The Day of his Birth

I used to watch Gilmore Girls.  And in it, Lorelai used to begin her daughter's birthday by recounting the gory details of her birth.

I like this tradition, and so I try to keep it up with the Boy.

I don't put in the details that would scar him in any way.  I don't want him to end up on Oprah's couch, but I like to recount the general events surrounding the day of his birth.

And so, when he woke up that morning, I pulled him into bed with us and cuddled him close and told him all about the day he was born.

He pinched my nose and sat up saying, "G'OOOWWWN.  G'OOOWWWN.  G'OOOWWWN."  Which is Boy-ease for Get Down.  So I let him Get Down and we went in search of breakfast.

We were staying with my parents and I had given my mom free reign over the birthday festivities.  We were going out to Durham to do some preliminary apartment hunting and so wouldn't be around much during the day.

We headed out around 9 or 10 and drove around checking out various listings and making an early discovery that when renting in Chapel Hill or Durham you have two choices--luxury or slum.  There isn't much that's in between those choices.

We paused for lunch, and went to Twisted Noodles of course.  We got to sit near the fish tank which the Boy LOVED and Chris and I fed him off of our plates.  He loved it.  I reminded him that his love of Thai food was natural since I ate a metric ton of it while pregnant with him.

We drove around some more and finally gave up for the day and headed back to my parent's house.  The Boy napped in the car and Chris and I talked scenarios and options.

Once home, I helped mom make up the Boy's favorite foods--chicken fingers and FRIES.  Mom had made a beautiful marble cake and frosted it and decorated it and all things that I would not do because he is a TODDLER and will not care.  But it was lovely and sweet.

There were even presents!  Not from his parents because we were looking down the barrel of a MOVE and the child has enough toys to supply a 3rd world country for LIFE.  But his grandparents got him presents and his auntie and cousins brought him presents!

We lit the candles and my sweet cautious child was a little scared of them.  His cousins showed him how to blow them out and then we practiced 3 or 4 times.  Even now, if I ask him if he wants some cake he puffs out his cheeks and blows.  It's adorable.

He got his very own piece of cake--I took A LOT of grief for not giving my child a proper birthday cake for his first birthday so, just know--he got a HUGE piece for his second birthday!  Although, my funny Boy much preferred the ice cream.

Anyway.  It was all lovely and fun and a little bittersweet from my end.  I asked my mom if she ever felt bittersweet on our birthdays and she said, "No, why?"  And I said, I feel like I'm aging in an accelerated fashion.  Before I had the Boy, I felt like I was perpetually 25.  Things just seemed frozen there.  And now...I feel like every month ages me more and more, and watching him grow so fast is like watching myself get older and older.  Some days I feel 30 and some days I feel like I'm maybe 100.

My mom is my mom.  She smiled and said, "Yeah.  But he's worth it."

And she's right.  He is.