Golden Birthday - I'm 31!

I've waited 31 years for this: my chance to have a "golden birthday," when I turn 31 on December 31. Now it's here. I'm getting old ;-)

My parents have been visiting my family and me for the past three weeks, much to our delight. It has been a terrific time to catch up with them on details we seemed to miss on the phone. And of course, it's absolutely wonderful to see them grow closer to the kids. We've enjoyed...

• baking cookies together
• watching Grandma make a "candy train"
• singing together while Grandpa played guitar
• going on river-walks and playing in playgrounds
• reading books together at home and in the library
• celebrating Santa Lucia Day on December 13
• celebrating Ethan's first birthday
  
• Grandpa swinging the kids upside-down while singing "Hickory dickory dock"
• putting a puzzle together with Grandma
• caroling in a local nursing home
• watching "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" together
• observing Advent and enjoying Grandpa's light-the-smoke trick
• saying goodnight with hugs and kisses (Ethan loves the snuggles!)
• hearing Grandma's beautiful whistling
• Grandpa's gift of a kid-friendly MP3 player
• hearing Grandma's laughter
• laughing at Grandpa's jokes
• visiting with Aunt Beth
• starting a new tradition of a Christmas Eve fondue dinner

And as an adult, I've appreciated my mom's help with dishes, laundry and mending, and my dad's help with many computer and career issues. I only wish they were here longer. Do you think I can somehow kidnap them and keep them for months?

At the last minute, my parents left our house for Charlotte, NC, the morning of Friday Dec. 28, to attend to some unfinished car business (see my dad's blog on the left ... ecwaevangel.org). Steve and I decided later that day that we too would drive to Charlotte, leaving Naomi and Josiah with Steve's parents. We got here on Saturday afternoon and have had a fun two days relaxing with Mom and Dad (and Ethan) before they leave us for good.

Sunday we celebrated my birthday (a day early) by eating dinner at an Ethiopian restaurant (so yummy!) and having ice-cream at Marble Slab Creamery. We also played San Juan and visited Border's bookstore (a novelty for us country folk!) I enjoyed almost every minute of it!

Now I've stayed up insanely late, trying to advertize my tutoring on various tutor-locator websites. How will I manage to drive back to Lexington today? And stay up til midnight to bring in the new year???