It's all about Worm!

I loved the custom cake.

A little Background: My nickname is Worm. Sorry, no wild and crazy story from my youth behind it. My name is Angelena, everyone calls me Angel which is often misspelled as Angle, Mary Smith used to call me Angle Worm which Roberta shortened to Worm. I think Henry and Roberta are the only two people that call me Worm and it always makes me smile!

My 30th birthday turned out to be fantastic (and was not at all traumatizing)! It was my first ever surprise party (I threw Henry a surprise party for his 30th so I think he felt a little pressure to do something special for mine). The kids were let in on it since neither of them has ever given up a secret they were told to keep. However, for some reason, Paige just couldn't help herself this time. She would start telling me things but then would realize she shouldn't. She would cover her mouth, "Oh, I've said too much!". It was cute to see her struggle with wanting to tell but knowing that she shouldn't. Blake, on the other hand, didn't give anything away. Paige must have had some of the details boggled in her mind so the "clues" she was letting slip actually just confused me. When they yelled "Surprise" at my birthday party, I was completely surprised.

There was a great showing considering it was a Wednesday night. Around 30 people came to celebrate. Some of us may have celebrated a bit too much as the next day was not without some pain and discomfort. It turns out that there was very little photographic evidence of the event, and that may be a good thing. I want to thank my Party Planners Roberta, Sara, and Henry as well as all of the people that were able to attend. It really meant a lot to me. Thanks, Thanks, Thanks.

Me and Roberta

I love Big Buck Hunter.

Of course, this is the only picture of me and Henry...nice!

A few of the party-goers.

You know what they say about payback. That's right Mother Nature, you better watch your back!

Frosty says, "April Fools!"

Today is the day that my friends and family have been teasing me about for months. It is my big 3-0. That's right, I'm an April Fool's baby. However, I feel it is safe to say that the joke is, in fact, on ALL of us. Yes, Mother Nature pulled a fast one on us Minnesotans. Again. Correct me if I am wrong, but I do believe this has been one of the longest, coldest, and snowiest winters ever. The snow started in November and is still going strong in April. We had weeks of waaaay below zero air temperatures. There were wind chills so insanely cold that schools were closed - multiple days. So, while it was fun to have a traditional, good old-fashioned, Minnesota winter like the ones from my childhood, I must say enough is enough. I am officially putting my foot down.

Then again, maybe the joke is just on me. See, my life has always been devoid of April Fool's jokes. I guess people, rightly so, didn't think it was appropriate to play pranks on someone on their birthday. Maybe I had this coming?

It really is humorous because it may or may not be common knowledge that snow removal causes me rage. It is a feeling I can't really describe aside from the boiling blood in my veins, the snot dripping from my nose, my hair frozen from sweat, and the utterances of profanity that I try to keep quiet enough for the neighbors not to hear. But today was different. It is my birthday and I was determined to find the humor in this. I did what I have avoided doing this entire winter, I operated the snowblower. Yes, I operated the snowblower for about 10 minutes - until I broke it. In fact, I broke it in such a way, that I was unsure how to even turn it off. The ignition switch was gone. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find the missing parts this spring when the snow melts - HA, HA, HA. This is perfect time to say how much I love our neighborhood. Our neighbor came right over to help (after he was done laughing I'm sure). Our cul-de-sac rules. No offense to any other cul-de-sac residents out there, but ours is pretty darn great.

Freed of my snow removal duties, I had some time to play in the snow with Paige. I must say, we (I) made a fantastic snowman. I guess this spring snowstorm isn't the worst thing in the world.

Think Spring

Well, I won't hold my breath...we do live in Minnesota after all...but has spring sprung? I fear I may be too optimistic since there have been some serious temperature fluctuations over the last couple weeks. I can't help but post some of our outdoor time from some of the warmer days we've had in March. It sure has been nice to get out of the house after this long, cold winter.

Paige was a natural on the rollerblades
(a vast improvement from last summer).

Blake playing hockey.
Did I mention that Blake likes hockey?

Paige hangin' out with Jack.

The sandbox is a fantastic place for Moon Sand...
It makes cleanup a breeze.

Blake and Henry had their bows out
for the first time this year.

Ready, Aim...

"I'm pretty tired. I think I'll go home now."- Forrest Gump

Angel on the Road

(My Photoshop skills are a work in progress.)

The weather finally warmed up enough for me to run outside.  I have been looking forward to this for weeks and am so excited.  I am not a year-round runner.  My favorite running temperature ranges from around 40 degrees to 70 degrees so I put on the most miles in the Spring and Fall.  My first day out this year was Saturday.  I ran 6 miles in less than an hour.  Needless to say, I was really pleased with myself all the way up until the next morning.  It was not a pretty sight.  I was having serious issues walking down stairs and sometimes just walking, period.  My quads were SCREAMING at me and I decided I should take a rest day on Sunday.  Google, being a wealth of all kinds of knowledge, led me to the recommendation of a "recovery run" on Monday.  I figured it would either be the best medicine or it would leave me completely unable to walk.  Three very slow miles later, I felt great.  I was craving a run on Tuesday but couldn't find the time.  Wednesday morning I decided to do the same 6 mile run from earlier in the week.  After 5 miles, I decided I still had a couple more miles in me...so I kept on keepin' on.  After 7 miles, my legs seemed to have gained the ability to speak, and they weren't saying very nice things.  Apparently they didn't think the added mileage was a great idea.  By mile 7.5, my legs had convinced my brain that I was completely insane.  The great thing about running outside is that there is built in motivation.  The motivation being that unless you are up for a little hitch-hiking, you have to finish what you started.  So to make a long story longer, my grand total for the day was just shy of 8.5 miles, my longest run ever!  I already can't wait to hit the pavement tomorrow.  

Mom, It spoke to me.

Notice anything different?

Paige saw a little girl getting her ears pierced at the mall recently and thought it might be something she would want to do.  Henry and I weren't so sure.  He likes the idea of a tomboy.  I own three pair of earrings (I only actually wear one pair.).  If I wore a bracelet on my wedding day, that would have been the last time (I don't remember.).  The last time I wore a necklace, I was pregnant with Paige (I think I own two but neither has ever been worn out of the house.).  She doesn't get it from me, but I have no objections to Paige wanting to be a girly-girl. She has been on a jewelry kick lately and thinks Claire's is a wonderland.  Last week she brought me a bracelet and asked if she could have it.  I didn't really think it was necessary until Paige stated her case, "Mom, it spoke to me."  She made me chuckle...so I bought it (figuratively and literally).  I am sure she heard that line on a movie: no points for originality but definitely points for style and delivery.

Well, yesterday Paige and I were at the mall making some returns when she asked if she could get her ears pierced.  I said we needed to call Daddy first.  He reluctantly gave the go-ahead. She was so excited and so nervous.  It was cute because I don't think I have ever seen her truly nervous before.  She was even shaking a little.  They did one ear at a time and Paige didn't flinch or make a peep for either side.  She said it only hurt a little.

Nervous Before

     

          Excited After  

I am indifferent about the new holes on her head, but it sure is fun to see my little girl so excited.  Paige wanted me to take pictures so everyone could see her new bling, pink of course.  She is already asking to go shopping for more earrings.  She was a bit disappointed when I told her she can't take the starters out for 6 weeks.  "Ugh, 6 weeks!"  I could have said 6 centuries and it would have elicited an identical response.  She doesn't understand how long that is but it sounds like an awful long time to have to wait to accessorize.