Birthdays and other things...

Yesterday was my birthday as I said. It was a good day. DH surprised me with a massage and pedicure appointment for the afternoon and we had a barbecue with my family. DH's sister is at our house right now helping out, so I was able to go to the spa and enjoy myself without having to worry about DH being overwhelmed at home with all three kids by himself. It was the best massage I have had in a long time, maybe ever. I really liked the lady's technique, she was able to get into the sore spots and help release knots without me feeling like I was in a lot of pain and tensing up.
The pedicure was pretty good too. My feet are so calloused and nasty on the bottom that the lady doing my pedicure seemed a bit horrified. She didn't seem to understand that there is not a lot of time in my day to do things like give myself a mini pedicure and take care of them properly. She suggested that I come for a pedicure at least once a month... yeah right, like that is going to happen! :) My feet look great from the top though, as you can see here.After that we had a BBQ at our house with my sister-in-law, our family, my parents and sister and brother-in-law. Oh, and Luther, my sister's dog was here too. It was so nice to spend time relaxing in the backyard, talking with family.
I am so thankful to DH for getting me such a great gift - not only of pampering, but of time to myself away. And for arranging the BBQ and taking care of the kids, and to my sister-in-law for all the help she has been, not only yesterday, but over the past days of her visit. It has been so nice to have help and not feel like it is DH and I in this all alone.
It is interesting that in my mind 33 is an important year. I was 7 when my dad turned 33, and for some reason it was one of his favorite years ever. Since then, it has always been a year that sticks out in my head. When I was younger there were things that I wanted to accomplish before I turned 33, and having all my kids was one of them. I wanted 3, but when we had R when I was 30, I figured that there would only be 2 kids, and that might happen before I was 33. Well, this pregnancy turning out to be twins made my dream come true! I am thankful for that - sometimes, even when you plan and plan, God takes and makes things happen a little differently and it is good. Very good.
Speaking of my kiddos, here are some pictures of them yesterday all dressed nicely for Mommy's birthday.

K looking pretty in her first dress.

A, a little dolly!

R and Daddy - good looking guys! And all smiles too!

All in all it was a great birthday. I enjoyed it immensely.