When I woke up this morning, I was already 63!

That alone takes the edge off having a birthday! I honestly don't mind birthdays at all as I am just thrilled to be having one.

Mine actually started two days ago or more. We tend to prolong our celebrations in this family as long as we possibly can. I started getting cards in the mail last Sat (and one from my pal Janet Miller 2 wks ago so she said she wouldn't forget...lol)

On Monday, E and I hit a nursery that we know has wonderful trees and large shrubs and exchanged crepe myrtle trees for our birthdays. We are planning on putting them between the sidewalk and the street in front of our house. We are getting started on a major redo on the front of the house (hedge down, fence up and side walk and porch paved with same stones as the walk way in the back). This pic of E gives a whole new meaning to "going green"





Fast forward to yesterday: After I spent the day with Kristen's second graders making scrapbooks, I hit the library and then home. With nothing planned for supper, we decided to catch an early dinner at Peggy O'Neil's in Old Palm Harbor, one of our favorite watering holes and food places. The restaurant had sent me a free entree coupon for my birthday good any day this month so off we went.





It also turned out to be Twofer Tuesday at Peggy's so we started with beer for E and house chardonnay for me. We had a small cup each of the beer and cheddar cheese soup (oh my) and then split two appetizers: mozzarella sticks and a warm crab dip with pita slices.

Now, being a good WW gal and knowing that E was going to be cooking for me all day today (I picked out 6 different things for him to make and we are grazing all day...and his challenge was to make them as low point as he could), E and I both requested the to go boxes as everything but the soup arrived. WW has taught me to then put half of my meal in the to go box before I eat. Even though E is not strictly counting points, by cooking WW for me, he has taken off almost 25 lbs himself. We'll have our left overs tomorrow.


For supper, E had the Jamaican Jerk Shrimp over assorted greens and I had the Mediterranean salad which I love.




And I want to add a few words here about the amazing mothers and grandmother who volunteer in my daughter's class. One day they were all talking with Kristen about butterfly gardens and Kristen remarked that she could not longer get down to weed hers being so pregnant and that Chris had been so busy with his classes and rehabbing the guest bath that the garden was a mess. These incredible women rallied and, without Kristen knowing it, went over to her house while Chris was off, tackled the garden, weeded, bought new plants and yesterday revealed their plotting to her with a bird house that all her kids had signed. Thank you ladies for your kindness!

And many thanks to all the people who started my day off with a bang with the happy birthdays on face book...wow! I thank each and every one of you so very much.

And now for my first course this morning: roasted asparagus and baby artichokes with lemon-oregano aioli.