of Cadbury chocolate, a carrot cake from my favorite bakery (the kids' cake was better) and a new cell phone. My dad gave me some money, and I got a lot of cards in the mail from friends and relatives. It was a perfect day.

I thought of my birth mother as I do every year on my birthday and said a prayer for her. I hope that she is happy and healthy and that she knows Jesus. I thought of my own mom and how much I miss her call first thing in the morning, her lovely voice singing Happy Birthday to me.